Performance Information
This section normally shows how the Funds total return has varied from year to year, along with a broad-based market index for reference. Because the Fund has not commenced operations as of the date
of this prospectus, there is no past performance to report.
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Investment management
Investment advisor
- Salient Advisors, L.P. (Salient Advisors, or the Advisor). Salient Advisors is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Salient Partners, L.P.
(Salient).
Portfolio management
Ajay Mehra
Director of Equities, Salient; Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception.
Lee Partridge, CFA
- Chief Investment Officer, Salient; Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception.
Purchase and sale of fund shares
Subject to certain exceptions, the minimum initial
investment requirement for Class A and Class C shares of the Fund is $2,500 and the minimum initial investment requirement for Class I shares of the Fund is $1,000,000. There are no subsequent investment requirements for any class of shares of
the Fund. You may redeem shares of the Fund on any business day by mail: Salient MF Trust, P.O. Box 182607, Columbus, Ohio 43218-2607; or by calling the Funds transfer agent at: 1-866
- 667-9228.
Taxes
The Funds distributions are
taxable, and will be taxed as ordinary income and/or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account. Withdrawals from such tax-deferred arrangements may be subject
to tax.
Payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank, registered investment advisor, financial planner or retirement plan administrator), the Fund and its
related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over
another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediarys Web site for more information.
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Fund details
Salient Alternative Beta Fund
Investment objective
The investment objective of the Salient Alternative Beta Fund (the Fund) is to seek long term capital appreciation with low correlation to
traditional core equity and bond market exposures.
Principal investment strategies
The Fund invests both long and short primarily in futures and forward contracts but may also invest in other financial instruments, which may include
securities as well as derivatives, in order to gain exposure to a variety of non-traditional risk premia identified by the Advisor. Risk premia, plural for a risk premium, are the excess positive expected returns from exposures to or strategies in
various asset classes/markets and investment styles (as discussed below) above the risk-free rate represented by cash or government bonds. The Fund will also hold a large portion of its assets either directly or indirectly (through its Alternative
Beta Subsidiary, as discussed below) in cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Funds futures contracts or other derivatives positions.
The Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for
overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the
Funds investment objective.
Targeted Risk Premia
The Advisor believes that many of the risk premia it has identified are:
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Persistent return streams whose existence is supported by academic research and/or behavioral patterns of investors;
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complementary to core market exposures held by most investors;
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responsible for a significant amount of the returns generated by many professional investment managers who generally charge both management and
incentive fees in private funds; and
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accessible through systematic or rules-based trading strategies and methods.
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The primary risk premia targeted by the Advisor include:
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Equity Risk Premium Strategy: The Equity Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from an array of systematic risk premia that exist in equity markets by
gaining both long and short exposure to equities. This strategy systematically targets market inefficiencies created by factors including the behavioral characteristics of market participants, the uncertainty surrounding market events and
volatility, and the varying speeds with which investors react to new information. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited capturing risk premia associated with size, value, momentum, quality, announced mergers and
spin-offs.
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Commodity Risk Premium Strategy: The Commodity Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia arising in commodity markets, arising
from factors including the fundamental supply and demand relationship of an underlying commodity, the behavioral characteristics of market participants and the cost of carry of an underlying commodity. This strategy will provide both long and short
exposure to commodity futures. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to momentum, capturing futures roll yield, avoiding negative rolling yield, extracting perceived calendar effects and employing substitution baskets
based on statistical arbitrage.
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Currency Risk Premium Strategy: The Currency Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia that exist in global currency markets.
These inefficiencies are driven by the varying speed with which investors react to new information, central bank policy, and the economic quality of currency-issuing countries. This strategy will provide long and short exposure to global currencies.
Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to carry based strategies, momentum based strategies and value-based strategies.
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Interest Rates Premium Strategy: The Interest Rate Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia that exist in the markets for global
interest rates arising from factors such as market expectations of central bank behavior, the behavioral characteristics of market participants, and price trends in global interest rate markets. This strategy will provide long and short exposure to
global government bond futures and other interest rate products. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to carry-based approaches, capturing inflation risk premia, and momentum.
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Other Strategies: Other Strategies may include investment techniques emphasizing risk-adjusted returns. These strategies will often seek to exploit
pricing anomalies, cyclical trends, or other disparities across geographies and capital markets.
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The Advisor regularly
reviews and researches other potential risk premia and may add additional risk premia to the portfolio in its discretion.
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Investment Process
The Advisors investment process begins with analysis and systematic identification of various factors, which may include by way of example but not limitation market inefficiencies, market
participant behaviors, supply and demand imbalances, market expectations and cyclical trends, that the Advisor believes provide non-traditional risk premia. Sources include academic research, discussions with various professional money managers and
reports from a variety of financial institutions including investment banks.
Once identified, the Advisor determines which global
markets (such as equity, commodity, currency, interest rate and other markets) are appropriate for each risk premium and whether to gain exposure to the risk premium by directly investing in financial instruments using its own
systematic strategies, or indirectly by entering into a derivatives transaction with a third party.
In the case of direct exposure, the
Advisor utilizes proprietary systematic strategies to gain exposure to the relevant risk premia by establishing a mixture of long and short positions in various markets, typically utilizing futures contracts.
In the case of indirect exposure, the Advisor has determined that the risk premium in question is best accessed utilizing a strategy developed and/or
managed by a third party. The Fund will typically gain exposure to these types of strategies by entering into swap agreements with an investment bank or other counterparty.
The Advisor constructs a portfolio in which it attempts to balance the risk contribution of the risk premia or investment strategies and for which it targets a 20% annualized standard deviation of returns
(variance). The risk calculation is derived from each strategys standard deviation of returns, its correlation with each of the other strategies within the portfolio and the percentage weight of each strategy within the
portfolio. The portfolio is rebalanced dynamically according to this framework on a monthly basis.
The Advisor constructs a portfolio
that attempts to equalize the contribution to total portfolio variance first from each asset class or strategy; then to equalize the contribution to total asset class or strategy variance from each sub-asset class or sub-strategy and finally to
equalize as much as possible the contribution to the variance of each sub-asset class or sub-strategy from each investment (such as futures contract or derivatives instrument) within that sub-asset class or sub-strategy.
Volatility is a measure of the variation in price around its average. Correlation is a measure of the similarity of the price movement of an asset or
security to another asset or security. Risk contribution is a measure of how much of a portfolios total variance is caused by a particular asset or security. Portfolio variance is a commonly-used measure of the risk of a portfolio that
combines the volatility of returns for each security and the correlations among each security with the portfolio weight of each security.
By
attempting to allocate its portfolio with balanced risk weightings, or risk parity, the Advisor believes that the Fund can provide investors access to a more diversified portfolio than has traditionally been achieved through frameworks
that focus on the allocation of capital alone. This process has the effect of allocating less capital to more volatile assets or assets that are more highly-correlated to other assets in the portfolio; and it has the effect of allocating more
capital to less volatile assets or to assets that are less correlated to other assets in the portfolio.
Because of variance over time of,
among other things, the potential risks and returns of different asset classes and the correlation of certain asset classes to each other, the portfolio will dynamically adjust to reflect a changing investment environment. The weights will be
rebalanced monthly through a quantitative framework implemented through a rules-based system. There can be no assurance that employing this investment approach will achieve any particular return or will, in fact, reduce volatility or potential loss.
Investment Types
Generally, the Fund will primarily gain exposure to asset classes, such as equities, commodities, currencies and interest rates, by investing in different
types of instruments including, but not limited to: equity futures, commodity futures, bond futures, swaps and forward contracts, corporate and government bonds, cash and cash equivalents including money market fund shares, either by investing
directly or indirectly, and by investing in Salient Alternative Beta Offshore Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund, organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the Alternative Beta Subsidiary). The
Alternative Beta Subsidiary has the same investment objective as the Fund and is used for purposes of certain of the Funds derivatives trading within the limitations of the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to registered
investment companies. The Alternative Beta Subsidiary, unlike the Fund, may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives and other investments that may provide exposure to commodities.
The Fund intends to obtain exposure to commodities by investing up to 25% of its total assets in the Alternative Beta Subsidiary. Generally, the
Alternative Beta Subsidiary will invest primarily in commodity futures and cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Alternative Beta Subsidiarys futures contracts or
other derivatives positions. Unlike the Fund, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary will comply with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with
respect to its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Funds transactions in derivatives. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Alternative Beta Subsidiary, the Alternative
Beta Subsidiary will be subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. The Fund is the sole shareholder of the Alternative Beta Subsidiary and shares of the
Alternative Beta Subsidiary will not be offered or sold to other investors. The Fund will be subject to the risks associated with any investment by the Alternative Beta Subsidiary to the extent of the Funds investment in the Alternative Beta
Subsidiary.
Futures and forward contracts are contractual agreements to buy or sell a particular currency, commodity or financial instrument
at a pre-determined price in the future. The Funds use of futures contracts, forward contracts, swaps and certain other investments will have the economic effect of using financial leverage. Financial leverage reflected in such an investment
instrument magnifies exposure to the swings in
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prices of an asset class underlying such investment instrument and results in increased volatility. The Fund therefore will have the potential for greater increases and decreases in value than if
the Fund does not use investment instruments that have the economic effect of leveraging. Such leveraging effect also will tend to magnify, potentially significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the Funds exposure to an asset
class and may cause the Funds Net Asset Value (NAV) to be volatile.
Based on the Funds strategies, the Fund may have
highly leveraged exposures to one or more asset classes at times. The Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) and the rules and interpretations thereunder impose certain limitations on the Funds ability to use leverage; however,
the Fund is not subject to any additional limitations on its investment exposures.
A large portion of the Funds assets may be invested
directly or indirectly in money market instruments, which may include, but are not limited to, U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government agency securities, short-term fixed income securities, overnight and/or fixed term repurchase agreements,
money market mutual fund shares, and cash and cash equivalents with one year or less term to maturity. These cash or cash equivalent holdings serve as margin or collateral for the investment positions the Fund takes and also will earn income for the
Fund. While the Fund normally will not engage in borrowing, the effect of leverage may be created when the Fund engages in futures transactions or certain other derivative agreements.
Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where
its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of investments or gain exposure to asset classes and markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have
exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization. The Fund may have exposure to fixed income securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers of any credit quality, including securities that are unrated or are rated in the lowest
credit rating categories (often referred to as junk bonds). There is no percentage limit on the Funds exposure to below investment-grade fixed income securities including emerging market fixed income securities or to small
less-liquid equity securities. The Fund may have exposure in long and short positions across all of the asset classes. Short positions, however, will be limited to the momentum strategy allocation, and will be determined by a proprietary
trend-following strategy.
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be exhaustive. There can be no assurance
that the Funds investment strategy will achieve profitable results.
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Fund Details
Salient Pure Trend Fund
Investment objective
The investment objective of the Salient Pure Trend Fund (the Fund) is to seek long term capital appreciation with low correlation to
traditional core equity and bond market exposures.
Principal investment strategies
The Fund invests both long and short primarily in futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments in order to gain exposure to
momentum, which is defined as the continuation of recent price trends, across a variety of global markets and asset classes. The Fund will also hold a large portion of its assets either directly or indirectly (through its Pure Trend Subsidiary, as
discussed below) in cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Funds futures contracts or other derivatives positions.
The Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for
overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the
Funds investment objective.
Momentum Strategy
The Advisor believes that momentum is:
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a powerful factor with positive expected returns;
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available across nearly every publicly-traded market;
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a persistent return stream whose existence is supported by academic research and/or behavioral patterns of investors;
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complementary to core market exposures, particularly global equities, held by most investors;
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responsible for the majority of returns generated by many Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) who generally charge both management and
incentive fees in private funds; and
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accessible through systematic or rules-based trading strategies and methods.
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The primary global markets targeted by the Advisor include:
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Interest Rates (as reflected by government bond markets of developed countries).
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Investment Process
After the Advisor
determines which global markets are appropriate for its momentum strategy, the Advisor utilizes proprietary systematic strategies to gain exposure to momentum by establishing a mixture of long and short positions in various markets, typically
utilizing futures contracts. The Advisor generally causes the Fund to go long markets exhibiting recent upward price trends while going short those markets exhibiting recent downward trends. The momentum strategy will have the effect of amplifying
the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been rising and lessening the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been declining.
The Advisor then constructs a portfolio in which it attempts to balance the risk contribution of each trend-following strategy and the asset classes within each strategy and for which it targets a 20%
annualized standard deviation of returns (variance). The risk calculation is derived from each strategys standard deviation of returns, its correlation with each of the other strategies within the portfolio and the percentage
weight of each strategy within the portfolio. The portfolio is rebalanced dynamically according to this framework on a monthly basis.
Volatility is a measure of the variation in price around its average. Correlation is a measure of the similarity of the price movement of an asset or
security to another asset or security. Risk contribution is a measure of how much of a portfolios total variance is caused by a particular asset or security. Portfolio variance is a commonly-used measure of the risk of a portfolio that
combines the volatility of returns for each security and the correlations among each security with the portfolio weight of each security.
By
attempting to allocate its portfolio with balanced risk weightings, the Advisor believes that the Fund can provide investors access to a more diversified portfolio than has traditionally been achieved through frameworks that focus on the allocation
of capital alone. This process has the effect of allocating less capital to more volatile assets or assets that are more highly-correlated to other assets in the portfolio; and it has the effect of allocating more capital to less volatile assets or
to assets that are less correlated to other assets in the portfolio.
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Because of variance over time of, among other things, the potential risks and returns of different asset
classes and the correlation of certain asset classes to each other, the portfolio will dynamically adjust to reflect a changing investment environment. The weights will be rebalanced monthly through a quantitative framework implemented through a
rules-based system. There can be no assurance that employing this investment approach will achieve any particular return or will, in fact, reduce volatility or potential loss.
Investment Types
Generally, the Fund will primarily gain exposure to asset classes, such
as equities, commodities, currencies and interest rates, by investing in different types of instruments including, but not limited to: equity futures, commodity futures, bond futures, corporate and government bonds, cash and cash equivalents
including money market fund shares, either by investing directly or indirectly, and by investing in Salient Pure Trend Offshore Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund, organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the
Pure Trend Subsidiary). The Pure Trend Subsidiary has the same investment objective as the Fund and is used for purposes of certain of the Funds derivatives trading within the limitations of the federal tax laws, rules and
regulations that apply to registered investment companies. The Pure Trend Subsidiary, unlike the Fund, may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives and other investments that may provide exposure to commodities.
The Fund intends to obtain exposure to commodities by investing up to 25% of its total assets in the Pure Trend Subsidiary. Generally, the Pure Trend
Subsidiary will invest primarily in commodity futures and cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Pure Trend Subsidiarys futures contracts or other derivatives
positions. Unlike the Fund, the Pure Trend Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the Pure Trend Subsidiary will comply with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to its investments in
commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Funds transactions in derivatives. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Pure Trend Subsidiary, the Pure Trend Subsidiary will be subject to the same
fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. The Fund is the sole shareholder of the Pure Trend Subsidiary and shares of the Pure Trend Subsidiary will not be offered or sold to other
investors. The Fund will be subject to the risks associated with any investment by the Pure Trend Subsidiary to the extent of the Funds investment in the Pure Trend Subsidiary.
Futures and forward contracts are contractual agreements to buy or sell a particular currency, commodity or financial instrument at a pre-determined price in the future. The Funds use of futures
contracts, forward contracts, swaps and certain other investments will have the economic effect of using financial leverage. Financial leverage reflected in such an investment instrument magnifies exposure to the swings in prices of an asset class
underlying such investment instrument and results in increased volatility. The Fund therefore will have the potential for greater increases and decreases in value than if the Fund does not use investment instruments that have the economic effect of
leveraging. Such leveraging effect also will tend to magnify, potentially significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the Funds exposure to an asset class and may cause the Funds Net Asset Value (NAV) to be
volatile.
Based on the Funds strategies, the Fund may have highly leveraged exposures to one or more asset classes at times. The
Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) and the rules and interpretations thereunder impose certain limitations on the Funds ability to use leverage; however, the Fund is not subject to any additional limitations on its
investment exposures.
A large portion of the Funds assets may be invested directly or indirectly in money market instruments, which may
include, but are not limited to, U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government agency securities, short-term fixed income securities, overnight and/or fixed term repurchase agreements, money market mutual fund shares, and cash and cash equivalents
with one year or less term to maturity. These cash or cash equivalent holdings serve as margin or collateral for the investment positions the Fund takes and also will earn income for the Fund. While the Fund normally will not engage in borrowing,
the effect of leverage may be created when the Fund engages in futures transactions or certain other derivative agreements.
Geographic,
Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where its investments may be located or where its assets may be
exposed. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of investments or gain exposure to asset classes and markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have exposure to equity securities of companies of any market
capitalization. The Fund may have exposure to fixed income securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers of any credit quality, including securities that are unrated or are rated in the lowest credit rating categories (often referred to as junk
bonds). There is no percentage limit on the Funds exposure to below investment-grade fixed income securities including emerging market fixed income securities or to small less-liquid equity securities. The Fund may have exposure in long
and short positions across all of the asset classes.
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be
exhaustive. There can be no assurance that the Funds investment strategy will achieve profitable results.
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Fund Details
Salient Global Equity Fund
Investment objective
The investment objective of the Salient Global Equity Fund (the Fund) is to seek long term capital appreciation.
Principal investment strategies
The
Fund invests primarily in exchange-traded global equities, and from time to time it may utilize various futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments in order to reduce or increase certain exposures.
Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be
invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock), and 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and
other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock) of issuers located outside of the United States.
The Board of
Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and
strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the Funds investment objective.
Investment Process
The Advisor utilizes a hybrid investment process that combines top-down
thematic views with a fundamental bottom-up security selection process to build a portfolio of approximately 40 to 70 stocks. The positions fall into three categories:
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Capital Growth: companies with sustainable competitive advantages and attractive industry or thematic tailwinds which trade at reasonable valuations
and are expected to compound value over time;
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Yield: companies with above-average dividend yields and/or cash flow yields with modest growth expectations; and
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Opportunistic: companies that are undergoing significant structural or cyclical changes (or companies within industries undergoing these types of
changes) that are likely to transform the future value creation potential of the underlying businesses.
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The investment
process begins by filtering the universe of stocks in the MSCI All Country World Index (consisting of approximately 2426 stocks as of March 31, 2012) into approximately 150 stocks using both quantitative and fundamental research. The Advisor
applies fundamental research on these companies to construct a portfolio of approximately 40-70 stocks that is diversified across sectors and geography. All selected securities are subjected to valuation discipline and have predetermined
upside/downside valuation targets. In general, no individual position typically is more than 5% of the Funds portfolio (at cost) and the top ten positions typically will not exceed approximately 40% of the portfolio. The Advisor also employs
dynamic limits on maximum country and industry exposure as a means of risk control. There are no limitations on the market capitalizations of the issuers in which the Fund may invest.
The Advisor analyzes issuers internally and formulates an investment thesis and earnings models for each position, with focus on identifying an edge, or a differentiated viewpoint that is
supported by an out-of-consensus earnings model or asset value analysis. Positions generally are eliminated when an investment thesis changes, an issuers underlying business does not develop as projected, a price target is reached,
and/or securities with more attractive risk reward are identified.
Typically, the Advisor intends that approximately 70%-85% of the Fund will
be invested in developed markets, with the remaining portfolio invested in the emerging markets. The Fund may, however, invest less than 15% of its portfolio in emerging markets at any given time. The Fund selectively hedges its exposure to foreign
currencies depending on market conditions and the Advisors assessment of cost-benefit associated with such a program.
The Advisor
places a premium on downside protection in support of the Funds investment objective, and may employ futures and other derivatives-based overlays designed to hedge the portfolio to reduce exposure in an attempt to control volatility and/or to
supplement the portfolio and increase exposure. Such overlays are systematic, rules based and utilize specific triggers based on market conditions.
Investment Types
The Fund invests primarily in exchange-traded securities on a global
basis, and from time to time it may utilize various futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments in order to reduce or increase certain exposures.
Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities
(such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock), and 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or
convertible stock) of issuers located outside of the United States.
Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed, other than that under normal conditions,
at least 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock) of issuers located outside of
the United States. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of asset classes and equity markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization.
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The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be exhaustive. There can be no
assurance that the Funds investment strategy will achieve profitable results.
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Additional Investment Techniques Applicable to the Funds
Investment techniques
In addition to the
principal investment strategies described above, the Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund (each a Fund or together, the Funds) may employ the following techniques in pursuing
their investment objectives.
Segregation of assets
As open-end investment companies registered with the SEC, the Funds are subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive
positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Funds must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to
cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for example, the Funds must set aside liquid assets equal to such
contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Funds are permitted to set aside liquid assets in an amount equal to its daily
marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. Each Fund reserves the right to modify its asset segregation policies in the future to
comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
Each Fund
generally will use its money market instruments (or any other liquid assets) to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff positions. Short-term debt securities (or any other liquid
asset so used) may not be used for other operational purposes but may be replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. Each Funds Advisor will monitor the Funds use of derivatives and will take action as necessary
for the purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Funds can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash
equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer less potential for gains than other types of
securities.
The Funds also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its assets in these instruments, even if the
investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent a Fund invests in these temporary investments in this manner, the
Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Investment in Money Market Mutual Funds Risk
Each Fund invests in money market mutual
funds. An investment in a money market mutual fund is not insured or guaranteed by the FDIC or any other government agency. Although such funds seek to preserve the value of the funds investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money
by investing in a money market mutual fund.
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Leverage Risk
If the Funds make investments in futures contracts, forward currency contracts and other derivative instruments, the futures contracts and certain other derivatives provide the economic effect of
financial leverage by creating additional investment exposure, as well as the potential for greater loss. If the Funds use leverage through activities such as borrowing, entering into short sales, purchasing securities on margin or on a when
issued basis or purchasing derivative instruments in an effort to increase its returns, the Funds have the risk of magnified capital losses that occur when losses affect an asset base, enlarged by borrowings or the creation of liabilities,
that exceeds the net assets of a Fund. The net asset value of a Fund employing leverage will be more volatile and sensitive to market movements. Leverage may involve the creation of a liability that requires the Funds to pay interest.
Liquidity Risk (Salient Global Equity Fund)
Certain securities may trade less frequently than those of larger companies due to their smaller capitalizations. In the event certain securities experience limited trading volumes, the prices may display
abrupt or erratic movements at times. Additionally, it may be more difficult for the Fund to buy and sell significant amounts of such securities without an unfavorable impact on prevailing market prices. As a result, these securities may be
difficult to dispose of at a fair price at the times when the Advisor believes it is desirable to do so. The Funds investment in securities that are less actively traded or over time experience decreased trading volume may restrict its ability
to take advantage of other market opportunities or to dispose of securities. This also may affect adversely the Funds ability to make dividend distributions. The Fund will not purchase or otherwise acquire any security if, as a result, more
than 15% of its net assets would be invested in illiquid investments.
Manager Risk
If a Funds portfolio managers make poor investment decisions, it will negatively affect the Funds investment performance.
Market Risk
Market risk is the risk
that the markets on which a Funds investments trade will increase or decrease in value. Prices may fluctuate widely over short or extended periods in response to company, market or economic news. Markets also tend to move in cycles, with
periods of rising and falling prices. If there is a general decline in the securities and other markets, your investment in a Fund may lose value, regardless of the individual results of the securities and other instruments in which the Fund
invests.
Model and Data Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Given the complexity of the investments and strategies of the Funds, the Advisor relies heavily on quantitative models (both proprietary models developed
by the Advisor, and those supplied by third party vendors) and information and data supplied by third party vendors (Models and Data). Models and Data are used to construct sets of transactions and investments and to provide risk
management insights.
When Models and Data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon expose the Funds to
potential risks. The success of relying on such models may depend on the accuracy and reliability of historical data supplied by third party vendors.
All models rely on correct market data inputs. If incorrect market data is entered into even a well-founded model, the resulting information will be incorrect. However, even if market data is input
correctly, model prices will often differ substantially from market prices, especially for securities with complex characteristics, such as derivative securities.
Momentum Style Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Investing in
momentum entails establishing long positions in securities that have had positive recent returns, and short positions in securities that have had negative recent returns. These securities may be more volatile than a broad cross-section of
securities. In addition, there may be periods when the momentum style is out of favor, and during which the investment performance of a fund using a momentum strategy may suffer.
New Fund Risk
The Funds are newly-formed. Accordingly, investors in a Fund bear the risk
that the Fund may not be successful in implementing its investment strategy, and may not employ a successful investment strategy, any of which could result in the Fund being liquidated at any time without shareholder approval and at a time that may
not be favorable for all shareholders. Such a liquidation could have negative tax consequences for shareholders.
Non-Diversified Status
Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Each Fund is a non-diversified Fund. Because a Fund may invest in securities
of a smaller number of issuers, the Fund may be more exposed to the risks associated with and developments affecting an individual issuer than a Fund that invests more widely, which may, therefore, have a greater impact on the Funds
performance.
Salient
Funds
- 38
Short Sale Risk
Each Fund may take a short position in a derivative instrument, such as a future, forward or swap. A short position on a derivative instrument involves the risk of a theoretically unlimited increase in
the value of the underlying instrument. Each Fund may also from time to time sell securities short, which involves borrowing and selling a security and covering such borrowed security through a later purchase. A short sale creates the risk of an
unlimited loss, in that the price of the underlying security could theoretically increase without limit, thus increasing the cost of buying those securities to cover the short position. There can be no assurance that the securities necessary to
cover a short position will be available for purchase. The Fund must set aside cover for short sales to comply with applicable SEC positions under the 1940 Act.
Small and Mid-Capitalization Securities Risk
Each Fund may invest its assets in the common
stocks and other equity securities of small and mid-capitalization companies with smaller market capitalizations. While the Advisor believes these investments may provide significant potential for appreciation, they involve higher risks in some
respects than do investments in common stocks and other equity securities of larger companies. For example, prices of such investments are often more volatile than prices of large-capitalization stocks and other equity securities. In addition, due
to thin trading in some such investments, an investment in these common stocks and other equity securities may be more illiquid than that of common stocks or other equity securities of larger market capitalization issuers (See Liquidity
Risk). Smaller capitalization companies also fail more often than larger companies and may have more limited management and financial resources than larger companies.
Sovereign Debt Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
These
investments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt, due, for example, to cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations,
the relative size of the governmental entitys debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies. If a governmental entity
defaults, it may ask for more time in which to pay or for further loans. There is no legal process for collecting sovereign debt that a government does not pay nor are there bankruptcy proceedings through which all or part of the sovereign debt that
a governmental entity has not repaid may be collected.
Subsidiary Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
By investing in the Alternative Beta Subsidiary (with respect to the Salient Alternative Beta Fund) or Pure Trend Subsidiary (with respect
to the Salient Pure Trend Fund) (each, a Subsidiary, and together, the Subsidiaries), respectively, each Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the respective Subsidiarys investments. The
commodity-related instruments held by the Subsidiaries are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the respective Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the respective Fund
(see Commodities Risk above). There can be no assurance that the investment objective of the Subsidiaries will be achieved. The Subsidiaries are not registered under the 1940 Act, and, unless otherwise noted in this prospectus, are not
subject to all the investor protections of the 1940 Act. However, each Fund wholly owns and controls the respective Subsidiary, and the relevant Fund and its Subsidiary are both managed by the Advisor, making it unlikely that the Subsidiary will
take action contrary to the interests of the respective Fund and its shareholders. The Board has oversight responsibility for the investment activities of the Funds, including each Funds investment in the respective Subsidiary, and each
Funds role as sole shareholder of the respective Subsidiary. To the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Subsidiary, each Subsidiary will be subject to the same investment restrictions and limitations, and follow the same
compliance policies and procedures, as the relevant Fund. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Funds and/or either Subsidiary to operate as described in this prospectus and the SAI
and could adversely affect the Funds, including resulting in its orderly winding-up.
Tax Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure
Trend Fund)
In order to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code, the Fund must derive at least 90 percent
of its gross income each taxable year from qualifying income, which is described in more detail in the SAI. Because income from certain commodity-linked derivative instruments in which the Fund invests is not considered qualifying income, the Fund
will therefore attempt to restrict such income to a maximum of 10% of its gross income.
Each Funds Investment in its respective
Subsidiary is expected to provide exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the federal tax requirements of Subchapter M. The annual net profit, if any, realized by each Subsidiary and imputed for income tax purposes to the Fund
should constitute qualifying income for purposes of the Fund remaining qualified as a regulated investment company for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Tax Law Change Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Although the
IRS has issued published guidance that qualifying income for a regulated investment company does not include income derived directly from certain commodity-linked derivative instruments, the IRS has indicated in a series of private letter rulings
that income derived from a wholly-owned offshore subsidiary, such as each Funds respective Subsidiary, that invests in such commodity-linked derivative instruments does constitute qualifying income. The Funds have not applied for such a
private letter ruling, but intend to secure an opinion of
Salient
Funds
- 39
counsel based on customary representations that income derived from the respective Subsidiary should be treated as qualifying income. In July 2011, the IRS suspended further issuance of these
private letter rulings, indicating that it was reconsidering the underlying policies. The IRS subsequently indicated informally that it intends to issue public guidance regarding the use of offshore subsidiaries by regulated investment companies to
invest indirectly in commodities and that such guidance will be prospective in application and provide for transition periods for affected funds. It is also possible that legislation on this issue could be introduced. If the IRS does issue public
guidance, or if legislation is enacted, that results in an adverse determination relating to the treatment of income derived by the Funds from their respective Subsidiary, the Funds would likely need to significantly change its investment strategy,
which could adversely affect the Funds. It is possible that the Funds may be unable to qualify as a regulated investment company for one or more years, meaning that all of its income and gains could be taxed first at the Fund level and again when
paid out to shareholders.
Volatility Risk
Each Fund may have investments that appreciate or decrease significantly in value over short periods of time. This may cause the Funds net asset value per share to experience significant
appreciations or decreases in value over short periods of time.
U.S. Government Securities Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient
Pure Trend Fund)
Treasury obligations may differ in their interest rates, maturities, times of issuance and other characteristics.
Obligations of U.S. Government agencies and authorities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide
financial support to its agencies and authorities if it is not obligated by law to do so. Certain of the government agency securities the Funds may purchase are backed only by the credit of the government agency and not by full faith and credit of
the United States.
Salient
Funds
- 40
Whos who
The following are the names of the various entities involved with the Funds investment and business operations, along with brief descriptions of the role each entity performs.
Trustees
The Funds are each a series of
Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust). The Trust is governed by a Board of Trustees that is responsible for overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Funds.
Investment advisor
Manages the
Funds day-to-day business and investment activities.
Salient Advisors, L.P.
4265 San Felipe, Suite 800
Houston, Texas 77027
Each Funds investment advisor is Salient Advisors, L.P.
(Salient Advisors, or the Advisor), a Texas limited partnership. Subject to the overall authority of the Board, the Advisor furnishes continuous investment supervision and management to the Fund and also furnishes office
space, equipment, and management personnel to the Fund.
The Advisor is registered as an investment Advisor under the Investment Advisers
Act of 1940, as amended. The Advisor is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Salient Partners, L.P. (Salient), a Houston-based investment firm. As of
September 30, 2012, the Advisor and its affiliates managed or advised assets of
approximately
$17.4
billion. Salient Advisors is also registered with the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a commodity pool operator and commodities trading advisor and is a member of the National Futures
Association.
The Advisor makes investment decisions on the respective Funds behalf using a series of security selection models,
and implemented using proprietary trading and risk-management systems. The Advisor believes that a systematic and disciplined process is essential to achieving long-term success in investment and risk management. Furthermore, Salient Advisors
targets a specific level of price volatility determined from the historical price fluctuations of each of the underlying constituents of the Salient Alternative Beta Funds and Salient Pure Trend Funds portfolio while seeking to target a
specific allocation of that risk across each of the major asset classes and strategies. By pursuing these targeted risk levels and allocations, the Advisor believes the portfolio can achieve a higher level of return at the same level of price
volatility sought by more traditional asset allocation portfolio designs. With respect to the Salient Global Equity Fund, the Advisor marries a fundamental approach to company and stock analysis with its systematic, disciplined approach to risk
management and volatility.
A Fund may in the future rely on an order from the SEC permitting its Advisor, subject to Board approval, to
appoint a subadvisor or change the terms of a subadvisory agreement without obtaining shareholder approval. The Fund, therefore, would be able to change subadvisors or the fees paid to a subadvisor from time to time without the expense and delays
associated with obtaining shareholder approval of the change. This order would not, however, permit its Advisor to appoint a subadvisor that is an affiliate of the Advisor or the Fund (other than by reason of serving as a subadvisor to the Fund), or
to increase the subadvisory fee of an affiliated subadvisor, without the approval of the shareholders. The Funds currently do not employ a subadvisor to manage the Funds assets.
Salient
Funds
- 41
Portfolio managers
The portfolio managers of the Funds are jointly and primarily responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the Funds, as well as setting the Funds overall investment strategy. Information
regarding the portfolio managers of the Funds is set forth below. Further information regarding the portfolio managers, including other accounts managed, compensation, ownership of Fund shares, and possible conflicts of interest, is available in the
respective Funds SAI.
Portfolio managers (Salient Alternative Beta Fund)
Lee Partridge, CFA
is Chief Investment Officer for Salient. Mr. Partridge also directly oversees the investment program for a $7.7 billion
investment portfolio of a public employee retirement association. Prior to joining Salient in 2010, Mr. Partridge was the founder and CEO of Integrity Capital, LLC, which spanned traditional and alternative investment strategies, from 2009 to
2010, prior to which he held various positions at the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, including head of fixed income and deputy chief investment officer, where he was responsible for global asset allocation, risk management, portfolio
construction, external managers, hedge funds, derivative strategies, equity trading, futures trading and risk management. Mr. Partridge received a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Houston in 1989 and an MBA from
Rice University in 1992. Mr. Partridge holds both the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designations.
Roberto M. Croce, Ph.D.
is the Director of Quantitative Research for the Investments Group at Salient, where he provides quantitative support to the investment team. His duties include building and
implementing the models underlying Salients proprietary asset allocation tools, MLP hedging, hedge fund risk monitoring and manager selection. Dr. Croce has seven years of financial research experience. Prior to joining Salient in 2011,
Dr. Croce worked on a consulting basis with the Teacher Retirement System of Texas to develop a suite of global strategic asset allocation models from May 2010 to August 2010. Dr. Croce received M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Economics from the
Ohio State University in 2005 and 2011, respectively, where he published research about financial forecasting and taught courses in econometrics and financial economics.
William K. Enszer
is Director of Investments at Salient, where he leads the firms investment efforts in absolute return and enhanced fixed income strategies. Mr. Enszer focuses on
the sourcing, evaluation and due diligence of hedge funds under these two strategies. Prior to joining Salient, Mr. Enszer was a Vice President of Investments and member of the Investment Committee of a Houston-based wealth management and
alternative investments firm. During his five years there, Mr. Enszer developed and directed their hedge fund research and due diligence processes and assisted in the construction and management of the firms three fund of hedge funds.
During his tenure there, Mr. Enszer covered CTAs, long/short equity, event-driven, relative value, and credit based hedge fund strategies. Prior to his current field of expertise, Mr. Enszer spent five years at ExxonMobil as a financial
analyst and auditor. Mr. Enszer earned a B.B.A. in finance and economics from Baylor University and an M.B.A., Beta Gamma Sigma, from Tulane Universitys A.B. Freeman School of Business.
Portfolio managers (Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Lee Partridge, CFA
(see above)
Roberto M. Croce, Ph.D.
(see above)
Portfolio managers (Salient Global Equity Fund)
Ajay Mehra
is the Director of Equities at Salient, where he oversees the management of equities and equity-focused portfolios and funds. Prior to joining Salient in 2012, he served as a Managing
Director and the Head of Manager and Fund Research at UBS. Dr. Mehra was a Portfolio Manager and Partner at Columbus Nova in New York from 2005 to 2011, where he ran a global opportunity / macro hedge fund. He has also worked in equity research and
portfolio management at State Street, Columbia Management Group and Morgan Stanley over the course of his career. Dr. Mehra earned a BS in Accounting and an MBA from Panjab University in Chandigarh, India before receiving his Ph.D. (Business
Strategy) from University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1992.
Lee Partridge, CFA
(see above)
Salient
Funds
- 42
Management fees
Salient Alternative Beta Fund and Salient Pure Trend Fund
Each Fund pays the
Advisor management fees equal to an annual rate of 0.95% of the Funds average daily net assets. The basis for the Boards approval of the Funds management fees, and of the investment advisory agreement overall, will be discussed in
the respective Funds first shareholder report.
Salient Global Equity Fund
The Fund pays the Advisor management fees equal to an annual rate of 1.25% of the Funds average daily net assets. The basis for the Boards
approval of the Funds management fees, and of the investment advisory agreement overall, will be discussed in the Funds first shareholder report.
Additional information about fund expenses
The Funds annual operating expenses will
likely vary throughout the period and from year to year. A Funds expenses for the current fiscal year may be higher than the expenses listed in the respective Funds Annual fund operating expenses table, for some of the
following reasons: (i) a significant decrease in average net assets may result in a higher advisory fee rate if advisory fee breakpoints are not achieved; (ii) a significant decrease in average net assets may result in an increase in the
expense ratio because certain Fund expenses do not decrease as asset levels decrease; or (iii) fees may be incurred for extraordinary events such as Fund tax expenses.
The Other Expenses line item in the respective Funds Annual fund operating expenses table consists of annual Fund operating expenses, including professional fees (such as
audit and legal), accounting, administration, transfer agency, recordkeeping and custodian fees payable to the Funds administrator and custodian, fees under the Funds Administrative Services Plan payable to certain intermediary platforms
(such as fund supermarkets and retirement plan administrators) for non-distribution related administration and recordkeeping services, and the indirect expenses associated with a Funds investments in its respective wholly-owned
subsidiary, as applicable.
With respect to Salient Alternative Beta Fund and Salient Pure Trend Fund, the Advisor has contractually agreed to
waive all or a portion of its management fee and reimburse or pay operating expenses of each Fund to the extent necessary to maintain each Funds total operating expenses at 1.55% for Class A, 2.30% for Class C, and 1.30% for Class I
shares, excluding certain expenses, such as taxes, brokerage commissions, interest, short dividend expense, any acquired fund fees and expenses, expenses associated with a Funds investments in its respective wholly-owned subsidiary, litigation
and extraordinary expenses.
With respect to Salient Global Equity Fund, the Advisor has contractually agreed to waive all or a portion of its
management fee and reimburse or pay operating expenses of the Fund to the extent necessary to maintain the Funds total operating expenses at 1.85% for Class A, 2.60% for Class C, and 1.60% for Class I shares, excluding certain expenses,
such as taxes, brokerage commissions, interest, short divid endexpense, any acquired fund fees and expenses, litigation and extraordinary expenses.
Each expense limitation agreement expires on December 31, 2013, unless renewed by mutual agreement of the respective Fund and Advisor based upon a determination doing so would be appropriate under the
prevailing circumstances. Each Funds Advisor is permitted to recover from the Fund expenses attributable to the Fund or a Class thereof that the Advisor has borne (whether through reduction of its management fee or otherwise) in
later periods to the extent that the expenses for a Class of shares fall below the annual rate in effect at the time of the actual waiver/reimbursement. Under the expense limitation agreement, a Fund is not obligated to reimburse such expenses
beyond three years from the end of such year in which the Advisor waived a fee or reimbursed an expense. Any such recovery by the Advisor will not cause a Class to exceed the annual limitation rate in effect at the time of the actual
waiver/reimbursement.
Custodian
Holds the Funds assets, settles all portfolio trades and collects most of the valuation data required for calculating the Funds net asset value.
Citibank, N.A.
388 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10013
Principal distributor
Markets the Funds
and distributes shares through selling brokers, financial planners and other financial representatives.
Foreside Fund
Services, LLC
Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100
Portland, ME 041014
Transfer agent
Handles shareholder services, including recordkeeping and statements, distribution of dividends and processing of buy and sell requests.
Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc.
3435 Stelzer Road
Columbus, OH 43219
Salient
Funds
- 43
Financial highlights
This section normally details the financial performance of a Fund. Because the Funds have not yet commenced operations as of the date of this prospectus, there are no financial highlights to report.
Salient
Funds
- 44
Your account
Choosing a share class
Class A shares are sold with a front-end sales charge, which
may be reduced or waived, as discussed below. Class A and Class C shares cost structure includes a Rule 12b-1 plan that allows the payment of fees for the sale, distribution and/or service of their shares. Class I shares do not bear any
distribution and/or service (Rule 12b-1) fees and are sold only to investors that meet the eligibility requirements described below under Who can buy Class I shares.
Your financial representative can help you decide which share class is best for you.
Class A
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A front-end sales charge, as described in the section How sales charges are calculated.
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Distribution and/or service (Rule 12b-1) fees at an annual rate of 0.25%.
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A 1.00% CDSC on shares sold within one year of purchase.
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Class C
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No front-end sales charge.
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Distribution and/or service (Rule 12b-1) fees at an annual rate of 1.00%.
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A 1.00% CDSC on shares sold within one year of purchase.
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The maximum amount you may invest in Class C shares with any single purchase is $999,999.99. Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc., the Funds transfer agent, may accept a purchase request for Class C
shares for $1 million or more when the purchase made is pursuant to the Reinstatement Privilege (see Sales charge reductions and waivers).
Class I
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No front-end sales charge.
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No distribution and/or service (Rule 12b-1) fees or CDSCs.
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12b-1 fees
Rule 12b-1 fees will be paid to the Funds distributor, Foreside Fund
Services, LLC, and may be used by the distributor for expenses relating to the distribution of, and shareholder or administrative services for holders of, the shares of the class and for the payment of service fees that come within Rule 2830(d)(5)
of the Conduct Rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Class A
. The services fee represents the
entire portion of the 0.25% 12b-1 fee. There is no distribution-specific fee.
Class C
. The distribution-specific fee
represents 75 basis points, and the services fee represents 25 basis points of the overall 1.00% 12b-1 fee.
Because Rule 12b-1 fees are
paid out of a Funds assets on an ongoing basis, over time they will increase the cost of your investment and may cost shareholders more than other types of sales charges.
Your broker-dealer or agent may charge you a fee to effect transactions in Fund shares. Any such fee is not a charge of the respective Fund.
Who can buy Class I shares
Class I
shares are offered without any sales charge to the following types of investors if they also meet the minimum initial investment requirement for purchases of Class I shares (see Opening an account):
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Clients of financial intermediaries who: (i) charge such clients a fee for advisory, investment, consulting or similar services; or (ii) have
entered into an agreement to offer Class I shares through a no-load program or investment platform
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Retirement and other benefit plans
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Endowment funds and foundations
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Any state, county or city, or its instrumentality, department, authority or agency
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Accounts registered to insurance companies, trust companies and bank trust departments
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Salient
Funds
- 45
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Any entity that is considered a corporation for tax purposes
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Investment companies, both affiliated and not affiliated with the Advisor
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Investors who invest directly in a Fund or through an affiliate of the Advisor
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Fund trustees and officers and other individuals who are affiliated with a Fund, the Advisor and its affiliates and other Salient funds
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Administrative Services Plan
The Funds have adopted an Administrative Services Plan applicable to Shares sold through certain broker-dealers that offer so-called mutual fund supermarkets to their customers, including
retirement plan administrators and investment advisers and other sponsors of advisory wrap and similar programs (collectively, Supermarket Intermediaries). Under the Administrative Services Plan a Class may pay certain
Supermarket Intermediaries for non-distribution related administration and recordkeeping services. Any such payments may be negotiated with Supermarket Intermediaries, must be approved by the Board as not related to distribution and may not exceed
0.10%. Any such payments may be made in conjunction with Rule 12b-1 payments and payments by the Advisor (and/or its affiliates) and the Board oversees any such allocation.
Additional payments to financial intermediaries
Shares of the Funds are primarily sold
through financial intermediaries, such as brokers, banks, registered investment advisors, financial planners and retirement plan administrators. These firms may be compensated for selling shares of the Funds in two principal ways:
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directly, by the payment of sales commissions, if any; and
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indirectly, as a result of a Fund paying Rule 12b-1 fees, if any.
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Certain firms may request, and the Advisor (and/or its affiliates) may agree to make, payments in addition to sales commissions and Rule 12b-1 fees out of the Advisors own resources. These
additional payments are sometimes referred to as revenue sharing. These payments assist in the Advisors efforts to promote the sale of the Funds shares. The Advisor agrees with the firm on the methods for calculating any
additional compensation, which may include the level of sales or assets attributable to the firm. Not all firms receive additional compensation and the amount of compensation will vary. These payments could be significant to a firm. The Advisor
determines which firms to support and the extent of the payments it is willing to make. The Advisor generally chooses to compensate firms that have a strong capability to distribute shares of the Funds and that are willing to cooperate with the
Advisors promotional efforts.
The Advisor hopes to benefit from revenue sharing by increasing the Funds net assets, which, as
well as benefiting each Fund, would result in additional management and other fees for the Advisor and its affiliates. In consideration for revenue sharing, a firm may feature a Fund in its sales system or give preferential access to members of its
sales force or management. In addition, the firm may agree to participate in the Advisors marketing efforts by allowing the Advisor or its affiliates to participate in conferences, seminars or other programs attended by the intermediarys
sales force. Although an intermediary may seek revenue-sharing payments to offset costs incurred by the firm in servicing its clients who have invested in a Fund, the intermediary may earn a profit on these payments. Revenue-sharing payments may
provide your firm with an incentive to favor a Fund.
The respective Funds SAI discusses the Advisors revenue-sharing arrangements
in more detail. Your intermediary may charge you additional fees other than those disclosed in this prospectus. You can ask your firm about any payments it receives from the Advisor or the Fund, as well as about fees and/or commissions it charges.
The Advisor and its affiliates may have other relationships with your firm relating to the provisions of services to a Fund, such as
providing omnibus account services, transaction-processing services or effecting portfolio transactions for the Fund. If your intermediary provides these services, the Advisor or the Fund may compensate the intermediary for these services. In
addition, your intermediary may have other compensated relationships with the Advisor or its affiliates that are not related to the Fund.
Salient
Funds
- 46
How sales charges are calculated
Class A sales charges are as follows:
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Your investment
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As a %
of
offering
price*
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As a %
of
your
investment
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Less than $50,000
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5.50
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%
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5.82
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%
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$50,000 but less than $100,000
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4.50
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%
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4.71
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%
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$100,000 but less than $250,000
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3.50
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%
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3.63
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%
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$250,000 but less than $500,000
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2.75
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%
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2.83
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%
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$500,000 but less than $1,000,000
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2.00
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%
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2.04
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%
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$1,000,000 and over
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See below
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*
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Offering price is the net asset value per share plus any initial sales charge.
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You may qualify for a reduced Class A sales charge if you own or are purchasing Class A, Class C or Class I shares of a Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust.
To receive the reduced
sales charge, you must tell your broker or financial representative at the time you purchase the Funds Class A shares about any other Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust held by you, your spouse or your children under the age
of 21 living in the same household.
This includes investments held in an individual retirement account, an employee benefit plan or with a broker or financial representative other than the one handling your current purchase. Salient will credit
the combined value, at the current offering price, of all eligible accounts to determine whether you qualify for a reduced sales charge on your current purchase. You may need to provide documentation for these accounts, such as an account statement.
For more information about these reduced sales charges, you may visit the Funds Web site www.salientfunds.com. You may also consult your broker or financial advisor, or refer to the section entitled Initial Sales Charge on Class A
Shares in the respective Funds SAI. You may request an SAI from your broker or financial advisor by accessing the Funds Web site www.salientfunds.com or by calling the transfer agent at 1-866-667-9228.
If shares of a Fund are tendered for redemption or repurchased by the Fund for any reason within seven business days after confirmation of the purchase
order for such shares, the full sales load or other concession will be returned to the shareholder and any financial intermediary making such sale forfeits the right to receive any compensation on such shares.
Deferred sales charges
Class A
shares are available with no front-end sales charge on investments of $1 million or more. There is, however, a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00% on any Class A shares upon which a commission or finders fee was paid that are
sold within one year of purchase. Brokers that initiate and are responsible for purchases of $1 million or more may receive a sales commission of up to 1.00% of the offering price of Class A shares. In addition, while Class C shares are offered
at NAV, without any initial sales charge, a 1.00% CDSC may be charged on any Class C shares upon which a finders fee has been paid that are sold within one year of purchase.
For purposes of charging a CDSC, all purchases made during a calendar month are counted as having been made on the first day of that month. The CDSC is based on the lesser of the original purchase cost or
the current market value of the shares being sold, and is not charged on shares you acquired by reinvesting your dividends. To keep your CDSC as low as possible, each time you place a request to sell shares we will first sell any shares in your
account that are not subject to a CDSC.
Sales charge reductions and waivers
Reducing your Class A sales charges
There are two ways you can combine multiple
purchases of shares of Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust to take advantage of the breakpoints in the sales charge schedule. These methods can be combined in any manner.
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Accumulation Privilege lets you add the value of any class of shares of any Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust you already own to
the amount of your next Class A investment for purposes of calculating the sales charge.
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Letter of Intention lets you purchase Class A shares of a Fund over a 13-month period and receive the same sales charge as if all shares
had been purchased at once. You can use a Letter of Intention to qualify for reduced sales charges if you plan to invest at least $50,000 in Class A shares of the Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust during the next 13 months. The
calculation of this amount would include accumulations as well as your current holdings of all classes of Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust, which include any reinvestment of dividends and capital gains distributions. When you sign
this letter, the Fund agrees to charge you the reduced sales charges. Completing a Letter of Intention does not obligate you to purchase additional shares. However, if you do not buy enough shares to qualify for the lower sales charges by the
earlier of the end of the 13-month period or when you sell your shares, your sales charges will be recalculated to reflect your actual purchase level. Also available for individual retirement plan investors is a 48-month Letter of Intention,
described in the SAI.
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To utilize any reduction, you must complete the appropriate section of your application, or
contact your financial representative or the transfer agent. Consult the SAI for additional details (see the back cover of this prospectus).
Salient
Funds
- 47
Group investment program
A group may be treated as a single purchaser under the accumulation privilege. Each investor has an individual account, but the groups investments are combined for sales charge purposes, making the
investors potentially eligible for reduced sales charges. There is no charge or obligation to invest (although initial investments per account opened must satisfy minimum initial investment requirements specified in the section entitled
Opening an account), and individual investors may close their accounts at any time.
To utilize this program, you must contact
your financial representative or the transfer agent to find out how to qualify. Consult the SAI for additional details (see the back cover of this prospectus).
CDSC waivers
As long as the transfer agent is notified at the time you sell, the CDSC for
Class A and Class C shares will be waived in the following cases:
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to make payments through certain systematic withdrawal plans
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redemptions pursuant to the Funds right to liquidate an account that is below the minimum account value stated below in Dividends, taxation
and account policies, under the subsection Small accounts to make certain distributions from a retirement plan
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because of shareholder death or disability
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To utilize a waiver, you must contact your financial representative or the transfer agent. Consult the respective Funds SAI for additional details (see the back cover of this prospectus).
Reinstatement privilege
If you sell shares of a Fund, you may reinvest some or all of the proceeds back into the same share class of the same fund and account from which it was
sold within 120 days without a sales charge, subject to fund minimums, as long as the transfer agent or your financial representative is notified before you reinvest. If you paid a CDSC when you sold your shares, you will be credited with the amount
of the CDSC. Consult the Funds SAI for additional details.
To utilize this privilege, you must contact your financial representative
or the transfer agent. Consult the respective Funds SAI for additional details (see the back cover of this prospectus).
Waivers
for certain investors
Class A shares may be offered without front-end sales charges or CDSCs to the following individuals and
institutions:
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selling brokers and their employees and sales representatives (and their Immediate Family, as defined in the SAI)
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a financial intermediary (such as a broker, dealer, financial planner, consultant, or registered advisor) that has entered into a signed agreement with
the Fund and/or Distributor providing specifically for the use of Fund shares in certain retirement platforms, fee-based investment products (including wrap accounts) or services made available to their clients.
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Fund trustees, officers and other individuals who are affiliated with these or other Salient funds, including employees of Salient and its affiliates
(and their Immediate Family, as defined in the SAI).
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To utilize a waiver, you must contact your financial representative
or the transfer agent. Consult the respective Funds SAI for additional details (see the back cover of this prospectus).
Other
waivers
Front-end sales charges and CDSCs are not imposed in connection with the following transactions:
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exchanges from one Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust to the same class of any other Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust (see
Transaction policies in this prospectus for additional details)
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dividend reinvestments (see Dividends, taxation and account policies in this prospectus for additional details)
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Opening an account
1
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Read this prospectus carefully.
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2
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Determine how much you want to invest. The minimum initial investment for Class A and Class C shares of the Fund is $2,500 except as follows:
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there is no minimum initial investment for certain group retirement plans using salary deduction or similar group methods of payment
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there is no minimum initial investment for fee-based or wrap accounts of selling firms that have executed a fee-based or wrap agreement with the
distributor
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Salient
Funds
- 48
The minimum initial investment for Class I shares of the Fund is $1,000,000. This
requirement may be waived, in a Funds sole discretion, for investors in certain fee-based, wrap or other investment platform programs that do not require the Fund to pay any type of administrative payments per shareholder account to any third
party. A Fund may waive the minimum initial investment for other categories of investors at its discretion. There are no minimum investment requirements for subsequent purchases to existing accounts.
3
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All shareholders must complete the account application, carefully following the instructions. If you have any questions, contact your financial representative or
call the transfer agent at: 1-866-667-9228.
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4
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Complete the appropriate parts of the account privileges application. By applying for privileges now, you can avoid the delay and inconvenience of having to file
an additional application if you want to add privileges later.
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5
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Make your initial investment using the instructions under Buying shares. You and your financial representative can initiate any purchase, exchange or
sale of shares.
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Important information about opening a new account
To help the government fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering activities, the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate
Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA PATRIOT Act) requires all financial institutions to obtain, verify and record information that identifies each person or entity that opens an account.
For individual investors opening an account.
When you open an account, you will be asked for your name, residential address, date of birth and
Social Security number.
For investors other than individuals.
When you open an account, you will be asked for the name of the entity,
its principal place of business and taxpayer identification number (TIN) and may be requested to provide information on persons with authority or control over the account, such as name, residential address, date of birth and Social
Security number. You may also be asked to provide documents, such as articles of incorporation, trust instruments or partnership agreements and other information that will help the transfer agent identify the entity. Please see the Mutual Fund
Account Application for more details.
Orders in Proper Form
In order to receive a days price, your order must be received in good order by the close of the regular trading of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Salient
Funds
- 49
Buying shares
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Opening an
account
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Adding to an
account
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By check
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Make out a check for the investment amount, payable to
Salient MF Trust
.
Deliver the check and your completed application to your financial representative or mail them to the transfer agent (address below).
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Make out a check for the investment amount, payable
to
Salient MF Trust
.
Fill out the detachable investment slip from an account statement. If no slip is available, include a note specifying the Fund name, the share class, your account
number and the name(s) in which the account is registered.
Deliver the check and your investment slip or note to your financial representative, or mail them to the transfer agent (address below).
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By exchange
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Call your financial representative or the transfer agent to request an
exchange.
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Call your financial representative or the transfer agent to request an
exchange.
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By wire
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Deliver your completed application to your financial
representative or mail it to the transfer agent
Obtain your account number by calling your financial representative or the transfer agent.
Obtain
wiring instructions by calling the transfer agent.
Instruct your bank to wire the amount of your investment. Specify the Fund name, the share class, your account number and the name(s) in which the account is
registered. Your bank may charge a fee to wire funds.
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Obtain wiring instructions by calling the transfer
agent.
Instruct your bank to wire the amount of your investment. Specify the Fund
name, the share class, your account number and the name(s) in which the account is registered. Your bank may charge a fee to wire funds.
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By Internet
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See By exchange and By wire.
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Verify that your bank or credit union is a member of the
Automated Clearing House (ACH) system.
Complete the Bank information section on your account application.
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By phone
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See By exchange and By
wire.
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Verify that your bank or credit union is a member of the
ACH system.
Complete the To purchase, exchange or redeem shares via telephone
and Bank information sections on your account application.
Call your financial representative or call the transfer agent between 8:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M., Eastern Time, on most business days.
To add to an account using the Monthly Automatic Accumulation Program, see
Additional investor services.
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Salient
Funds
- 50
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Opening an
account
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Adding to an
account
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Regular mail
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Express delivery
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Transfer agent
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Salient MF Trust
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1-866-667-9228
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P.O. Box 182607
Columbus, Ohio
43218-2607
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Salient MF Trust
3435 Stelzer
Road
Columbus, Ohio 43219-8012
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Selling shares
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To sell some or all of your
shares
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By Letter
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Accounts of any type.
Sales of
any amount.
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Write a letter of instruction or complete a stock power
indicating the Fund name, the share class, your account number, the name(s) in which the account is registered and the dollar value or number of shares you wish to sell.
Include all signatures and any additional documents that may be required (see
next page).
Mail the materials to the transfer agent (address below).
A check
will be mailed to the name(s) and address in which the account is registered, or otherwise according to your letter of instruction.
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By Internet
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Most accounts.
Sales of
up to $100,000.
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Not currently available
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By phone
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Most accounts.
Sales of
up to $100,000.
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Call your financial representative or call the transfer agent between 8:00 A.M. and 6:00
P.M., Eastern Time, on most business days.
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By wire or electronic funds transfer (EFT)
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Requests by letter to sell any amount.
Requests
by Internet or phone to sell up to $100,000.
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To verify that the Internet or telephone redemption
privilege is in place on an account, or to request the form to add it to an existing account, call the transfer agent.
Funds requested by wire will generally be wired the next business day. The
Funds reserve the right to deduct funds from your account to offset the cost of the wire fee charged by the custodian bank. Your bank may also charge you a fee for this service.
Funds
requested by EFT are generally available by the second business day. Your bank may charge you a fee for this service.
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By exchange
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Accounts of any type.
Sales of
any amount.
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Obtain a current prospectus for the Fund into which you are
exchanging by accessing the Funds Web site by Internet, or by calling your financial representative or the transfer agent.
Call your financial representative or the transfer agent to request an
exchange.
To sell shares through a systematic withdrawal plan, see
Additional investor services.
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Salient
Funds
- 51
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Regular mail
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Express delivery
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Transfer agent
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Salient MF Trust
P.O. Box
182607
Columbus, Ohio 43218-2607
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Salient MF Trust
3435 Stelzer
Road
Columbus, Ohio 43219-8012
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1-866-667-9228
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Selling shares in writing
In certain circumstances, you will need to make your request to sell shares in writing. You may need to include additional items with your request, unless
they were previously provided to the transfer agent and are still accurate. These items are shown in the table below. You may also need to include a medallion signature guarantee, which protects you against fraudulent orders. You will need a
medallion signature guarantee if:
your address of record has changed within the past 15 days;
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you are requesting payment other than by a check mailed
to the address/bank of record and payable to the registered owner(s).
You
will need to obtain your signature guarantee from a member of the Medallion Signature Guarantee Program. Most broker-dealers, banks, credit unions and securities exchanges are members of this program. A notary public CANNOT provide a signature
guarantee.
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Seller
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To sell some or all of your
shares
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Owners of individual, joint or UGMA/UTMA accounts (custodial accounts for minors)
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Letter of instruction
On the
letter, the signatures and titles of all persons authorized to sign for the account, exactly as the account is registered.
Medallion Signature Guarantee, if applicable (see
above).
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Owners of corporate, sole proprietorship, general partner or association accounts
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Letter of instruction.
Corporate business/organization resolution, certified within the past 12
months, or a Salient business/organization certification form (if not currently on file and/or the request is not signed by an authorized person).
On the letter and the resolution, the signature of the person(s) authorized
to sign for the account.
Medallion Signature Guarantee, if applicable (see
above).
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Owners or trustees of trust accounts
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Letter of instruction.
On the
letter, the signature(s) of the trustee(s).
Certified copy of the trust document (if not already on file).
Medallion Signature Guarantee, if applicable (see
above).
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Joint tenancy shareholders with rights of survivorship with deceased co-tenant(s)
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Letter of instruction signed by surviving
tenant(s).
Certified copy of death certificate.
Medallion Signature Guarantee, if applicable (see above).
Application completed by surviving tenant(s), if
applicable.
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Executors of shareholder estates
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Letter of instruction signed by executor.
Copy of
order appointing executor, certified within the past 12 months.
Medallion Signature Guarantee, if applicable (see above).
Application completed by surviving tenant(s), if
applicable.
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Administrators, conservators, guardians and other sellers or account types not listed above
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Call the transfer agent for instructions.
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Salient
Funds
- 52
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Regular mail
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Express delivery
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Transfer agent
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Salient MF Trust
P.O. Box
182607
Columbus, Ohio 43218-2607
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Salient MF Trust
3435 Stelzer
Road
Columbus, Ohio 43219-8012
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1-866-667-9228
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Transaction policies
Statement of Additional Information
November 19, 2012
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Fund
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Class
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Ticker Symbol
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Salient Risk Parity Fund
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Class A
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SRPAX
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Class C
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SRPCX
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Class I
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SRPFX
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Salient MLP & Energy
Infrastructure Fund II
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Class A
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SMAPX
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Class C
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SMFPX
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Class I
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SMLPX
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Salient Alternative Beta
Fund
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Class A
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SABAX
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Class C
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SABCX
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Class I
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SABFX
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Salient Pure Trend Fund
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Class A
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SPTAX
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Class C
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SPTCX
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Class I
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SPTIX
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Salient Global Equity Fund
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Class A
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SGEAX
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Class C
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SGECX
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Class I
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SGEIX
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This Statement of Additional Information (SAI) provides information about the series of Salient MF
Trust (the Trust) listed above. The Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund (each a Fund and
together, the Funds) are each a series of the Trust. The information in this SAI is in addition to the information that is contained in the Funds prospectuses dated November 19, 2012.
This SAI is not a prospectus. It should be read in conjunction with the prospectus. Copies of each prospectus and shareholder reports (when they become
available) can be obtained free of charge by contacting:
Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc.
3435 Stelzer Road
Columbus, Ohio 43219
1-866
-
667-9228
www.salientfunds.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ORGANIZATION OF SALIENT MF TRUST
The Trust was organized on November 15, 2011 as a Delaware statutory trust under the laws of the State of Delaware and is an open-end investment
management company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act). The Trust presently has five series, Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Alternative
Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund (each a Fund and together, the Funds).
Salient
Advisors, L.P. (Salient Advisors), a Texas limited partnership located at 4265 San Felipe, Suite 800, Houston, Texas 77027, is the investment advisor to the Trust, Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure
Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund.
Salient Capital Advisors, LLC (SCA), a Texas limited liability company located at 4265
San Felipe, Suite 800, Houston, Texas 77027, is the investment advisor to the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II.
Salient Advisors and SCA (each an Advisor and together, the Advisors) are each registered as an investment advisor under the
Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. Each Advisor is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Salient Partners, L.P. (Salient), a Houston-based investment firm. As of September 30, 2012, the Advisors and their affiliates managed or advised
assets of approximately $ 17.4 billion, including $1.13 billion invested in master limited partnerships and energy infrastructure companies. Salient Advisors is also registered with the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a
commodity pool operator and commodities trading advisor and is a member of the National Futures Association.
Salient Risk Parity Fund
presently has a single wholly-owned subsidiary, Salient Risk Parity Offshore Fund Ltd. (the Risk Parity Subsidiary). The Risk Parity Subsidiary is organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands as an exempt
company, which is a corporation that is exempt from taxation in the Cayman Islands but may not trade in the Cayman Islands with any person, firm or corporation except in furtherance of business carried on outside the Cayman
Islands. Salient Risk Parity Fund is the sole owner of the Risk Parity Subsidiary, the board of directors of which is the same as the Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Trust.
Salient Alternative Beta Fund presently has a single wholly-owned subsidiary, Salient Alternative Beta Offshore Fund Ltd. (the Alternative Beta Subsidiary). The Alternative Beta
Subsidiary is organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands as an exempt company, which is a corporation that is exempt from taxation in the Cayman Islands but may not trade in the Cayman Islands with any person, firm or
corporation except in furtherance of business carried on outside the Cayman Islands. Salient Alternative Beta Fund is the sole owner of the Alternative Beta Subsidiary, the board of directors of which is the same as the Board of the Trust.
Salient Pure Trend Fund presently has a single wholly-owned subsidiary, Salient Pure Trend Offshore Fund Ltd. (the Pure Trend
Subsidiary). The Pure Trend Subsidiary is organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands as an exempt company, which is a corporation that is exempt from taxation in the Cayman Islands but may not trade in the Cayman
Islands with any person, firm or corporation except in furtherance of business carried on outside the Cayman Islands. Salient Pure Trend Fund is the sole owner of the Pure Trend Subsidiary, the board of directors of which is the same as the Board of
the Trust.
Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Inc. (the Domestic Subsidiary) is a wholly-owned and controlled
subsidiary of Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II. The Domestic Subsidiary is a Delaware corporation and is classified for federal income tax purposes as a taxable regular corporation or so-called Subchapter C
corporation. The Board of the Trust serves as the board of directors of the Domestic Subsidiary.
Each Funds fiscal year ends December
31. Each Funds tax year also ends December 31, other than Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, which ends November 30. Each wholly-owned subsidiarys fiscal year ends December 31, and each wholly-owned subsidiarys tax
year ends November 30.
INVESTMENT POLICIES AND RISKS
The principal strategies and risks of investing in the Funds are described in the prospectus. Unless otherwise indicated in the prospectus or this SAI,
the investment objective and policies of a Fund may be changed without shareholder approval.
Investment Strategies (Salient Risk Parity
Fund)
The Fund invests primarily in futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments whose performance is
expected to correspond to global equity markets, global interest rates markets as reflected in the government bond markets of developed countries and global commodities markets. The Fund is not currently expected to, but could in the future invest
in such contracts, derivatives and instruments whose performance is expected to correspond to global fixed income markets. The Fund will also hold a large portion of its assets either directly or indirectly (through its Risk Parity Subsidiary) in
cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Funds futures contracts or other derivatives positions.
The Board of the Trust, which is responsible for overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval.
Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the Funds investment objective.
1
Asset Classes and Strategies
The Advisor allocates investment exposure broadly across the following global asset classes and strategies:
(1) Equities. Sub-asset classes include:
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b.
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Other developed countries
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(2) Interest
Rates, represented by developed markets government fixed income.
(3) Commodities. Sub-asset classes include:
(4) Momentum Strategy.
The Advisor believes that momentum, or the continuation of recent price trends, is prevalent in most markets, and it attempts to capitalize on this by utilizing a trend-following strategy, which will invest long in assets exhibiting positive recent
price movements and invest short in assets exhibiting declining recent price movements. The momentum strategy will utilize the same futures contracts that the Advisor selects to gain exposures to the asset classes in items (1), (2) and
(3) above, and it will have the effect of amplifying the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been rising and lessening the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been declining.
The broad asset classes and strategies are determined based on their respective correlation and volatility contributions across different market
environments. The Fund is not currently expected to, but could in the future allocate investment exposure to Fixed Income assets.
Investment Process
The Advisors
investment process involves first the selection of representative assets within the equity, interest rates and commodities markets (and could in the future include selection of assets within the fixed income markets); then the measurement of the
volatility and correlation of and among the selected assets; and finally the construction of a portfolio designed to balance the risk contribution of each asset class or strategy within the overall portfolio.
The Fund intends to gain exposure to these asset classes by investing in a variety of investment instruments, as discussed below. The Fund generally
expects to maintain investments in approximately 50 different instruments, each of whose performance is expected to reflect the performance of a specific underlying asset or security. Generally, the Advisor selects representative assets with the
goal of having a portfolio of assets within each asset class that is as broad as possible as long as the instruments used to gain exposure to the asset meets the Advisors minimum liquidity guidelines for inclusion.
The Advisor then constructs a portfolio utilizing these assets that attempts to equalize the contribution to total portfolio variance first from each
asset class or strategy; then to equalize the contribution to total asset class or strategy variance from each sub-asset class or sub-strategy and finally to equalize as much as possible the contribution to the variance of each sub-asset class or
sub-strategy from each investment (such as futures contract or derivatives instrument) within that sub-asset class or sub-strategy.
Volatility is a measure of the variation in price around its average. Correlation is a measure of the similarity of the price movement of an asset or
security to another asset or security. Risk contribution is a measure of how much of a portfolios total variance is caused by a particular asset or security. Portfolio variance is a commonly-used measure of the risk of a portfolio that
combines the volatility of returns for each security and the correlations among each security with the portfolio weight of each security.
By
attempting to allocate its portfolio with balanced risk weightings, or risk parity, the advisor believes that the Fund can provide investors access to a more diversified portfolio than has traditionally been achieved through frameworks
that focus on the allocation of capital alone. This process has the effect of allocating less capital to more volatile assets or assets that are more highly-correlated to other assets in the portfolio; and it has the effect of allocating more
capital to less volatile assets or to assets that are less correlated to other assets in the portfolio.
Because of variance over time of,
among other things, the potential risks and returns of different asset classes and the correlation of certain asset classes to each other, the portfolio will dynamically adjust to reflect a changing investment environment. The weights will be
rebalanced monthly through a quantitative framework implemented through a rules-based system. There can be no assurance that employing a risk parity investment approach will achieve any particular return or will, in fact, reduce
volatility or potential loss.
The Advisor targets a 12% rolling 12-month volatility for the Fund, and the Fund is expected to experience
realized volatility of between 7% and 17% throughout each 12 month period, although it may differ according to market conditions.
Actual or realized volatility can and will differ from the anticipated and target volatility described. There is no
assurance that the Funds use of investment instruments providing exposure will enable the Fund to achieve its investment objective.
2
Investment Types
Generally, the Fund will primarily gain exposure to asset classes by investing in different types of instruments including, but not limited to: equity futures, commodity futures, bond futures, corporate
and government bonds, and cash and cash equivalents including money market fund shares, either by investing directly or indirectly, and by investing in the Risk Parity Subsidiary. The Risk Parity Subsidiary has the same investment objective as the
Fund and is used for purposes of certain of the Funds derivatives trading within the limitations of the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to registered investment companies. The Risk Parity Subsidiary, unlike the Fund, may
invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives and other investments that may provide exposure to commodities. The Fund could in the future invest in credit default swaps.
The Fund intends to obtain exposure to commodities by investing up to 25% of its total assets in the Risk Parity Subsidiary. Generally, the Risk Parity Subsidiary will invest primarily in commodity
futures and cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Risk Parity Subsidiarys futures contracts or other derivatives positions. Unlike the Fund, the Risk Parity
Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the Risk Parity Subsidiary will comply with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are
applicable to the Funds transactions in derivatives. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Risk Parity Subsidiary, the Risk Parity Subsidiary will be subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions
and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. The Fund is the sole shareholder of the Risk Parity Subsidiary and shares of the Risk Parity Subsidiary will not be offered or sold to other investors. The Fund will be subject
to the risks associated with any investment by the Risk Parity Subsidiary to the extent of the Funds investment in the Risk Parity Subsidiary.
Futures and forward contracts are contractual agreements to buy or sell a particular currency, commodity or financial instrument at a pre-determined price in the future. The Funds use of futures
contracts, forward contracts, swaps and certain other investments will have the economic effect of using financial leverage. Financial leverage reflected in such an investment instrument magnifies exposure to the swings in prices of an asset class
underlying such investment instrument and results in increased volatility. The Fund therefore will have the potential for greater increases and decreases in value than if the Fund does not use investment instruments that have the economic effect of
leveraging. Such leveraging effect also will tend to magnify, potentially significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the Funds exposure to an asset class and may cause the Funds Net Asset Value (NAV) to be
volatile.
Credit Default Swaps (CDS) are contractual agreements in which the seller will compensate the buyer in the event of a
default or other credit event by or relating to a referenced asset. The Fund does not currently, but could in the future, invest in CDS. The buyer of CDS makes periodic payments to the seller in exchange for a payoff by the seller in the event of a
default by or other credit event with respect to the referenced asset. The seller operates to provide, in effect, insurance to the buyer in the event of default of the referenced asset. Typical credit events include bankruptcies and
restructurings. Credit Default Swap Indices (CDS Indices) represent packages of individual CDS obligations. CDS Indices are issued in series with a new series typically issued on a six month rolling basis. The series typically have five
year expirations. If the Fund invests in CDS indices, the Fund is likely to use CDS indices with constituents being high yield corporate fixed income issuers and emerging market sovereign issuers. If the Fund is a CDS index seller, then the Fund
will segregate or earmark liquid assets consistent with regulatory positions at the time of the transaction. To the extent the Fund were to invest in CDS, the Fund would currently be required to segregate liquid assets sufficient to
cover the notional value of any CDS instrument where the Fund is the seller.
Based on the Funds strategies, the Fund may have highly
leveraged exposures to one or more asset classes at times. The Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) and the rules and interpretations thereunder impose certain limitations on the Funds ability to use leverage; however, the
Fund is not subject to any additional limitations on its investment exposures.
A large portion of the Funds assets may be invested
directly or indirectly in money market instruments, which may include, but are not limited to, U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government agency securities, short-term fixed income securities, overnight and/or fixed term repurchase agreements,
money market mutual fund shares, and cash and cash equivalents with one year or less term to maturity. These cash or cash equivalent holdings serve as margin or collateral for the investment positions the Fund takes and also will earn income for the
Fund. While the Fund normally will not engage in borrowing, the effect of leverage may be created when the Fund engages in futures transactions or certain other derivative agreements.
Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where
its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of investments or gain exposure to asset classes and markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have
exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization. The Fund may have exposure to fixed income securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers of any credit quality, including securities that are unrated or are rated in the
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lowest credit rating categories (often referred to as junk bonds). There is no percentage limit on the Funds exposure to below investment-grade fixed income securities including
emerging market fixed income securities or to small less-liquid equity securities. The Fund may have exposure in long and short positions across all of the asset classes. Short positions, however, will be limited to the momentum strategy allocation,
and will be determined by a proprietary trend-following strategy.
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to
be exhaustive. There can be no assurance that the Funds investment strategy will achieve profitable results.
Segregation of assets
As an open-end investment company registered with the SEC, the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the
rules thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Fund must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid
assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for
example, the Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set
aside liquid assets in an amount equal to its daily marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. The Fund reserves the right to modify
its asset segregation policies in the future to comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
The Fund generally will use its money market instruments (or any other liquid assets) to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff
positions. Short-term debt securities (or any other liquid asset so used) may not be used for other operational purposes but may be replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. The Advisor will monitor the Funds use of
derivatives and will take action as necessary for the purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Fund
can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer
less potential for gains than other types of securities.
The Fund also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its
assets in these instruments, even if the investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent a Fund invests in these
temporary investments in this manner, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Investment Strategies (Salient MLP &
Energy Infrastructure Fund II)
Under normal circumstances, the Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of
its net assets (plus the amount of borrowings, if any, for investment purposes) in securities of MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies. The Fund will invest in equity securities such as common units, preferred units, subordinated units, general
partner interests, common shares, preferred shares and convertible securities in MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies. There are no limitations on the credit quality of the convertible securities in which the Fund may invest. The Fund also may
invest in debt securities of MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies. The Fund may invest in MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies of any market capitalization ranges. The Fund is non-diversified, which means that it may invest in a limited
number of issuers.
MLPs
are entities structured as master limited partnerships, and their affiliates. Master limited
partnerships are limited partnerships and limited liability companies that are publicly traded and are treated as partnerships for federal income tax purposes. The units for these entities are listed and traded on a U.S. securities exchange. To
qualify as a master limited partnership, the entity must receive at least 90% of its gross income from qualifying sources as set forth in Section 7704(d) of the Code. These qualifying sources include natural resource-based activities such as
the exploration, development, mining, production, processing, refining, transportation, storage, gathering, processing, distribution and marketing of mineral or natural resources. Limited partnerships have two classes of interests: general partner
interests and limited partner interests. The general partner typically controls the operations and management of the partnership through an equity interest in the partnership (typically up to 2% of total equity). Limited partners own the remainder
of the partnership and have a limited role in the partnerships operations and management.
Master limited partnerships
organized as limited partnerships generally have a general partner interest and two classes of limited partner interestscommon units and subordinated units. The general partner interest may be held
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by either a private or publicly traded corporation or other entity. In many cases, the general partner owns common units, subordinated units and incentive distribution rights (IDRs)
in addition to its general partner interest in the master limited partnership. Master limited partnerships are typically structured such that common units and general partner interests have first priority to receive quarterly cash distributions up
to an established minimum amount (minimum quarterly distributions or MQD). Common units also accrue arrearages in distributions to the extent the MQD is not paid while any subordinated units remain outstanding. Once common
units have been paid, subordinated units receive distributions in an amount up to the MQD; however, subordinated units do not accrue arrearages. Distributable cash in excess of the MQD that is paid with respect to both common and subordinated units
generally is distributed to both common and subordinated units on a pro rata basis.
Whenever a distribution is paid to either
common unitholders or subordinated unitholders, the general partner is paid a proportional distribution. The holders of IDRs (usually the general partner) are eligible to receive incentive distributions if the general partner operates the business
in a manner which results in distributions paid per unit surpassing specified target levels. As cash distributions to the limited partners increase, the IDRs receive an increasingly higher percentage of the incremental cash distributions. A common
arrangement provides that the IDRs can reach a tier where the holder receives 48% of every incremental dollar paid to partners. These IDRs encourage the general partner to streamline costs, make investments and acquire assets in order to increase
the partnerships cash flow and raise the quarterly cash distribution in order to reach higher tiers. Such results benefit all security holders of such master limited partnership.
The master limited partnerships in which the Fund may directly or indirectly invest are currently classified as Midstream MLPs and MLPs
other than Midstream MLPs that operate (i) other assets that are used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring developing, producing, generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining,
distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity, or (ii) that provide energy related services. As described below, the Fund further sub-categorizes these master limited
partnerships into the following groups:
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Midstream MLPs own and operate the logistical assets used in the energy sector and are engaged in (a) the treating, gathering, compression,
processing, transmission and storage of natural gas and the transportation, fractionation and storage of natural gas liquids (primarily propane, ethane, butane and natural gasoline); (b) the gathering, transportation (including marine) and
storage of crude oil; and (c) the transportation and storage of refined products (primarily gasoline, diesel fuel and jet fuel) and other hydrocarbon by-products. Midstream MLPs may also operate ancillary businesses including the marketing of
commodities and logistical services. Midstream MLPs include MLPs that provide transportation and distribution services of energy-related products through the ownership and operation of marine transportation vessels (including tankers, barges and
tugboats). Midstream MLPs also include (a) General Partner MLPs whose assets consist of ownership interests of an affiliated Midstream MLP and (b) MLP Affiliates of Midstream MLPs.
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MLPs other than Midstream MLPs that operate (i) other assets that are used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring developing,
producing, generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity, or (ii) that provide energy
related services. Such MLPs can be classified into one of the following groups:
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Upstream MLPs are businesses engaged in the acquisition, exploitation, development and production of natural gas, natural gas liquids and
crude oil. An Upstream MLPs cash flow and distributions are driven by the amount of oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil produced and the demand for and price of such commodities. As the underlying reserves of an Upstream MLP are
produced, its reserve base is depleted. Upstream MLPs may seek to maintain or expand their reserves and production through the acquisition of reserves from other companies and the exploration and development of existing resources.
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Coal MLPs are engaged in the owning, leasing, managing, production and sale of various grades of steam and metallurgical grades of coal.
The primary use of steam coal is for electric generation (steam coal is used as a fuel for steam-powered generators by electrical utilities). The primary use of metallurgical coal is in the production of steel (metallurgical coal is used to make
coke, which, in turn, is used as a raw material in the steel manufacturing process).
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Propane MLPs are engaged in the distribution of propane to homeowners for space and water heating and to commercial, industrial and
agricultural customers. Propane serves approximately 6% of the household energy needs in the United States, largely for homes beyond the geographic reach of natural gas distribution pipelines. Volumes are weather dependent and a majority of annual
cash flow is earned during the winter heating season (October through March).
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Master limited partnerships may also own other assets that are used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring, developing, producing,
generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity or provide energy-related services, such as
refining and distribution of specialty refined products. While these master limited partnerships do not fit into one of the three categories listed above, they are publicly traded and generate qualified income and qualify for federal tax treatment
as partnerships.
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Energy Infrastructure Companies
are companies that own and operate assets that are
used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring, developing, producing, generating, transporting (including marine), transmitting, terminal operation, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of
natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity, or that provide energy-related services. For purposes of this definition, such companies (i) derive at least 50% of their revenues or operating income from
operating such assets or providing services for the operation of such assets or (ii) have such assets that represent the majority of their assets. These companies operate, among other things, assets used in exploring, developing, producing,
generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining, marketing or generation of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined petroleum products, coal or electricity.
Energy Infrastructure Companies can be broadly divided into five groups:
Upstream
: Companies engaged in exploring, developing and producing natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and coal.
Midstream
: Companies engaged in transporting, gathering, processing, storing and delivering natural gas, natural gas
liquids, crude oil and refined products for use by end users.
Downstream
: Companies engaged in refining, marketing and
distributing crude oil and refined products to end customers.
Power
: Companies engaged in generating, transmitting and
distributing electricity.
Energy Services
: Companies that provide services to the Upstream, Midstream and Downstream
sectors of the energy industry.
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The Fund will invest at least 50% of its total assets in Midstream MLPs and Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies.
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Midstream MLPs
are MLPs that principally own and operate assets used in energy logistics, including, but not limited to, assets
used in transporting (including marine), storing, gathering, processing, distributing or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil or refined products.
Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies
are companies, other than Midstream MLPs, that own and operate assets used in energy logistics, including, but not limited to, assets used in transporting
(including marine), storing, gathering, processing, distributing or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil or refined products.
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The Fund may directly invest up to but not more than 25% (or such higher amount as permitted by any applicable tax diversification rules) of total
assets in equity or debt securities of master limited partnerships. This limit does not apply to securities issued by MLP affiliates, which are not treated as publicly traded partnerships for federal income tax purposes, or investments made into
master limited partnerships by any Fund subsidiary.
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The Fund may invest up to but not more than 25% of total assets into Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Inc. (Domestic
Subsidiary), the Funds wholly-owned subsidiary, which in turn may invest up to 100% of its assets into equity or debt securities of different master limited partnerships. The Domestic Subsidiary will be classified for federal income tax
purposes as a taxable regular corporation or so-called Subchapter C corporation. To the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Domestic Subsidiary, the Domestic Subsidiary will be subject to the same investment
restrictions and limitations, and follow the same compliance policies and procedures, as the Fund.
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The Fund may invest up to but not more than 15% of total assets in debt securities of Energy Infrastructure Companies.
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The Fund may invest up to but not more than 10% of total assets in any single issuer other than any wholly-owned subsidiary C corporation.
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The Fund may invest up to 15% in unregistered and other illiquid securities.
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The Fund may engage in covered call writing. The Fund currently expects to write call options for the purpose of generating realized gains or reducing
the Funds ownership of certain securities. The Fund will only write call options on securities that the Fund holds in its portfolio (i.e., covered calls). To a lesser extent, the Fund currently expects to write call options for the purpose of
generating additional income and realized gains or reducing the Funds ownership of certain securities. A call option on a security is a contract that gives the holder of such call option the right to buy the security underlying the call option
from the writer of such call option at a specified price at any time during the term of the option. At the time the call option is sold, the writer of a call option receives a premium (or call premium) from the buyer of such call option. If the Fund
writes a call option on a security, the Funds has the obligation upon exercise of such call option to deliver the underlying security upon payment of the exercise price. When the Fund writes a call option, an amount equal to the premium received by
the Fund will be recorded as a liability and will be subsequently adjusted to the current fair value of the option written. Premiums received from writing options that expire unexercised are treated by the Fund as realized gains from investments on
the expiration date. If the Fund repurchases a written call option prior to its exercise, the difference between the premium received and the amount paid to repurchase the option is treated as a realized gain or realized loss. If a call option is
exercised, the premium is added to the proceeds from the sale of the underlying security in determining whether the Fund has realized a gain or loss. The Fund, as the writer of the option, bears the market risk of an unfavorable change in the price
of the security underlying the written option.
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The Fund also may use various hedging and other risk management strategies to seek to manage various risks including market, credit and tail risks.
Such hedging strategies would be utilized to seek to protect the value of the Funds portfolio, for example, against possible adverse changes in the market value of securities held in the portfolio. The Fund may execute its hedging and risk
management strategy by engaging in a variety of transactions, including buying or selling options or futures contracts on indexes and entering into total return swap contracts.
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Interest Rate Swaps
. The Fund may utilize hedging techniques such as interest rate swaps to mitigate potential interest rate risk
on any borrowings. Such interest rate swaps would principally be used to protect against higher costs on any borrowings resulting from increases in short-term interest rates. The majority of interest rate hedges would be interest rate swap contracts
with financial institutions.
Use of Arbitrage and Other Derivative-Based Strategies
. The Fund may use short sales,
arbitrage and other strategies to try to generate additional return. As part of such strategies, the Fund may (i) engage in paired long-short trades to arbitrage pricing disparities in securities held in the Funds portfolio;
(ii) purchase call options or put options; (iii) enter into total return swap contracts; or (iv) sell securities short. Paired trading consists of taking a long position in one security and concurrently taking a short position in
another security within the same or an affiliated issuer. With a long position, the Fund purchases a stock outright; whereas with a short position, the Fund would sell a security that it does not own and must borrow to meet the Funds
settlement obligations. The Fund will realize a profit or incur a loss from a short position depending on whether the value of the underlying stock decreases or increases, respectively, between the time the stock is sold and when the Fund replaces
the borrowed security. A total return swap is a contract between two parties designed to replicate the economics of directly owning a security. The Fund may enter into total return swaps with financial institutions related to equity investments in
certain master limited partnerships.
Other Risk Management Strategies
. To a lesser extent, the Fund may use various
hedging and other risk management strategies to seek to manage market risks. Such hedging strategies would be utilized to seek to protect against possible adverse changes in the market value of securities held in the Funds portfolio, or to
otherwise protect the value of the Funds portfolio. The Fund may execute its hedging and risk management strategy by engaging in a variety of transactions, including buying or selling options or futures contracts on indexes.
The Fund may invest a portion of its assets in shares of initial public offerings (IPOs), consistent with its investment objective and
policies. IPOs may have a magnified impact on the performance of a fund with a small asset base. The impact of IPOs on a funds performance likely will decrease as such funds asset size increases, which could reduce such funds
returns. IPOs may not be consistently available to the Fund for investing. IPO shares frequently are volatile in price due to the absence of a prior public market, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the
issuer. Therefore, the Fund may hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase turnover and may lead to increased expenses, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, IPO shares can experience an immediate drop in
value if the demand for the securities does not continue to support the offering price.
The percentage limitations applicable to the
portfolio described above apply at the time of investment, and the Fund will not be required to sell securities due to subsequent changes in the value of securities owned. However, although the Fund may not be
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required to sell securities due to subsequent changes in value, if such changes cause the Fund to have invested less than 80% of total assets in securities of MLPs and Energy Infrastructure
Companies, the Fund will be required to make future purchases of securities in a manner so as to come into compliance with this investment policy. The Fund will invest primarily in companies located in North America, but the Fund may invest in
companies located anywhere in the world.
The Fund may obtain leverage through borrowings in seeking its objective, although the Fund
currently does not intend to do so. The Funds borrowings, which would be in the form of loans from banks, may be on a secured or unsecured basis and at fixed or variable rates of interest. The Funds ability to obtain leverage through
borrowings is dependent upon its ability to establish and maintain an appropriate line of credit. The Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) requires the Fund to maintain continuous asset coverage of not less than 300% with respect to
all borrowings. This would allow the Fund to borrow for such purposes an amount equal to as much as 33 1/3% of the value of its total assets. The Fund will borrow only if the value of the Funds assets, including borrowings, is equal to at
least 300% of all borrowings, including the proposed borrowing. If at any time the Fund should fail to meet this 300% coverage requirement, within three business days (not including Sundays and holidays), the Fund will seek to reduce its borrowings
to the requirement. To do so, or to meet maturing bank loans, the Fund may be required to dispose of portfolio securities when such disposition might not otherwise be desirable. Interest on money borrowed is an expense of the Fund. The Fund also may
lend the securities in its portfolio to brokers, dealers and other financial institutions.
There can be no assurance that the Fund will
achieve its objective.
The Board can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders
will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the Funds investment objective.
Segregation of assets
As an open-end investment company registered with the SEC, the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the
rules thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Fund must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid
assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for
example, the Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set
aside liquid assets in an amount equal to its daily marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. The Fund reserves the right to modify
its asset segregation policies in the future to comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
The Fund generally will use liquid assets to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff positions. As a result of their segregation, any
liquid asset segregated may not be used for other operational purposes, unless replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. The Advisor will monitor the Funds use of derivatives and will take action as necessary for the
purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Fund can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash
equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer less potential for gains than other types of
securities.
The Fund also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its assets in these instruments, even if the
investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent the Fund invests in these temporary investments in this manner, the
Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Portfolio
At any given time, the Funds portfolio will have some or all of the types of investments described below. The Fund may invest in the equity securities of master limited partnerships either directly
or indirectly through one or more taxable subsidiary C corporations. A description of the Funds investment policies and restrictions and more information about the Funds portfolio investments are contained in this SAI and the prospectus.
Equity Securities of Master Limited Partnerships
. The following summarizes in further detail certain features of equity
securities of master limited partnerships. Also summarized below are certain features of i-shares, which represent an
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ownership interest issued by an MLP Affiliate. MLP Affiliates are affiliates of master limited partnerships substantially all of whose assets consist of units or ownership interests
of an affiliated master limited partnership (which may include general partner interests, incentive distribution rights, common units and subordinated units) and are structured as C Corporations. MLP Affiliates are not treated as partnerships for
federal income tax purposes.
Common Units
. Common units represent a master limited partnership limited partner interest
and may be listed and traded on U.S. securities exchanges or over-the-counter, with their value fluctuating predominantly based on prevailing market conditions and the success of such master limited partnership. The Fund intends to purchase common
units in market transactions as well as in primary issuances directly from the master limited partnership or other parties in private placements. Unlike owners of common stock of a corporation, owners of common units have limited voting rights and,
in most instances, have no ability to annually elect directors. In the event of liquidation, common units have preference over subordinated units to the remaining assets of such master limited partnership, but are subordinated to debt and preferred
units in the event of a liquidation.
Subordinated Units
. Subordinated units are typically issued by master limited
partnerships to their original sponsors, such as their management teams, corporate general partners, entities that sell assets to the master limited partnership, and outside investors such as the Fund. The Fund may purchase subordinated units from
these persons as well as newly issued subordinated units from the master limited partnerships
.
Subordinated units have similar limited voting rights as common units and are generally not publicly traded. In the event of liquidation, common
units and general partner interests have priority over subordinated units. Subordinated units are typically converted into common units on a one-to-one basis after certain time periods and/or performance targets have been satisfied. The purchase or
sale price of subordinated units is generally tied to the common unit price less a discount. The size of the discount varies depending on the likelihood of conversion, the length of time remaining to conversion, the size of the block purchased
relative to trading volumes, and other factors.
General Partner Interests
. General partner interests of master limited
partnerships are typically retained by their respective original sponsors, such as its management teams, corporate partners, entities that sell assets to the master limited partnership, and investors such as the Fund. A holder of general partner
interests can be liable under certain circumstances for amounts greater than the amount of the holders investment in such general partner interest. General partner interests often confer direct board participation rights and in many cases,
operating control, over the master limited partnership. General partner interests receive cash distributions, typically 2% of the master limited partnerships aggregate cash distributions. General partner interests generally cannot be converted
into common units. The general partner interest can be redeemed by the master limited partnership if the unitholders of the master limited partnership choose to remove the general partner, typically with a supermajority vote by the limited partners.
Incentive Distribution Rights (IDRs)
. Holders of IDRs are entitled to a larger share of the cash
distributions after the distributions to common unit holders meet certain prescribed levels. IDRs are generally attributable to the holders other equity interest (typically a general partner interest and subordinated units) in the master
limited partnership and permit the holder to receive a disproportionate share of the cash distributions above stated levels.
I-Shares
. The Fund will directly invest in i-shares or other securities issued by MLP Affiliates. I-shares represent an ownership
interest issued by an affiliated party of a master limited partnership. The MLP Affiliate uses the proceeds from the sale of i-shares to purchase limited partner interests in the master limited partnership in the form of i-units. I-units have
similar features as common units in terms of voting rights, liquidation preference and distributions. However, rather than receiving cash, the MLP Affiliate receives additional i-units in an amount equal to the cash distributions received by the
holders of the common units. Similarly, holders of i-shares will receive additional i-shares, in the same proportion as the MLP Affiliates receipt of i-units, rather than cash distributions. I-shares themselves have limited voting rights which
are similar to those applicable to common units. The MLP Affiliate issuing the i-shares is structured as a corporation for federal income tax purposes and is not treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes.
Equity Securities of Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies and Other Energy Infrastructure Companies
. Equity securities of
Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies and other Energy Infrastructure Companies consist of common equity, preferred equity and other securities convertible into equity securities of such companies. Holders of common shares are typically entitled
to one vote per share on all matters to be voted on by shareholders. Holders of preferred equity can be entitled to a wide range of voting and other rights, depending on the structure of each separate security. Securities convertible into equity
securities of Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies generally convert according to set ratios into common shares and are, like preferred equity, entitled to a wide range of voting and other rights. These securities are typically listed and
traded on U.S. securities exchanges or over-the-counter. The Fund intends to invest in equity securities of Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies primarily through market transactions as well as primary issuances directly from such Companies or
other parties in private placements.
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Securities of Private Midstream Partnership and Private Midstream Energy Infrastructure
Companies
. The Funds investments in the equity securities of private Midstream MLPs and private Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies will typically be made with the expectation that such assets will be contributed to a newly-formed
MLP or sold to or merged with an existing MLP within approximately one to two years. The Fund expects that such companies will typically be partnerships structured like master limited partnerships. Fund investments will typically be common units and
subordinated units of such entity.
Debt Securities of Energy Infrastructure Companies
. The debt securities in which the
Fund will invest provide for fixed or variable principal payments and various types of interest rate and reset terms, including fixed rate, adjustable rate, zero coupon, contingent, deferred and payment-in-kind features. Certain debt securities are
perpetual in that they have no maturity date. Certain debt securities are zero coupon bonds. A zero coupon bond is a bond that does not pay interest either for the entire life of the obligations or for an initial period after the
issuance of the obligation. Because the risk of default is higher for below investment grade and unrated debt securities than for investment grade securities, the Advisors research and credit analysis is a particularly important part of making
investment decisions on securities of this type. The Advisor will attempt to identify those issuers of below investment grade and unrated debt securities whose financial condition the Advisor believes is sufficient to meet future obligations or has
improved or is expected to improve in the future. The Advisors analysis focuses on relative values based on such factors as interest coverage, fixed charges coverage, asset coverage, operating history, financial resources, earnings prospects
and the experience and managerial strength of the issuer.
Investment Strategies (Salient Alternative Beta Fund)
The Fund invests both long and short primarily in futures and forward contracts but may also invest in other financial instruments, which may include
securities as well as derivatives, in order to gain exposure to a variety of non-traditional risk premia identified by the Advisor. Risk premia, plural for a risk premium, are the excess positive expected returns from exposures to or strategies in
various asset classes/markets and investment styles (as defined below) above the risk-free rate represented by cash or government bonds. The Fund will also hold a large portion of its assets either directly or indirectly (through its Alternative
Beta Subsidiary, as discussed below) in cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Funds futures contracts or other derivatives positions.
The Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for
overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the
Funds investment objective.
Targeted Risk Premia
The Advisor believes that many of the risk premia it has identified are:
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Persistent return streams whose existence is supported by academic research and/or behavioral patterns of investors;
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complementary to core market exposures held by most investors;
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responsible for a significant amount of the returns generated by many professional investment managers who generally charge both management and
incentive fees in private funds; and
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accessible through systematic or rules-based trading strategies and methods.
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The primary risk premia targeted by the Advisor include:
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Equity Risk Premium Strategy: The Equity Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from an array of systematic risk premia that exist in equity markets by
gaining both long and short exposure to equities. This strategy systematically targets market inefficiencies created by factors including the behavioral characteristics of market participants, the uncertainty surrounding market events and
volatility, and the varying speeds with which investors react to new information. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited capturing risk premia associated with size, value, momentum, quality, announced mergers and
spin-offs.
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Commodity Risk Premium Strategy: The Commodity Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia arising in commodity markets, arising
from factors including the fundamental supply and demand relationship of an underlying commodity, the behavioral characteristics of market participants and the cost of carry of an underlying
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commodity. This strategy will provide both long and short exposure to commodity futures. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to momentum, capturing futures roll
yield, avoiding negative rolling yield, extracting perceived calendar effects and employing substitution baskets based on statistical arbitrage.
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Currency Risk Premium Strategy: The Currency Risk Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia that exist in global currency markets.
These inefficiencies are driven by the varying speed with which investors react to new information, central bank policy, and the economic quality of currency-issuing countries. This strategy will provide long and short exposure to global currencies.
Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to carry based strategies, momentum based strategies and value-based strategies.
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Interest Rates Premium Strategy: The Interest Rate Premium Strategy seeks to profit from systematic risk premia that exist in the markets for global
interest rates arising from factors such as market expectations of central bank behavior, the behavioral characteristics of market participants, and price trends in global interest rate markets. This strategy will provide long and short exposure to
global government bond futures and other interest rate products. Methods used to capture these premia include but may not be limited to carry-based approaches, capturing inflation risk premia, and momentum.
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Other Strategies: Other Strategies may include investment techniques emphasizing risk-adjusted returns. These strategies will often seek to exploit
pricing anomalies, cyclical trends, or other disparities across geographies and capital markets.
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The Advisor regularly
reviews and researches other potential risk premia and may add additional risk premia to the portfolio in its discretion.
Investment
Process
The Advisors investment process begins with analysis and systematic identification of various factors, which may
include by way of example but not limitation market inefficiencies, market participant behaviors, supply and demand imbalances, market expectations and cyclical trends, that the Advisor believes provide non-traditional risk premia. Sources include
academic research, discussions with various professional money managers and reports from a variety of financial institutions including investment banks.
Once identified, the Advisor determines which global markets (such as equity, commodity, currency, interest rate and other markets) are appropriate for each risk premium and whether to gain exposure
to the risk premium by directly investing in financial instruments using its own systematic strategies, or indirectly by entering into a derivatives transaction with a third party.
In the case of direct exposure, the Advisor utilizes proprietary systematic strategies to gain exposure to the relevant risk premia by establishing a
mixture of long and short positions in various markets, typically utilizing futures contracts.
In the case of indirect exposure, the Advisor
has determined that the risk premium in question is best accessed utilizing a strategy developed and/or managed by a third party. The Fund will typically gain exposure to these types of strategies by entering into swap agreements with an investment
bank or other counterparty.
The Advisor constructs a portfolio in which it attempts to balance the risk contribution of the risk premia or
investment strategies and for which it targets a 20% annualized standard deviation of returns (variance). The risk calculation is derived from each strategys standard deviation of returns, its correlation with each of the other
strategies within the portfolio and the percentage weight of each strategy within the portfolio. The portfolio is rebalanced dynamically according to this framework on a monthly basis.
The Advisor constructs a portfolio that attempts to equalize the contribution to total portfolio variance first from each asset class or strategy; then to equalize the contribution to total asset class or
strategy variance from each sub-asset class or sub-strategy and finally to equalize as much as possible the contribution to the variance of each sub-asset class or sub-strategy from each investment (such as futures contract or derivatives
instrument) within that sub-asset class or sub-strategy.
Volatility is a measure of the variation in price around its average. Correlation is
a measure of the similarity of the price movement of an asset or security to another asset or security. Risk contribution is a measure of how much of a portfolios total variance is caused by a particular asset or security. Portfolio variance
is a commonly-used measure of the risk of a portfolio that combines the volatility of returns for each security and the correlations among each security with the portfolio weight of each security.
By attempting to allocate its portfolio with balanced risk weightings, or risk parity, the Advisor believes that the Fund can provide
investors access to a more diversified portfolio than has traditionally been achieved through frameworks that focus on the allocation of capital alone. This process has the effect of allocating less capital to more volatile assets or assets that are
more highly-correlated to other assets in the portfolio; and it has the effect of allocating more capital to less volatile assets or to assets that are less correlated to other assets in the portfolio.
11
Because of variance over time of, among other things, the potential risks and returns of different asset
classes and the correlation of certain asset classes to each other, the portfolio will dynamically adjust to reflect a changing investment environment. The weights will be rebalanced monthly through a quantitative framework implemented through a
rules-based system. There can be no assurance that employing this investment approach will achieve any particular return or will, in fact, reduce volatility or potential loss.
Investment Types
Generally, the Fund will primarily gain exposure to asset classes,
such as equities, commodities, currencies and interest rates, by investing in different types of instruments including, but not limited to: equity futures, commodity futures, bond futures, swaps and forward contracts, corporate and government bonds,
cash and cash equivalents including money market fund shares, either by investing directly or indirectly, and by investing in Salient Alternative Beta Offshore Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund, organized under the laws
of the Cayman Islands (the Alternative Beta Subsidiary). The Alternative Beta Subsidiary has the same investment objective as the Fund and is used for purposes of certain of the Funds derivatives trading within the limitations of
the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to registered investment companies. The Alternative Beta Subsidiary, unlike the Fund, may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives and other investments that may provide
exposure to commodities.
The Fund intends to obtain exposure to commodities by investing up to 25% of its total assets in the
Alternative Beta Subsidiary. Generally, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary will invest primarily in commodity futures and cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Alternative
Beta Subsidiarys futures contracts or other derivatives positions. Unlike the Fund, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary will comply with the
same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Funds transactions in derivatives. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the
Alternative Beta Subsidiary, the Alternative Beta Subsidiary will be subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. The Fund is the sole shareholder of the Alternative
Beta Subsidiary and shares of the Alternative Beta Subsidiary will not be offered or sold to other investors. The Fund will be subject to the risks associated with any investment by the Alternative Beta Subsidiary to the extent of the Funds
investment in the Alternative Beta Subsidiary.
Futures and forward contracts are contractual agreements to buy or sell a particular currency,
commodity or financial instrument at a pre-determined price in the future. The Funds use of futures contracts, forward contracts, swaps and certain other investments will have the economic effect of using financial leverage. Financial leverage
reflected in such an investment instrument magnifies exposure to the swings in prices of an asset class underlying such investment instrument and results in increased volatility. The Fund therefore will have the potential for greater increases and
decreases in value than if the Fund does not use investment instruments that have the economic effect of leveraging. Such leveraging effect also will tend to magnify, potentially significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the
Funds exposure to an asset class and may cause the Funds Net Asset Value (NAV) to be volatile.
Based on the
Funds strategies, the Fund may have highly leveraged exposures to one or more asset classes at times. The Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) and the rules and interpretations thereunder impose certain limitations on the
Funds ability to use leverage; however, the Fund is not subject to any additional limitations on its investment exposures.
A large
portion of the Funds assets may be invested directly or indirectly in money market instruments, which may include, but are not limited to, U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government agency securities, short-term fixed income securities,
overnight and/or fixed term repurchase agreements, money market mutual fund shares, and cash and cash equivalents with one year or less term to maturity. These cash or cash equivalent holdings serve as margin or collateral for the investment
positions the Fund takes and also will earn income for the Fund. While the Fund normally will not engage in borrowing, the effect of leverage may be created when the Fund engages in futures transactions or certain other derivative agreements.
Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of investments or gain exposure to asset
classes and markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization. The Fund may have exposure to fixed income securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers of
any credit quality, including securities that are unrated or are rated in the lowest credit rating categories (often referred to as junk bonds). There is no percentage limit on the Funds exposure to below investment-grade fixed
income securities including emerging market fixed income securities or to small less-liquid equity securities. The Fund may have exposure in long and short positions across all of the asset classes. Short positions, however, will be limited to the
momentum strategy allocation, and will be determined by a proprietary trend-following strategy.
12
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be exhaustive. There can be no
assurance that the Funds investment strategy will achieve profitable results.
Segregation of assets
As an open-end investment company registered with the SEC, the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the rules
thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Fund must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid assets,
or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for example, the
Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set aside liquid
assets in an amount equal to its daily marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. The Fund reserves the right to modify its asset
segregation policies in the future to comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
The Fund generally will use its money market instruments (or any other liquid assets) to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff
positions. Short-term debt securities (or any other liquid asset so used) may not be used for other operational purposes but may be replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. The Advisor will monitor the Funds use of
derivatives and will take action as necessary for the purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Fund
can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer
less potential for gains than other types of securities.
The Fund also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its
assets in these instruments, even if the investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent a Fund invests in these
temporary investments in this manner, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Investment Strategies (Salient Pure Trend Fund)
The Fund invests both long and short primarily in futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments in order to
gain exposure to momentum, which is defined as the continuation of recent price trends, across a variety of global markets and asset classes. The Fund will also hold a large portion of its assets either directly or indirectly (through its Pure Trend
Subsidiary, as discussed below) in cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Funds futures contracts or other derivatives positions.
The Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for
overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the
Funds investment objective.
Momentum Strategy
The Advisor believes that momentum is:
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a powerful factor with positive expected returns;
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available across nearly every publicly-traded market;
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a persistent return stream whose existence is supported by academic research and/or behavioral patterns of investors;
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complementary to core market exposures, particularly global equities, held by most investors;
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responsible for the majority of returns generated by many Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) who generally charge both management and
incentive fees in private funds; and
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accessible through systematic or rules-based trading strategies and methods.
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The primary global markets targeted by the Advisor include:
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Interest Rates (as reflected by government bond markets of developed countries).
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Investment Process
After the Advisor
determines which global markets are appropriate for its momentum strategy, the Advisor utilizes proprietary systematic strategies to gain exposure to momentum by establishing a mixture of long and short positions in various markets, typically
utilizing futures contracts. The Advisor generally causes the Fund to go long markets exhibiting recent upward price trends while going short those markets exhibiting recent downward trends. The momentum strategy will have the effect of amplifying
the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been rising and lessening the Funds exposure to assets whose prices have been declining.
The Advisor then constructs a portfolio in which it attempts to balance the risk contribution of each trend-following strategy and the asset classes within each strategy and for which it targets a 20%
annualized standard deviation of returns (variance). The risk calculation is derived from each strategys standard deviation of returns, its correlation with each of the other strategies within the portfolio and the percentage
weight of each strategy within the portfolio. The portfolio is rebalanced dynamically according to this framework on a monthly basis.
Volatility is a measure of the variation in price around its average. Correlation is a measure of the similarity of the price movement of an asset or
security to another asset or security. Risk contribution is a measure of how much of a portfolios total variance is caused by a particular asset or security. Portfolio variance is a commonly-used measure of the risk of a portfolio that
combines the volatility of returns for each security and the correlations among each security with the portfolio weight of each security.
By
attempting to allocate its portfolio with balanced risk weightings, the Advisor believes that the Fund can provide investors access to a more diversified portfolio than has traditionally been achieved through frameworks that focus on the allocation
of capital alone. This process has the effect of allocating less capital to more volatile assets or assets that are more highly-correlated to other assets in the portfolio; and it has the effect of allocating more capital to less volatile assets or
to assets that are less correlated to other assets in the portfolio.
Because of variance over time of, among other things, the potential
risks and returns of different asset classes and the correlation of certain asset classes to each other, the portfolio will dynamically adjust to reflect a changing investment environment. The weights will be rebalanced monthly through a
quantitative framework implemented through a rules-based system. There can be no assurance that employing this investment approach will achieve any particular return or will, in fact, reduce volatility or potential loss.
Investment Types
Generally, the Fund
will primarily gain exposure to asset classes, such as equities, commodities, currencies and interest rates, by investing in different types of instruments including, but not limited to: equity futures, commodity futures, bond futures, corporate and
government bonds, cash and cash equivalents including money market fund shares, either by investing directly or indirectly, and by investing in Salient Pure Trend Offshore Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund, organized
under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the Pure Trend Subsidiary). The Pure Trend Subsidiary has the same investment objective as the Fund and is used for purposes of certain of the Funds derivatives trading within the limitations
of the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to registered investment companies. The Pure Trend Subsidiary, unlike the Fund, may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives and other investments that may provide exposure
to commodities.
The Fund intends to obtain exposure to commodities by investing up to 25% of its total assets in the Pure Trend Subsidiary.
Generally, the Pure Trend Subsidiary will invest primarily in commodity futures and cash, money market instruments or other cash equivalents, some of which will serve as margin or collateral for the Pure Trend Subsidiarys futures contracts or
other derivatives positions. Unlike the Fund, the Pure Trend Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the Pure Trend Subsidiary will comply with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to
its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Funds transactions in derivatives. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Pure Trend Subsidiary, the Pure Trend Subsidiary will be
subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. The Fund is the sole shareholder of the Pure Trend Subsidiary and shares of the Pure Trend Subsidiary will not be
offered or sold to other investors. The Fund will be subject to the risks associated with any investment by the Pure Trend Subsidiary to the extent of the Funds investment in the Pure Trend Subsidiary.
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Futures and forward contracts are contractual agreements to buy or sell a particular currency, commodity or
financial instrument at a pre-determined price in the future. The Funds use of futures contracts, forward contracts, swaps and certain other investments will have the economic effect of using financial leverage. Financial leverage reflected in
such an investment instrument magnifies exposure to the swings in prices of an asset class underlying such investment instrument and results in increased volatility. The Fund therefore will have the potential for greater increases and decreases in
value than if the Fund does not use investment instruments that have the economic effect of leveraging. Such leveraging effect also will tend to magnify, potentially significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the Funds exposure
to an asset class and may cause the Funds Net Asset Value (NAV) to be volatile.
Based on the Funds strategies, the
Fund may have highly leveraged exposures to one or more asset classes at times. The Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) and the rules and interpretations thereunder impose certain limitations on the Funds ability to use
leverage; however, the Fund is not subject to any additional limitations on its investment exposures.
A large portion of the Funds
assets may be invested directly or indirectly in money market instruments, which may include, but are not limited to, U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government agency securities, short-term fixed income securities, overnight and/or fixed term
repurchase agreements, money market mutual fund shares, and cash and cash equivalents with one year or less term to maturity. These cash or cash equivalent holdings serve as margin or collateral for the investment positions the Fund takes and also
will earn income for the Fund. While the Fund normally will not engage in borrowing, the effect of leverage may be created when the Fund engages in futures transactions or certain other derivative agreements.
Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed. This flexibility allows the Fund to take advantage of investments or gain exposure to asset
classes and markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization. The Fund may have exposure to fixed income securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers of
any credit quality, including securities that are unrated or are rated in the lowest credit rating categories (often referred to as junk bonds). There is no percentage limit on the Funds exposure to below investment-grade fixed
income securities including emerging market fixed income securities or to small less-liquid equity securities. The Fund may have exposure in long and short positions across all of the asset classes.
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be exhaustive. There can be no assurance that the Funds investment
strategy will achieve profitable results.
Segregation of assets
As an open-end investment company registered with the SEC, the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive
positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Fund must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to
cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for example, the Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such
contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set aside liquid assets in an amount equal to its daily
marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. The Fund reserves the right to modify its asset segregation policies in the future to
comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
The Fund
generally will use its money market instruments (or any other liquid assets) to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff positions. Short-term debt securities (or any other liquid
asset so used) may not be used for other operational purposes but may be replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. The Advisor will monitor the Funds use of derivatives and will take action as necessary for the
purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Fund can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash
equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer less potential for gains than other types of
securities.
The Fund also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its assets in these instruments, even if the
investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent a Fund invests in these temporary investments in this manner, the
Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
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Investment Strategies (Salient Global Equity Fund)
The Fund invests primarily in exchange-traded global equities, and from time to time it may utilize various futures contracts and other financially-linked
derivatives and instruments in order to reduce or increase certain exposures.
Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value
of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock), and 40% of the value of the Funds net assets
(plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock) of issuers located outside of the United States.
The Board of Trustees (the Board) of the Salient MF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the Trust), which is responsible for
overseeing all business activities of the Trust and the Fund, can change the Funds investment objective and strategies without shareholder approval. Shareholders will receive written notice of at least 60 days prior to any change of the
Funds investment objective.
Investment Process
The Advisor utilizes a hybrid investment process that combines top-down thematic views with a fundamental bottom-up security selection process to build a portfolio of approximately 40 to 70 stocks. The
positions fall into three categories:
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Capital Growth: companies with sustainable competitive advantages and attractive industry or thematic tailwinds which trade at reasonable valuations
and are expected to compound value over time;
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Yield: companies with above-average dividend yields and/or cash flow yields with modest growth expectations; and
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Opportunistic: companies that are undergoing significant structural or cyclical changes (or companies within industries undergoing these types of
changes) that are likely to transform the future value creation potential of the underlying businesses.
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The investment
process begins by filtering the universe of stocks in the MSCI All Country World Index (consisting of approximately 2426 stocks as of March 31, 2012) into approximately 150 stocks using both quantitative and fundamental research. The Advisor
applies fundamental research on these companies to construct a portfolio of approximately 40-70 stocks that is diversified across sectors and geography. All selected securities are subjected to valuation discipline and have predetermined
upside/downside valuation targets. In general, no individual position typically is more than 5% of the Funds portfolio (at cost) and the top ten positions typically will not exceed approximately 40% of the portfolio. The Advisor also employs
dynamic limits on maximum country and industry exposure as a means of risk control. There are no limitations on the market capitalizations of the issuers in which the Fund may invest.
The Advisor analyzes issuers internally and formulates an investment thesis and earnings models for each position, with focus on identifying an edge, or a differentiated viewpoint that is
supported by an out-of-consensus earnings model or asset value analysis. Positions generally are eliminated when an investment thesis changes, an issuers underlying business does not develop as projected, a price target is reached,
and/or securities with more attractive risk reward are identified.
Typically, the Advisor intends that approximately 70%-85% of the Fund will
be invested in developed markets, with the remaining portfolio invested in the emerging markets. The Fund may, however, invest less than 15% of its portfolio in emerging markets at any given time. The Fund selectively hedges its exposure to foreign
currencies depending on market conditions and the Advisors assessment of cost-benefit associated with such a program.
The Advisor
places a premium on downside protection in support of the Funds investment objective, and may employ futures and other derivatives-based overlays designed to hedge the portfolio to reduce exposure in an attempt to control volatility and/or to
supplement the portfolio and increase exposure. Such overlays are systematic, rules based and utilize specific triggers based on market conditions.
Investment Types
The Fund invests primarily in exchange-traded securities on a global
basis, and from time to time it may utilize various futures contracts and other financially-linked derivatives and instruments in order to reduce or increase certain exposures.
Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities
(such as preferred stock and/or convertible stock), and 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities (such as preferred stock and/or
convertible stock) of issuers located outside of the United States.
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Geographic, Size and Credit Quality Limitations
The Fund has no geographic limits on where its investments may be located or where its assets may be exposed, other than that under normal conditions, at
least 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities of issuers located outside of the United States. This flexibility allows the Fund
to take advantage of asset classes and equity markets around the world, which include emerging markets. The Fund may have exposure to equity securities of companies of any market capitalization.
The foregoing description is, of necessity, general and is not intended to be exhaustive. There can be no assurance that the Funds investment
strategy will achieve profitable results.
Segregation of assets
As an open-end investment company registered with the SEC, the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and various SEC and SEC staff interpretive
positions. In accordance with these laws, rules and positions, the Fund must set aside (often referred to as asset segregation or earmarking) liquid assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to
cover open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivatives instruments. In the case of forwards contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, for example, the Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such
contracts full notional value while the positions are open. With respect to forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set aside liquid assets in an amount equal to its daily
marked-to-market net obligations (i.e., the Funds daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts full notional value. The Fund reserves the right to modify its asset segregation policies in the future to
comply with any changes in the positions from time to time articulated by the SEC or its staff regarding asset segregation.
The Fund
generally will use its money market instruments (or any other liquid assets) to cover its obligations as required by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC and SEC staff positions. Short-term debt securities (or any other liquid
asset so used) may not be used for other operational purposes but may be replaced by other liquid assets as may be determined by the Advisor. The Advisor will monitor the Funds use of derivatives and will take action as necessary for the
purpose of complying with the asset segregation policy stated above. Such actions may include the sale of the Funds portfolio investments.
Temporary defensive investing
The Fund can hold uninvested cash or can invest it in cash
equivalents such as money market instruments, interests in short-term investment funds, repurchase agreements, or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. Generally, these securities offer less potential for gains than other types of
securities.
The Fund also may adopt temporary defensive positions by investing up to 100% of its assets in these instruments, even if the
investments are inconsistent with the Funds principal investment strategies, in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. To the extent a Fund invests in these temporary investments in this manner, the
Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Investment Risks
Risks of Investment Activities Generally
All securities investing and trading activities
risk the loss of capital. No assurance can be given that the Funds investment activities will be successful or that the Funds shareholders will not suffer losses.
Borrowing and Leverage
Each Fund may borrow money to the extent
permitted under the 1940 Act, as such may be interpreted or modified by regulatory authorities having jurisdiction, from time to time. This borrowing may be unsecured. The 1940 Act precludes a fund from borrowing if, as a result of such borrowing,
the total amount of all money borrowed by a fund exceeds 33
1/3
% of the value of its total assets (that is, total assets including borrowings, less liabilities exclusive of borrowings) at the time of such borrowings. This means that the 1940 Act requires a fund to
maintain continuous asset coverage of 300% of the amount borrowed. If the 300% asset coverage should decline as a result of market fluctuations or other reasons, a Fund may be required to sell some of its portfolio holdings within three days to
reduce the debt and restore the 300% asset coverage, even though it may be disadvantageous from an investment standpoint to sell securities at that time, and could cause the Fund to be unable to meet certain requirements for qualification as a
regulated investment company under the Code. In addition, certain types of borrowings by a Fund may result in the Fund being subject to covenants in credit agreements relating to asset coverage, portfolio composition requirements and other matters.
It is not anticipated that observance of such covenants would impede the respective Funds Advisor from managing the Funds portfolio in accordance with the Funds investment objectives and policies. However, a breach of any such
covenants not cured within the specified cure period may result in acceleration of outstanding indebtedness and require the Fund to dispose of portfolio investments at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
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Borrowing has a leveraging effect because it tends to exaggerate the effect on a Funds net asset value
(NAV) per share of any changes in the market value of its portfolio securities. Money borrowed will be subject to interest costs and other fees, which may or may not be recovered by earnings on the securities purchased. Each Fund also
may be required to maintain minimum average balances in connection with a borrowing or to pay a commitment or other fee to maintain a line of credit. Either of these requirements would increase the cost of borrowing over the stated interest rate.
Unless the appreciation and income, if any, on assets acquired with borrowed funds exceed the costs of borrowing, the use of leverage will diminish the investment performance of a fund compared with what it would have been without leverage.
The SEC takes the position that other transactions that have a leveraging effect on the capital structure of a fund can be viewed as
constituting a form of senior security of the fund for purposes of the 1940 Act. These transactions may include selling securities short, buying and selling certain derivatives (such as futures contracts), selling (or writing) put and
call options, engaging in when-issued, delayed-delivery, forward-commitment or reverse repurchase transactions and other trading practices that have a leveraging effect on the capital structure of a fund or may be viewed as economically equivalent
to borrowing. A borrowing transaction will not be considered to constitute the issuance of a senior security by a Fund if the Fund (1) maintains an offsetting financial position, (2) maintains liquid assets in a sufficient
value to cover the Funds potential obligation under the borrowing transaction not offset or covered as provided in (1) and (3), or (3) otherwise covers the transaction in accordance with applicable SEC guidance
(collectively, covers the transaction). The Funds holdings in such instruments are marked-to-market daily to ensure proper coverage. A Fund may have to buy or sell a security at a disadvantageous time or price in order to cover
such transaction. In addition, assets being maintained to cover such transactions may not be available to satisfy redemptions or for other purposes or obligations.
Commodities Risk (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Funds to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked derivative investments may be affected by changes
in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates, or sectors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory
developments.
Conflicts of Interest of Salient
For purposes of this section, the term Salient refers collectively to Salient Partners, L.P., Salient Advisors, L.P., and/or Salient Capital Advisors, LLC.
Conflicts of interest may arise because Salient and its affiliates generally carry on substantial investment activities for other clients in which the
Funds will have no interest. Salient or its affiliates may have financial incentives to favor certain of such accounts over the Funds. Any of their proprietary accounts and other customer accounts may compete with the Funds for specific trades.
Salient or its affiliates may buy or sell securities for a Fund which differ from securities bought or sold for other accounts and customers, although their investment objectives and policies may be similar to those of a Fund. Situations may occur
when a Fund could be disadvantaged because of the investment activities conducted by Salient or its affiliates for their other accounts. Such situations may be based on, among other things, legal or internal restrictions on the combined size of
positions that may be taken for a Fund and the other accounts, thereby limiting the size of a Funds position, or the difficulty of liquidating an investment for a Fund and the other accounts where the market cannot absorb the sale of the
combined position.
With respect to the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, the Funds investment opportunities may be
limited by affiliations of Salient or its affiliates with MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies. In addition, to the extent that Salient sources and structures private investments in MLPs and Energy Infrastructure Companies, certain employees of
Salient may become aware of actions planned by these companies, such as acquisitions, that may not be announced to the public. Although Salient maintains procedures to ensure that any material non-public information available to certain Salient
employees not be shared with those employees responsible for the purchase and sale of publicly traded securities, it is possible that the Funds could be precluded from investing in a company about which Salient has material non-public information.
Each Funds Advisor also manages other funds that have investment objectives and strategies that are similar to and/or overlap with
those of the Funds (collectively, Affiliated Funds). In particular, with respect to the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, certain Affiliated Funds invest in MLPs and Midstream Energy Infrastructure Companies.
Furthermore, each Funds Advisor may, at some time in the future, manage other investment funds with the same investment objective as the Funds. Investment decisions for the Funds are made independently from those of Salients other
clients; however, from time to time, the same investment decision may be made for more than one fund or account. When two or more clients advised by Salient or its affiliates seek to purchase or sell the same publicly traded securities, the
securities actually purchased or sold are allocated among the clients on a good faith equitable basis by Salient in its discretion in accordance with the clients various investment objectives and procedures adopted by Salient and approved by
the Board of Trustees. In some cases, this system may adversely affect the price or size of the position that a Fund may obtain. In other cases, however, the Funds ability to participate in volume transactions may produce better execution for
the Funds.
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Each Fund and its affiliates, including Affiliated Funds, may be precluded from co-investing in private
placements of securities, including in any portfolio companies that Salient controls. Salient will allocate private investment opportunities among its clients, including the Funds, based on allocation policies that take into account several
suitability factors, including the size of the investment opportunity, the amount of funds that each client has available for investment and the clients investment objectives. These allocation policies may result in the allocation of
investment opportunities to an Affiliated Fund rather than to a Fund. The policies contemplate that Salient will exercise discretion, based on several factors relevant to the determination, in allocating the entirety, or a portion, of such
investment opportunities to an Affiliated Fund, in priority to other prospectively interested advisory clients, including the Funds. In this regard, when applied to specified investment opportunities that would normally be suitable for the Funds,
the allocation policies may result in certain Affiliated Funds having greater priority than the Funds to participate in such opportunities depending on the totality of the considerations, including, among other things, a Funds available
capital for investment, its existing holdings, applicable tax and diversification standards to which a Fund may then be subject and the ability to efficiently liquidate a portion of its existing portfolio in a timely and prudent fashion in the time
period required to fund the transaction.
The investment management fee paid to a Funds Advisor is based on the value of the Funds
assets, as periodically determined. A percentage of the Funds assets may be illiquid securities acquired in private transactions for which market quotations will not be readily available. Although the Fund will adopt valuation procedures
designed to determine valuations of illiquid securities in a manner that reflects their fair value, there typically is a range of prices that may be established for each individual security. Senior management of the Funds Advisor, the Board of
Trustees, its Valuation Committee, the Advisors Valuation Committee, and a third-party valuation firm participate in the valuation of its securities. See Net Asset Value.
Counterparty Risk
In general, a derivative contract typically involves leverage,
i.e.
, it provides exposure to potential gain or loss from a change in the level of the market price of a security, currency or commodity (or a basket or index) in a notional amount that exceeds the amount of cash or assets required to
establish or maintain the derivative contract. Many of these derivative contracts will be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market. These contracts also involve exposure to credit risk, since contract performance depends in part on the
financial condition of the counterparty. If a privately negotiated over-the-counter contract calls for payments by the Funds, the Funds must be prepared to make such payments when due. In addition, if a counterpartys creditworthiness declines,
the Funds may not receive payments owed under the contract, or such payments may be delayed under such circumstances and the value of agreements with such counterparty can be expected to decline, potentially resulting in losses by the Funds.
Credit Risk
Credit risk
refers to the possibility that the issuer of the security will not be able to make principal and interest payments when due. Changes in an issuers credit rating or the markets perception of an issuers creditworthiness may also
affect the value of the Funds investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation. Securities rated in the four highest categories (Standard &
Poors (S&P) (AAA, AA, A and BBB), Fitch Ratings (Fitch) (AAA, AA, A and BBB) or Moodys Investors Service, Inc. (Moodys) (Aaa, Aa, A and Baa)) by the rating agencies are considered investment
grade but they may also have some speculative characteristics, meaning that they carry more risk than higher rated securities and may have problems making principal and interest payments in difficult economic climates. Investment grade ratings do
not guarantee that bonds will not lose value.
Debt Obligations (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure
Fund II, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Each Fund, subject to its investment strategies and policies, may invest
in corporate bonds and other evidences of corporate indebtedness (debt securities), including debt securities issued by companies involved in publicly announced mergers, takeovers and other corporate reorganizations, including
reorganizations undertaken pursuant to Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
Although generally not as risky as the equity securities of
the same issuer, debt securities may gain or lose value due to changes in interest rates and other general economic conditions, industry fundamentals, market sentiment and the issuers operating results, balance sheet and credit
ratings. The market value of debt securities issued by companies involved in pending corporate mergers and takeovers may be determined in large part by the status of the transaction and its eventual outcome, especially if the debt securities
are subject to change-of-control provisions that entitle the holder to be paid par value or some other specified dollar amount upon completion of the merger or takeover. Accordingly, the principal risk associated with investing in these debt
securities is the possibility that the transaction may not be completed.
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Energy and Infrastructure Company Risk (Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II)
Certain risks inherent in investing in energy and Energy Infrastructure Companies include the following:
Supply and Demand Risk
. A decrease in the production of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, coal or other energy
commodities, a decrease in the volume of such commodities available for transportation, mining, processing, storage or distribution or a sustained decline in demand for such commodities, may adversely impact the financial performance of Energy
Infrastructure Companies. Energy Infrastructure Companies are subject to supply and demand fluctuations in the markets they serve which will be impacted by a wide range of factors, including economic conditions, fluctuating commodity prices,
weather, increased conservation or use of alternative fuel sources, increased governmental or environmental regulation, depletion, rising interest rates, declines in domestic or foreign production, accidents or catastrophic events, among others.
Depletion and Exploration Risk
. Energy reserves naturally deplete as they are produced over time. Many Energy
Infrastructure Companies are either engaged in the production of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, or coal, or are engaged in transporting, storing, distributing and processing these items and refined products on behalf of the owners of
such commodities. To maintain or grow their revenues, these companies or their customers need to maintain or expand their reserves through exploration of new sources of supply, through the development of existing sources or through acquisitions. The
financial performance of Energy Infrastructure Companies may be adversely affected if they, or the companies to whom they provide the service, are unable to cost-effectively acquire additional reserves sufficient to replace the natural decline. If
an Energy Infrastructure Company fails to add reserves by acquiring or developing them, its reserves and production will decline over time as they are produced. If an Energy Infrastructure Company is not able to raise capital on favorable terms, it
may not be able to add to or maintain its reserves.
Reserve Risks
. Energy Infrastructure Companies engaged in the
production of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and other energy commodities are subject to the risk that the quantities of their reserves are overstated, or will not be produced in the time periods anticipated, for a variety of reasons
including the risk that no commercially productive amounts of such energy commodities can be produced from estimated reserves because of the curtailment, delay or cancellation of production activities as a result of unexpected conditions or
miscalculations, title problems, pressure or irregularities in formations, equipment failures or accidents, adverse weather conditions, compliance with environmental and other governmental requirements and cost of, or shortages or delays in the
availability of, drilling rigs and other equipment, and operational risks and hazards associated with the development of the underlying properties, including natural disasters, blowouts, explosions, fires, leakage of such energy commodities,
mechanical failures, cratering and pollution.
Regulatory Risk
. Energy Infrastructure Companies are subject to
significant federal, state and local government regulation in virtually every aspect of their operations, including (i) how facilities are constructed, maintained and operated, (ii) how and where wells are drilled, (iii) how services
are provided, (iv) environmental and safety controls, and, in some cases (v) the prices they may charge for the products and services they provide. Various governmental authorities have the power to enforce compliance with these
regulations and the permits issued under them, and violators are subject to administrative, civil and criminal penalties, including civil fines, injunctions or both. Stricter laws, regulations or enforcement policies could be enacted in the future
which would likely increase compliance costs and may adversely affect the financial performance of Energy Infrastructure Companies.
Commodity Pricing Risk
. The operations and financial performance of Energy Infrastructure Companies may be directly affected by energy commodity prices, especially those Energy Infrastructure
Companies which own the underlying energy commodity or receive payments for services that are based on commodity prices. Such impact may be a result of changes in the price for such commodity or a result of changes in the price of one energy
commodity relative to the price of another energy commodity (
i.e.
, the price of natural gas relative to the price of natural gas liquids). Commodity prices fluctuate for several reasons, including changes in market and economic conditions,
the impact of weather on demand, levels of domestic production and imported commodities, energy conservation, domestic and foreign governmental regulation and taxation and the availability of local, intrastate and interstate transportation systems.
Volatility of commodity prices may also make it more difficult for Energy Infrastructure Companies to raise capital to the extent the market perceives that their performance may be directly or indirectly tied to commodity prices. In addition to the
volatility of commodity prices, extremely high commodity prices may drive further energy conservation efforts which may adversely affect the performance of Energy Infrastructure Companies.
Acquisition Risk
. The ability of Energy Infrastructure Companies to grow operating cash flow and increase such companys
enterprise value can be highly dependent on their ability to make accretive acquisitions. In the event that Energy Infrastructure Companies are unable to make such acquisitions because they are unable to identify attractive acquisition candidates
and negotiate acceptable purchase contracts, because they are unable to raise financing for such acquisitions on economically acceptable terms, or because they are outbid by competitors, their future growth will be limited. Furthermore, even if
Energy Infrastructure Companies do consummate acquisitions that they believe will be accretive, the acquisitions may instead result in a decrease in operating cash flow or a decrease in enterprise value. Any acquisition involves risks, including,
among other things:
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mistaken assumptions about revenues and costs, including synergies; the assumption of unknown liabilities; limitations on rights to indemnity from the seller; the diversion of managements
attention from other business concerns; unforeseen difficulties operating in new product or geographic areas; and customer or key employee losses at the acquired businesses.
Affiliated Party Risk
. Certain Energy Infrastructure Companies are dependent on their parents or sponsors for a majority of their revenues. Any failure by such companys parents or sponsors to
satisfy their payments or obligations would impact such companys revenues and operating cash flows and ability to make interest payments and/or distributions.
Catastrophe Risk
. The operations of Energy Infrastructure Companies are subject to many hazards inherent in exploring, developing, producing, generating, transporting, transmitting, storing,
gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity, including: damage to pipelines, storage tanks, plants or related equipment and surrounding
properties caused by hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, fires and other natural disasters or by acts of terrorism; inadvertent damage from construction and farm equipment; well blowouts; leaks of such energy commodities; fires and explosions. These
risks could result in substantial losses due to personal injury or loss of life, severe damage to and destruction of property and equipment and pollution or other environmental damage and may result in the curtailment or suspension of their related
operations. Not all Energy Infrastructure Companies are fully insured against all risks inherent to their businesses. If a significant accident or event occurs that is not fully insured, it could adversely affect the Energy Infrastructure
Companys operations and financial condition.
The Fund expects that insurance premiums to operate certain assets that are
used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring, developing, producing, generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil,
refined products, coal or electricity will increase as a result of the Macondo oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Further increased government regulations to mitigate such catastrophe risk could increase insurance and other operating costs for Energy
Infrastructure Companies and adversely affect the financial performance of such companies.
Terrorism/Market Disruption
Risk
. The terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001 had a disruptive effect on the economy and the securities markets. United States military and related action in Iraq and Afghanistan is ongoing and events in the Middle
East, including government stability in particular, could have significant adverse effects on the U.S. economy, and financial and commodities markets. Assets that are used in the energy sector, including assets used in exploring, developing,
producing, generating, transporting, transmitting, storing, gathering, processing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products, coal or electricity could be direct targets, or indirect
casualties, of an act of terror. The U.S. government has issued warnings that such assets, specifically the United States pipeline infrastructure, may be the future target of terrorist organizations.
Weather Risk
. Extreme weather conditions, such as hurricanes, (i) could result in substantial damage to the facilities of
certain Energy Infrastructure Companies located in the affected areas, (ii) significantly increase the volatility in the supply of energy commodities and (iii) adversely affect the financial performance of Energy Infrastructure Companies,
and could therefore adversely affect their securities. The damage done by extreme weather also may serve to increase many insurance premiums paid by Energy Infrastructure Companies and could adversely affect such companies financial condition.
Master Limited Partnership Risks
. An investment in master limited partnership units involves certain risks which differ
from an investment in the securities of a corporation. Holders of master limited partnership units have limited control and voting rights on matters affecting the partnership. In addition, there are certain tax risks associated with an investment in
master limited partnership units and conflicts of interest exist between common unit holders and the general partner, including those arising from incentive distribution payments.
Emerging Markets Investments (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund, Salient Global Equity Fund)
Each Fund, subject to its investment strategies and policies, may invest in emerging markets investments, which have exposure to the risks discussed below relating to foreign instruments more generally,
as well as certain additional risks. A high proportion of the shares of many issuers in emerging market countries may be held by a limited number of persons and financial institutions, which may limit the number of shares available for investment.
The prices at which investments may be acquired may be affected by trading by persons with material non-public information and by securities transactions by brokers in anticipation of transactions by a Fund in particular securities. In addition,
emerging market investments are susceptible to being influenced by large investors trading significant blocks of securities.
Emerging market
stock markets are undergoing a period of growth and change which may result in trading volatility and difficulties in the settlement and recording of transactions, and in interpreting and applying the relevant law and regulations. The securities
industries in these countries are comparatively underdeveloped. Stockbrokers and other intermediaries in the emerging markets may not perform as well as their counterparts in the United States and other more developed securities markets.
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Political and economic structures in many emerging market countries are undergoing significant evolution and
rapid development, and such countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristic of the United States. Certain of such countries may have, in the past, failed to recognize private property rights and have at times
nationalized or expropriated the assets of private companies. As a result, the risks described above, including the risks of nationalization or expropriation of assets, may be heightened. In addition, unanticipated political or social developments
may affect the values of investments in those countries and the availability of additional investments in those countries. The laws of countries in emerging markets relating to limited liability of corporate shareholders, fiduciary duties of
officers and directors, and the bankruptcy of state enterprises are generally less well developed than or different from such laws in the United States. It may be more difficult to obtain or enforce a judgment in the courts of these countries than
it is in the United States. Emerging securities markets are substantially smaller, less liquid and more volatile than the major securities markets in the United States. Although some governments in emerging markets have instituted economic reform
policies, there can be no assurances that such policies will continue or succeed.
Equity Securities
Each Fund, subject to its investment strategies and policies, may purchase equity securities or be exposed to equity securities through derivative
instruments. Equity securities may include common and preferred stock, convertible securities, private investments in public equities, depositary receipts and warrants. Common stock represents an equity or ownership interest in a company. This
interest often gives a Fund the right to vote on measures affecting the companys organization and operations. Equity securities have a history of long-term growth in value, but their prices tend to fluctuate in the shorter term. Preferred
stock generally does not exhibit as great a potential for appreciation or depreciation as common stock, although it ranks above common stock in its claim on income for dividend payments. In addition, each Fund may have exposure to or invest in
equity securities of companies with small or medium capitalization. Investments in securities of companies with small or medium capitalization involve certain risks that may differ from, or be greater than, those for larger companies, such as higher
volatility, lower trading volume, lack of liquidity, fewer business lines and lack of public information (See Small and Mid-Capitalization Securities Risk).
The market value of all securities, including equity securities, is based upon the markets perception of value and not necessarily the book value of an issuer or other objective measure of a
companys worth.
Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs)
Each Fund, subject to its investment strategies and policies, may purchase ETFs. ETFs are investment companies whose shares are bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF holds a portfolio of
securities designed to track a particular market segment or index. A Fund could purchase an ETF to temporarily gain exposure to a portion of the U.S. or foreign market while awaiting an opportunity to purchase securities directly. The risks of
owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in it being more volatile than the underlying portfolio of securities and ETFs have
management fees that increase their costs versus the costs of owning the underlying securities directly. See also Securities of Other Investment Companies below.
Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs)
Each Fund may invest in ETNs. ETNs are generally
notes representing debt of the issuer, usually a financial institution. ETNs combine both aspects of bonds and ETFs. An ETNs returns are based on the performance of one or more underlying assets, reference rates or indexes, minus fees and
expenses. Similar to ETFs, ETNs are listed on an exchange and traded in the secondary market. However, unlike an ETF, an ETN can be held until the ETNs maturity, at which time the issuer will pay a return linked to the performance of the
specific asset, index or rate (reference instrument) to which the ETN is linked minus certain fees. Unlike regular bonds, ETNs do not make periodic interest payments, and principal is not protected.
The value of an ETN may be influenced by, among other things, time to maturity, level of supply and demand for the ETN, volatility and lack of liquidity
in underlying markets, changes in the applicable interest rates, the performance of the reference instrument, changes in the issuers credit rating and economic, legal, political or geographic events that affect the reference instrument. An ETN
that is tied to a reference instrument may not replicate the performance of the reference instrument. ETNs also incur certain expenses not incurred by their applicable reference instrument. Some ETNs that use leverage can, at times, be relatively
illiquid and, thus, they may be difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price. Levered ETNs are subject to the same risk as other instruments that use leverage in any form. While leverage allows for greater potential return, the potential for loss
is also greater. Finally, additional losses may be incurred if the investment loses value because, in addition to the money lost on the investment, the loan still needs to be repaid.
Because the return on the ETN is dependent on the issuers ability or willingness to meet its obligations, the value of the ETN may change due to a change in the issuers credit rating, despite
no change in the underlying reference instrument. The market value of ETN shares may differ from the value of the reference instrument. This difference in price may be due to the fact that the supply and demand in the market for ETN shares at any
point in time is not always identical to the supply and demand in the market for the assets underlying the reference instrument that the ETN seeks to track.
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There may be restrictions on a Funds right to redeem its investment in an ETN, which are generally
meant to be held until maturity. A Funds decision to sell its ETN holdings may be limited by the availability of a secondary market. An investor in an ETN could lose some or all of the amount invested.
Foreign Government Debt Obligations (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Investments in sovereign debt obligations involve special risks which are not present in corporate debt obligations. The foreign issuer of the sovereign
debt or the foreign governmental authorities that control the repayment of the debt may be unable or unwilling to repay principal or interest when due, and the Funds may have limited recourse in the event of a default. During periods of economic
uncertainty, the market prices of sovereign debt, and the NAV of a Fund, to the extent it invests in such securities, may be more volatile than prices of U.S. debt issuers. In the past, certain foreign countries have encountered difficulties in
servicing their debt obligations, withheld payments of principal and interest and declared moratoria on the payment of principal and interest on their sovereign debt.
A sovereign debtors willingness or ability to repay principal and pay interest in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation, the extent of its foreign currency
reserves, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange, the relative size of the debt service burden, the sovereign debtors policy toward principal international lenders and local political constraints. Sovereign debtors may also be
dependent on expected disbursements from foreign governments, multilateral agencies and other entities to reduce principal and interest arrearages on their debt. The commitment on the part of these governments, agencies and others to make such
disbursements may be conditioned on the implementation of economic reforms and/or economic performance and the timely service of such debtors obligations. Failure to implement such reforms, achieve such levels of economic performance or repay
principal or interest when due may result in the cancellation of such third parties commitments to lend funds to the governmental entity, which may further impair such debtors ability or willingness to timely service its debts.
Consequently, governmental entities may default on their sovereign debt.
Holders of sovereign debt may be requested to participate in the
rescheduling of such debt and to extend further loans to governmental entities. In the event of a default by a governmental entity, there may be few or no effective legal remedies for collecting on such debt.
Foreign Investments
Each Fund, subject
to its investment strategies and policies, may invest in securities and other investments (which may be denominated in U.S. dollars or non-U.S. currencies) issued or guaranteed by foreign corporations, certain supranational entities and foreign
governments or their agencies or instrumentalities, and in securities issued by U.S. corporations denominated in non-U.S. currencies. All such investments are referred to as foreign instruments.
Investing in foreign instruments offers potential benefits not available from investing solely in securities of domestic issuers, including the
opportunity to invest in foreign issuers that appear to offer investment potential, or in foreign countries with economic policies or business cycles different from those of the U.S., or to reduce fluctuations in portfolio value by taking advantage
of foreign stock markets that do not move in a manner parallel to U.S. markets.
Investments in foreign instruments present additional risks
and considerations not typically associated with investments in domestic securities: reduction of income due to foreign taxes; fluctuation in value of foreign portfolio investments due to changes in currency rates and control regulations (e.g.,
currency blockage); transaction charges for currency exchange; lack of public information about foreign issuers; lack of uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards comparable to those applicable to domestic issuers; less trading
volume on foreign exchanges than on U.S. exchanges; greater volatility and less liquidity on foreign markets than in the United States; less regulation of foreign issuers, stock exchanges and brokers than in the United States; greater difficulties
in commencing lawsuits and obtaining judgments in foreign courts; higher brokerage commission rates than in the United States; increased risks of delays in settlement of portfolio transactions or loss of certificates for portfolio securities;
requirement of payment for investments prior to settlement possibilities in some countries of expropriation, confiscatory taxation, political, financial or social instability or adverse diplomatic developments; and unfavorable differences between
the United States economy and foreign economies. In the past, U.S. Government policies have discouraged certain investments abroad by U.S. investors, through taxation or other restrictions, and it is possible that such restrictions could be
re-imposed.
Foreign Exchange Risk and Currency Transactions (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend
Fund, Salient Global Equity Fund)
The value of foreign assets as measured in U.S. dollars may be affected favorably or unfavorably by
changes in foreign currency rates and exchange control regulations. Currency exchange rates can also be affected unpredictably by intervention by U.S. or foreign governments or central banks, or the failure to intervene, or by currency controls or
political developments in the U.S. or abroad. Foreign currency exchange transactions may be conducted on a spot (i.e., cash) basis at the spot rate prevailing in the foreign currency exchange market or through entering into derivative currency
transactions. Currency futures contracts are exchange-traded and change in value to reflect movements of a currency or a basket of currencies. Settlement must be made in a designated currency.
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Forward foreign currency exchange contracts are individually negotiated and privately traded so they are
dependent upon the creditworthiness of the counterparty. Such contracts may be used to gain exposure to a particular currency or currencies as a part of the Funds investment strategies, when a security denominated in a foreign currency is
purchased or sold, or when the receipt in a foreign currency of dividend or interest payments on such a security is anticipated. A forward contract can then lock in the U.S. dollar price of the security or the U.S. dollar equivalent of
such dividend or interest payment, as the case may be. Additionally, when the Advisor or subadvisor, as appropriate, believes that the currency of a particular foreign country may suffer a substantial decline against the U.S. dollar, it may enter
into a forward contract to sell, for a fixed amount of dollars, the amount of foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of the securities held that are denominated in such foreign currency. The precise matching of the forward contract
amounts and the value of the securities involved will not generally be possible. In addition, it may not be possible to hedge against long-term currency changes. Cross-hedging may be used by using forward contracts in one currency (or basket of
currencies) to hedge against fluctuations in the value of securities denominated in a different currency. Use of a different foreign currency magnifies exposure to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. Forward contracts may also be used to
shift exposure to foreign currency exchange rate changes from one currency to another. Short-term hedging provides a means of fixing the dollar value of only a portion of portfolio assets.
Currency transactions are subject to the risk of a number of complex political and economic factors applicable to the countries issuing the underlying currencies. Furthermore, unlike trading in most other
types of instruments, there is no systematic reporting of last sale information with respect to the foreign currencies underlying the derivative currency transactions. As a result, available information may not be complete. In an over-the-counter
trading environment, there are no daily price fluctuation limits. There may be no liquid secondary market to close out options purchased or written, or forward contracts entered into, until their exercise, expiration or maturity. There is also the
risk of default by, or the bankruptcy of, the financial institution serving as a counterparty.
Currency swaps involve the exchange of rights
to make or receive payments in specified currencies and are individually negotiated. The entire principal value of a currency swap is subject to the risk that the other party to the swap will default on its contractual delivery obligations. A
Funds performance may be adversely affected as the Advisor or a subadvisor may be incorrect in its forecasts of market value and currency exchange rates.
Forwards, Futures, Swaps and Options
As described below, each Fund may purchase and sell
in the U.S. or abroad futures contracts, put and call options, forward contracts, swaps and options on securities, swaptions, futures, broadly-based stock indices and currencies. In the future, a Fund may employ instruments and strategies that are
not presently contemplated, but which may be subsequently developed, to the extent such investment methods are consistent with the Funds investment objectives, and are legally permissible. There can be no assurance that an instrument, if
employed, will be successful.
Each Fund may buy and sell these investments for a number of purposes, including hedging, investment or
speculative purposes. For example, it may do so to try to manage its exposure to the possibility that the prices of its portfolio securities may decline, or to establish a position in the securities market as a substitute for purchasing individual
securities. Some of these strategies, such as selling futures, buying puts and writing covered calls, may be used to hedge a Funds portfolio against price fluctuations. Other hedging strategies, such as buying futures and call options, tend to
increase a Funds exposure to the securities market.
Special Risk Factors Regarding Forwards, Futures, Swaps and
Options
Transactions in derivative instruments (e.g., futures, options, forwards, swaps, and swaptions) involve a risk of loss or
depreciation due to: unanticipated adverse changes in securities prices, interest rates, indices, the other financial instruments prices or currency exchange rates; the inability to close out a position; default by the counterparty; imperfect
correlation between a position and the desired hedge; tax constraints on closing out positions; and portfolio management constraints on securities subject to such transactions. The loss on derivative instruments (other than purchased options) may
substantially exceed the amount invested in these instruments. In addition, the entire premium paid for purchased options may be lost before they can be profitably exercised. Transaction costs are incurred in opening and closing positions.
Derivative instruments may increase or leverage exposure to a particular market risk, thereby increasing price volatility of derivative instruments a Fund holds. Each Funds success in using derivative instruments to hedge portfolio assets
depends on the degree of price correlation between the derivative instruments and the hedged asset. Imperfect correlation may be caused by several factors, including temporary price disparities among the trading markets for the derivative
instrument, the assets underlying the derivative instrument and a Funds assets.
OTC derivative instruments involve an increased risk
that the issuer or counterparty will fail to perform its contractual obligations. Some derivative instruments are not readily marketable or may become illiquid under adverse market conditions. In addition, during periods of market volatility, a
commodity exchange may suspend or limit trading in an exchange-traded derivative instrument, which
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may make the contract temporarily illiquid and difficult to price. Commodity exchanges may also establish daily limits on the amount that the price of a futures contract or futures option can
vary from the previous days settlement price. Once the daily limit is reached, no trades may be made that day at a price beyond the limit. This may prevent the closing out of positions to limit losses. Certain purchased OTC options, and assets
used as cover for written OTC options, may be considered illiquid. The ability to terminate OTC derivative instruments may depend on the cooperation of the counterparties to such contracts. For thinly traded derivative instruments, the only source
of price quotations may be the selling dealer or counterparty. In addition, certain provisions of the Code limit the use of derivative instruments. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves skills different from
conducting ordinary portfolio securities transactions. There can be no assurance that an Advisors use of derivative instruments will be advantageous to a Fund.
Regulatory Matters Regarding Forwards, Futures, Swaps and Options
The Trust has
claimed an exclusion from the definition of the term commodity pool operator under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) with respect to each of the Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II and
Salient Global Equity Fund, and an interim notice filing for Salient Alternative Beta Fund and Salient Pure Trend Fund. None of the Funds currently are subject to registration or regulation as a commodity pool operator under the CEA. However, this
status may change for the Salient Risk Parity, Salient Alternative Beta and Salient Pure Trend Funds. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) adopted certain regulatory changes that would subject registered investment companies
to regulation by the CFTC if a fund invests in more than a prescribed level of its liquidation value in futures and certain other instruments, or if a fund markets itself as providing investment exposure to such instruments. If these regulatory
changes, which are subject to pending litigation that challenges the validity of the rules, ultimately apply to these three Funds, each would likely be subject to the CFTC registration requirements, and the disclosure and operations of each such
Fund would need to comply with applicable regulations governing commodity pools. Compliance with these additional registration and regulatory requirements likely would increase Fund expenses. The Advisor may also be subject to CFTC regulation if
such a Fund is deemed to be a commodity pool. In this respect, the Advisor is registered with the CFTC currently as a CPO and as a commodities trading advisor. Other potentially adverse regulatory initiatives could also develop.
Transactions in futures and options by the Funds are subject to limitations established by futures and option exchanges governing the maximum number of
futures and options that may be written or held by a single investor or group of investors acting in concert, regardless of whether the futures or options were written or purchased on the same or different exchanges or are held in one or more
accounts or through one or more different exchanges or through one or more brokers. Thus the number of futures or options which a Fund may write or hold may be affected by futures or options written or held by other entities, including other
investment companies advised by its Advisor or a subadvisor (or an advisor that is an affiliate of the Funds Advisor and/or a subadvisor). An exchange may order the liquidation of positions found to be in violation of those limits and may
impose certain other sanctions.
Forward Contracts
A forward contract is an obligation to purchase or sell a specific security, currency or other instrument for an agreed price at a future date that is individually negotiated and privately traded by
traders and their customers. In contrast to contracts traded on an exchange (such as futures contracts), forward contracts are not guaranteed by any exchange or clearinghouse and are subject to the creditworthiness of the counterparty of the trade.
Forward contracts are highly leveraged and highly volatile, and a relatively small price movement in a forward contract may result in substantial losses to a Fund. To the extent a Fund engages in forward contracts to generate total return, the Fund
will be subject to these risks.
Forward contracts are not always standardized and are frequently the subject of individual negotiation
between the parties involved. By contrast, futures contracts are generally standardized and futures exchanges have central clearinghouses which keep track of all positions.
Because there is no clearinghouse system applicable to forward contracts, there is no direct means of offsetting a forward contract by purchase of an offsetting position on the same exchange as one can
with respect to a futures contract. Absent contractual termination rights, a Fund may not be able to terminate a forward contract at a price and time that it desires. In such event, the Fund will remain subject to counterparty risk with respect to
the forward contract, even if the Fund enters into an offsetting forward contract with the same, or a different, counterparty. If a counterparty defaults, the Fund may lose money on the transaction.
Depending on the asset underlying the forward contract, forward transactions can be influenced by, among other things, changing supply and demand
relationships, government commercial and trade programs and policies, national and international political and economic events, weather and climate conditions, insects and plant disease, purchases and sales by foreign countries and changing interest
rates.
Futures Contracts
U.S. futures contracts are traded on organized exchanges regulated by the CFTC. Transactions on such exchanges are cleared through a clearing corporation, which guarantees the performance of the parties
to each contract.
There are several risks in connection with the use of futures by the Funds. In the event futures are used by a Fund for
hedging purposes, one risk arises because of the imperfect correlation between movements in the price of futures and movements in the price
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of the instruments which are the subject of the hedge. The price of futures may move more than or less than the price of the instruments being hedged. If the price of futures moves less than the
price of the instruments which are the subject of the hedge, the hedge will not be fully effective, but, if the price of the instruments being hedged has moved in an unfavorable direction, a Fund would be in a better position than if it had not
hedged at all. If the price of the instruments being hedged has moved in a favorable direction, this advantage will be partially offset by the loss on the futures. If the price of the futures moves more than the price of the hedged instruments, the
Fund involved will experience either a loss or gain on the futures which will not be completely offset by movements in the price of the instruments which are the subject of the hedge.
To compensate for the imperfect correlation of movements in the price of instruments being hedged and movements in the price of futures contracts, a Fund may buy or sell futures contracts in a greater
dollar amount than the dollar amount of instruments being hedged if the volatility over a particular time period of the prices of such instruments has been greater than the volatility over such time period of the futures, or if otherwise deemed to
be appropriate by the Advisor or a subadvisor. Conversely, a Fund may buy or sell fewer futures contracts if the volatility over a particular time period of the prices of the instruments being hedged is less than the volatility over such time period
of the futures contract being used, or if otherwise deemed to be appropriate by its Advisor or a subadvisor. It is also possible that, when a Fund sells futures to hedge its portfolio against a decline in the market, the market may advance and the
value of the futures instruments held in the Fund may decline.
Where futures are purchased to hedge against a possible increase in the price
of securities before a Fund is able to invest its cash (or cash equivalents) in an orderly fashion, it is possible that the market may decline instead; if the Fund then concludes not to invest its cash at that time because of concern as to possible
further market decline or for other reasons, the Fund will realize a loss on the futures contract that is not offset by a reduction in the price of the securities that were to be purchased.
Each Fund may also use futures to attempt to gain exposure to a particular market, index or instrument or for speculative purposes to increase return. One or more markets, indices or instruments to which
a Fund has exposure through futures may go down in value, possibly sharply and unpredictably. This means the Funds may lose money.
With
respect to futures contracts that are not contractually required to cash-settle, the Funds must cover their open positions by designating or segregating on its records cash or liquid assets equal to the contracts full, notional
value. With respect to futures that are contractually required to cash-settle, however, a Fund is permitted to designate cash or liquid assets in an amount equal to the Funds daily marked-to-market (net) obligation, if any (i.e.,
the Funds daily net liability) rather than the notional value. By designating assets equal to only its net obligation under cash-settled forwards or futures a Fund will have the ability to employ leverage to a greater extent than if the Fund
were required to segregate assets equal to the full notional value of such contracts.
The price of futures may not correlate perfectly with
movement in the cash market due to certain market distortions. Rather than meeting additional margin deposit requirements, investors may close futures contracts through offsetting transactions which could distort the normal relationship between the
cash and futures markets. Second, with respect to financial futures contracts, the liquidity of the futures market depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants decide
to make or take delivery, liquidity in the futures market could be reduced, thus producing distortions. Third, from the point of view of speculators, the deposit requirements in the futures market are less onerous than margin requirements in the
securities market. Therefore, increased participation by speculators in the futures market may also cause temporary price distortions. Due to the possibility of price distortion in the futures market, and because of the imperfect correlation between
the movements in the cash market and movements in the price of futures, a correct forecast of general market trends or interest rate movements by the Advisor or a subadvisor, as applicable, may still not result in a successful hedging transaction
over a short time frame.
Positions in futures may be closed out only on an exchange or board of trade which provides a secondary market for
such futures. Although the Funds intend to purchase or sell futures only on exchanges or boards of trade where there appear to be active secondary markets, there is no assurance that a liquid secondary market on any exchange or board of trade will
exist for any particular contract or at any particular time. When there is no liquid market, it may not be possible to close a futures investment position, and in the event of adverse price movements, a Fund would continue to be required to make
daily cash payments of variation margin (as described below). In such circumstances, an increase in the price of the securities, if any, may partially or completely offset losses on the futures contract. However, as described above, there is no
guarantee that the price of the securities will in fact correlate with the price movements in the futures contract and thus provide an offset on a futures contract.
Further, it should be noted that the liquidity of a secondary market in a futures contract may be adversely affected by daily price fluctuation limits established by commodities exchanges
which limit the amount of fluctuation in a futures contract price during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in the contract, no trades may be entered into at a price beyond the limit, thus preventing the liquidation of open
futures positions. The trading of futures contracts is also subject to the risk of trading halts, suspensions, exchange or clearing house equipment failures, government intervention, insolvency of a brokerage firm or clearing house or other
disruptions of normal activity, which could at times make it difficult or impossible to liquidate existing positions or to recover equity.
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Successful use of futures to hedge portfolio securities protects against adverse market movements but also
reduces potential gain. For example, if a Fund has hedged against the possibility of a decline in the market adversely affecting securities held by it and securities prices increase instead, the Fund will lose part or all of the benefit to the
increased value of its securities which it has hedged because it will have offsetting losses in its futures positions. In addition, in such situations, if a Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell securities to meet daily variation margin
requirements. Such sales of securities may be, but will not necessarily be, at increased prices which reflect the rising market. The Funds may have to sell securities at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
Stock Index Futures
Each Fund may invest in stock index futures. A stock index assigns relative values to the common stocks included in the index and fluctuates with the changes in the market value of those stocks.
Stock index futures are contracts based on the future value of the basket of securities that comprise the underlying stock index. The
contracts obligate the seller to deliver and the purchaser to take cash to settle the futures transaction or to enter into an obligation contract. No physical delivery of the securities underlying the index is made on settling the futures
obligation. No monetary amount is paid or received by a Fund on the purchase or sale of a stock index future. At any time prior to the expiration of the future, each Fund may elect to close out its position by taking an opposite position, at which
time a final determination of variation margin is made and additional cash is required to be paid by or released to the Fund. Any gain or loss is then realized by a Fund on the future for tax purposes. Although stock index futures by their terms
call for settlement by the delivery of cash, in most cases the settlement obligation is fulfilled without such delivery by entering into an offsetting transaction. All futures transactions are effected through a clearing house associated with the
exchange on which the contracts are traded.
Futures Contracts on Securities
Each Fund may purchase and sell futures contracts on securities. A futures contract sale creates an obligation by a Fund, as seller, to deliver the
specific type of financial instrument called for in the contract at a specific future time for a specified price. A futures contract purchase creates an obligation by a Fund, as purchaser, to take delivery of the specific type of financial
instrument at a specific future time at a specific price. The specific securities delivered or taken, respectively, at settlement date, would not be determined until or near that date. The determination would be in accordance with the rules of the
exchange on which the futures contract sale or purchase was made.
Although futures contracts on securities by their terms call for actual
delivery or acceptance of securities, in most cases the contracts are closed out before the settlement date without making or taking delivery of securities. A Fund may close out a futures contract sale by entering into a futures contract purchase
for the same aggregate amount of the specific type of financial instrument and the same delivery date. If the price of the sale exceeds the price of the offsetting purchase, a Fund is immediately paid the difference and thus realizes a gain. If the
offsetting purchase price exceeds the sale price, a Fund pays the difference and realizes a loss. Similarly, a Fund may close out of a futures contract purchase by entering into a futures contract sale. If the offsetting sale price exceeds the
purchase price, the Fund realizes a gain, and if the purchase price exceeds the offsetting sale price, the Fund realizes a loss. Accounting for futures contracts will be in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
Swap Agreements
Each Fund may enter into interest rate, total return, equity and other swap agreements. Swap agreements can be individually negotiated and structured to
include exposure to a variety of different types of investments or market factors. Depending on their structure, swap agreements may increase or decrease a Funds exposure to long- or short-term interest rates (in the United States or abroad),
foreign currency values, mortgage securities, corporate borrowing rates, or other factors such as security prices or inflation rates. Swap agreements can take many different forms and are known by a variety of names.
Swap agreements are two-party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for periods ranging from a few weeks to more than one year. In
a standard swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns (or differentials in rates of return) earned or realized on particular predetermined investments or instruments. The gross returns to be exchanged or
swapped between the parties are calculated with respect to a notional amount, i.e., the return on or increase in value of a particular dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate, in a particular foreign currency, or
in a basket of securities representing a particular index. The notional amount of the swap agreement is only a fictive basis on which to calculate the obligations that the parties to a swap agreement have agreed to exchange.
An option on a swap agreement, also called a swaption, is an option that gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to
enter into a swap on a future date in exchange for paying a market-based premium. A receiver swaption gives the owner the right to receive the total return of a specified asset, reference rate, or index. A payer swaption gives the owner
the right to pay the total return of a specified asset, reference rate, or index. Swaptions also include options that allow an existing swap to be terminated or extended by one of the counterparties.
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Some swap agreements entered into by a Fund would calculate the obligations of the parties to the agreements
on a net basis. Consequently, the Funds obligations (or rights) under a swap agreement will generally be equal only to the net amount to be paid or received under the agreement based on the relative values of the positions held by
each party to the agreement (the net amount). A Funds obligations under a swap agreement will be accrued daily (offset against any amounts owing to the Fund) and any accrued but unpaid net amounts owed to a swap counterparty will
be covered by the maintenance of liquid assets in accordance with SEC staff positions on the subject.
Forms of swap agreements also include
cap, floor and collar agreements. In a typical cap or floor agreement, one party agrees to make payments only under specified circumstances, usually in return for payment of a fee by the other party. For example, the buyer of an interest rate cap
obtains the right to receive payments to the extent that a specified interest rate exceeds an agreed-upon level, while the seller of an interest rate floor is obligated to make payments to the extent that a specified interest rate falls below an
agreed-upon level. An interest rate collar combines elements of buying a cap and selling a floor.
Swap agreements will tend to shift a
Funds investment exposure from one type of investment to another. For example, if a Fund agreed to pay fixed rates in exchange for floating rates while holding fixed-rate bonds, the swap would tend to decrease the Funds exposure to
long-term interest rates. Caps and floors have an effect similar to buying or writing options. Depending on how they are used, swap agreements may increase or decrease the overall volatility of a Funds investments and its share price and
yield. The most significant factor in the performance of swap agreements is the change in the specific interest rate, currency, or other factors that determine the amounts of payments due to and from the Fund. If a swap agreement calls for payments
by a Fund, the Fund must be prepared to make such payments when due.
Each Funds use of swap agreements may not be successful in
furthering its investment objective, as its Advisor or a subadvisor, as appropriate, may not accurately predict whether certain types of investments are likely to produce greater returns than other investments. Because they are two party contracts
and because they may have terms of greater than seven days, swap agreements may be considered to be illiquid. If such instruments are determined to be illiquid, then the Fund will limit its investment in these instruments subject to its limitation
on investments in illiquid securities. Moreover, a Fund bears the risk of loss of the amount expected to be received under a swap agreement in the event of the default or bankruptcy of a swap agreement counterparty. Certain restrictions imposed on a
Fund by the Code may limit the Funds ability to use swap agreements. A Fund may be able to eliminate its exposure under a swap agreement either by assignment or other disposition, or by entering into an offsetting swap agreement with the same
party or a similarly creditworthy party. The swaps market is a relatively new market and is largely unregulated. It is possible that developments in the swaps market, including potential government regulation, could adversely affect the Funds
ability to terminate existing swap agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.
Credit
Default Swap Agreement (CDS) and Credit Default Index Swap Agreement Risk (CDX)
The
Funds do not currently intend to, but could in the future enter into credit default swap agreements, credit default index swap agreements and similar agreements as a protection seller in order to gain exposure to the credit risk of U.S.
and non-U.S. fixed income securities and sovereign debt, as well as mortgage-backed securities. The Funds may also be a buyer of credit protection. Credit default swap agreements involve special risks because they may be difficult to
value, are highly susceptible to liquidity and credit risk, and generally pay a return to the party that has paid the premium only in the event of an actual default by the issuer of the underlying obligation (as opposed to a credit downgrade or
other indication of financial difficulty).
Credit default swap agreements or similar instruments may have as reference obligations one or
more securities that are not then held by the involved Fund. The protection buyer in a credit default swap agreement is generally obligated to pay the protection seller a periodic stream of payments over the term of the
agreement, provided generally that no credit event on a reference obligation has occurred. In addition, at the inception of the agreement, the protection buyer may receive or be obligated to pay an additional up-front amount
depending on the current market value of the contract. With respect to credit default swap agreements that are contractually required to cash settle, a Fund sets aside liquid assets in an amount equal to the Funds daily marked-to-market net
obligations under the contracts. For credit default swap agreements that are contractually required to physically settle, a Fund sets aside the full notional value of such contracts. If a credit event occurs, an auction process is used to determine
the recovery value of the contract. The seller then must pay the buyer the par value (full notional value) of the swap contract minus the recovery value as determined by the auction process. If a Fund is a
buyer and no credit event occurs, the Funds net cash flows over the life of the contract will be the initial up-front amount paid or received minus the sum of the periodic payments made over the life of the contract. However, if a credit event
occurs, the Fund may elect to receive a cash amount equal to the par value (full notional value) of the swap contract minus the recovery value as determined by the auction process. Credit default swaps could result in losses
if the Advisor does not correctly evaluate the creditworthiness of the underlying instrument on which the credit default swap is based.
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Equity Swaps
An equity swap is a two-party contract that generally obligates one party to pay the positive return and the other party to pay the negative return on a specified reference security, basket of securities,
security index or index component (asset) during the period of the swap. The payments based on the reference asset may be adjusted for transaction costs, interest payments, the amount of dividends paid on the referenced asset or other
economic factors.
Equity swap contracts may be structured in different ways. For example, when a Fund takes a long position, the counterparty
may agree to pay the Fund the amount, if any, by which the notional amount of the equity swap would have increased in value had it been invested in a particular stock (or group of stocks), plus the dividends that would have been received on the
stock. In these cases, the Fund may agree to pay to the counterparty interest on the notional amount of the equity swap plus the amount, if any, by which that notional amount would have decreased in value had it been invested in such stock.
Therefore, in this case the return to the Fund on the equity swap should be the gain or loss on the notional amount plus dividends on the
stock less the interest paid by the Fund on the notional amount. In other cases, when a Fund takes a short position, a counterparty may agree to pay the Fund the amount, if any, by which the notional amount of the equity swap would have decreased in
value had the Fund sold a particular stock (or group of stocks) short, less the dividend expense that the Fund would have paid on the stock, as adjusted for interest payments or other economic factors. In these situations, the Fund may be obligated
to pay the amount, if any, by which the notional amount of the swap would have increased in value had it been invested in such stock.
Equity
swaps normally do not involve the delivery of securities or other underlying assets. Accordingly, the risk of loss with respect to equity swaps is normally limited to the net amount of payments that a Fund is contractually obligated to make. If the
other party to an equity swap defaults, a Funds risk of loss consists of the net amount of payments that the Fund is contractually entitled to receive, if any. Inasmuch as these transactions are offset by segregated cash or liquid assets to
cover a Funds current obligations (or are otherwise covered as permitted by applicable law), the Fund and its Advisor or a subadvisor, as appropriate, believe that these transactions do not constitute senior securities under the Act.
Equity swaps are derivatives and their value can be very volatile. To the extent that a Funds Advisor or a subadvisor, as applicable,
does not accurately analyze and predict future market trends, the values of assets or economic factors, the Fund may suffer a loss, which may be substantial. The swap markets in which many types of swap transactions are traded have grown
substantially in recent years, with a large number of banks and investment banking firms acting both as principals and as agents. As a result, the markets for certain types of swaps have become relatively liquid.
Total Return and Interest Rate Swaps
In a total return swap, the buyer receives a periodic return equal to the total return of a specified security, securities or index, for a specified period of time. In return, the buyer pays the
counterparty a variable stream of payments, typically based upon short term interest rates, possibly plus or minus an agreed upon spread.
Interest rate swaps are financial instruments that involve the exchange of one type of interest rate for another type of interest rate cash flow on
specified dates in the future. Some of the different types of interest rate swaps are fixed-for floating rate swaps, termed basis swaps and index amortizing swaps. Fixed-for floating rate swaps involve the
exchange of fixed interest rate cash flows for floating rate cash flows. Termed basis swaps entail cash flows to both parties based on floating interest rates, where the interest rate indices are different. Index amortizing swaps are typically
fixed-for floating swaps where the notional amount changes if certain conditions are met. Like a traditional investment in a debt security, a Fund could lose money by investing in an interest rate swap if interest rates change adversely. For
example, if a Fund enters into a swap where it agrees to exchange a floating rate of interest for a fixed rate of interest, the Fund may have to pay more money than it receives. Similarly, if a Fund enters into a swap where it agrees to exchange a
fixed rate of interest for a floating rate of interest, the Fund may receive less money than it has agreed to pay.
Interest rate and total
return swaps entered into in which payments are not netted may entail greater risk than a swap entered into a net basis. If there is a default by the other party to such a transaction, a Fund will have contractual remedies pursuant to the agreements
related to the transaction.
Combined Transactions
Each Fund may enter into multiple transactions, including multiple options transactions, multiple futures transactions, multiple currency transactions including forward currency contracts and multiple
interest rate transactions, and any combination of futures, options, currency and interest rate transactions (component transactions), instead of a single transaction, as part of a single or combined strategy when, in the opinion of the
Funds Advisor or a subadvisor, it is in the best interests of the Fund to do so. A combined transaction will usually contain elements of risk that are present in each of its component transactions. Although combined transactions are normally
entered into based on the Advisor or a subadvisors judgment that the combined strategies will reduce risk or otherwise more effectively achieve the desired portfolio management goal, it is possible that the combination will instead increase
such risks or hinder achievement of the portfolio management objective.
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Hedging Transactions Risk (Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Global Equity
Fund)
Each Funds Advisor, from time to time, may employ various hedging techniques. The success of a Funds hedging strategy
will be subject to its Advisors ability to correctly assess the degree of correlation between the performance of the instruments used in the hedging strategy and the performance of the investments in the portfolio being hedged. Since the
characteristics of many securities change as markets change or time passes, the success of a Funds hedging strategy will also be subject to its Advisors ability to continually recalculate, readjust, and execute hedges in an efficient and
timely manner.
Hedging against a decline in the value of a portfolio position does not eliminate fluctuations in the values of those
portfolio positions or prevent losses if the values of those positions decline. Rather, it establishes other positions designed to gain from those same declines, thus seeking to moderate the decline in the portfolio positions value. Such
hedging transactions also limit the opportunity for gain if the value of the portfolio position should increase. For a variety of reasons, the Advisor or a subadvisor may not seek to establish a perfect correlation between such hedging instruments
and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Such imperfect correlation may prevent a Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, it is not possible to hedge fully or perfectly against any risk, and hedging
entails its own costs. Each Funds Advisor may determine, in its sole discretion, not to hedge against certain risks and certain risks may exist that cannot be hedged. Furthermore, the Advisors may not anticipate a particular risk so as to
hedge against it effectively. Hedging transactions also limit the opportunity for gain if the value of a hedged portfolio position should increase.
Inflation Risks
Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from
investment will be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the real value of the Funds shares and Distributions declines.
Management Risk; Dependence on Key Personnel of the Advisor
Each Funds portfolio is
subject to management risk because it is actively managed. Each Funds Advisor applies investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that they will produce the desired
results.
A Fund depends upon its Advisors key personnel for its future success and upon the Funds access to certain individuals
and investments. In particular, each Fund depends on the diligence, skill and network of business contacts of its portfolio managers, who evaluate, negotiate, structure, close and monitor Fund investments. These individuals do not have long-term
employment contracts with the Advisor, although they do have equity interests and other financial incentives to remain with the Advisor. Each Fund also depends on the senior management of its Advisor. The departure of any of a Funds portfolio
managers or the senior management of its Advisor could have a material adverse effect on the Funds ability to achieve its investment objective. In addition, the Funds can offer no assurance that its respective Advisor will remain its
investment advisor or that a Fund will continue to have access to the Advisors industry contacts and deal flow.
Liquidity Risk
(Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Global Equity Fund)
Certain securities (including securities in may trade less
frequently than those of larger companies due to their smaller capitalizations. In the event certain securities experience limited trading volumes, the prices may display abrupt or erratic movements at times. Additionally, it may be more difficult
for the Fund to buy and sell significant amounts of such securities without an unfavorable impact on prevailing market prices. As a result, these securities may be difficult to dispose of at a fair price at the times when the Advisor believes it is
desirable to do so. The Funds investment in securities that are less actively traded or over time experience decreased trading volume may restrict its ability to take advantage of other market opportunities or to dispose of securities. This
also may affect adversely the Funds ability to make dividend distributions. The Fund will not purchase or otherwise acquire any security if, as a result, more than 15% of its net assets would be invested in illiquid investments.
Margin Deposits and Cover Requirements for Futures Contracts
Unlike the purchase or sale of portfolio securities, no price is paid or received by a Fund upon the purchase or sale of a futures contract. Initially, a Fund will be required to deposit with the broker
an amount of cash or cash equivalents, known as initial margin, based on the value of the contract. The nature of initial margin in futures transactions is different from that of margin in securities transactions in that futures contract margin does
not involve the borrowing of funds by the customer to finance the transactions. Rather, the initial margin is in the nature of a performance bond or good faith deposit on the contract which is returned to the Fund upon termination of the futures
contract, assuming all contractual obligations have been satisfied. Subsequent payments, called variation margin, to and from the broker, will be made on a daily basis as the price of the underlying instruments fluctuates, making the long and short
positions in the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as marking to the market. For example,
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when a Fund has purchased a futures contract and the price of the contract has risen in response to a rise in the price of the underlying instruments, that position will have increased in value
and the Fund will be entitled to receive from the broker a variation margin payment equal to that increase in value. Conversely, where a Fund has purchased a futures contract and the price of the futures contract has declined in response to a
decrease in the underlying instruments, the position would be less valuable and the Fund would be required to make a variation margin payment to the broker. At any time prior to expiration of the futures contract, a Funds Advisor may elect to
close the position by taking an opposite position, subject to the availability of a secondary market, which will operate to terminate the Funds position in the futures contract. A final determination of variation margin is then made,
additional cash is required to be paid by or released to the Fund, and the Fund realizes a loss or gain.
When entering into a futures
contract that must be cash settled, a Fund will cover (and mark-to-market on a daily basis) liquid assets that, when added to the amounts deposited with a futures commission merchant as margin, are equal to the market value of the futures contract.
When entering into a futures contract that does not need to be settled in cash, a Fund will maintain with its custodian (and mark to market on a daily basis) liquid assets that, when added to the amounts deposited with a futures commission merchant
as margin, are equal to the full notional value of the contract. Alternatively, a Fund may cover its position by purchasing an option on the same futures contract with a strike price as high or higher than the price of the contract held
by the Fund.
Momentum Style Risk (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Investing in momentum entails establishing long positions in securities that have had positive recent returns, and short positions in securities that have
had negative recent returns. These securities may be more volatile than a broad cross-section of securities. In addition, there may be periods when the momentum style is out of favor, and during which the investment performance of a Fund using a
momentum strategy may suffer.
Non-Diversified Status Risk (Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Each Fund is a non-diversified Fund. Because a Fund may invest in securities of a smaller number of issuers, the Fund may be more exposed to the risks
associated with and developments affecting an individual issuer than a Fund that invests more widely, which may, therefore, have a greater impact on the Funds performance.
Repurchase Agreements
Each Fund may acquire securities subject to repurchase agreements.
In a repurchase transaction, a Fund acquires a security from, and simultaneously agrees to resell it to, an approved vendor. An approved vendor is a U.S. commercial bank or the U.S. branch of a foreign bank or a broker-dealer that has
been designated a primary dealer in government securities that meets the Trusts credit requirements. The resale price exceeds the purchase price by an amount that reflects an agreed-upon interest rate effective for the period during which the
repurchase agreement is in effect. If the vendor fails to pay the resale price on the delivery date, the Fund may incur costs in disposing of the collateral and may experience losses if there is any delay in its ability to do so. The majority of
these transactions run from day to day, and delivery pursuant to the resale typically will occur within one to five days of the purchase. Repurchase agreements are considered loans under the 1940 Act, collateralized by the underlying
security. There is no limit on the amount of a Funds net assets that may be subject to repurchase agreements of seven days or less. Repurchase agreements with a maturity beyond seven days are subject to the Funds limitations on
investments in illiquid securities.
Reverse Repurchase Agreements (Salient Risk Parity Fund)
The Fund, subject to its investment strategies and policies, may enter into reverse repurchase agreements. The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase
agreements with the same parties with whom it may enter into repurchase agreements. Under a reverse repurchase agreement, the Fund sells securities to another party and agrees to repurchase them at a particular date and price. The Fund may enter
into a reverse repurchase agreement when it is anticipated that the interest income to be earned from the investment of the proceeds of the transaction is greater than the interest expense of the transaction.
At the time the Fund enters into a reverse repurchase agreement, it will segregate liquid assets with a value not less than the repurchase price
(including accrued interest). The use of reverse repurchase agreements may be regarded as leveraging and, therefore, speculative. Furthermore, reverse repurchase agreements involve the risks that (i) the interest income earned in the investment
of the proceeds will be less than the interest expense, (ii) the market value of the securities retained in lieu of sale by the Fund may decline below the price of the securities the Fund has sold but is obligated to repurchase, (iii) the
market value of the securities sold will decline below the price at which the Fund is required to repurchase them and (iv) the securities will not be returned to the Fund.
In addition, if the buyer of securities under a reverse repurchase agreement files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, such buyer or its trustee or receiver may receive an extension of time to determine
whether to enforce the Funds obligations to repurchase the securities and the Funds use of the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement may effectively be restricted pending such decision.
31
Risks Associated with an Investment in Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) (Salient
MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Global Equity Fund)
Securities purchased in IPOs are often subject to the general
risks associated with investments in companies with small market capitalizations, and typically to a heightened degree. Securities issued in IPOs have no trading history, and information about the companies may be available for very limited periods.
In addition, the prices of securities sold in an IPO may be highly volatile. The Funds may not be able to invest in IPOs, or to invest to the extent desired, because, for example, only a small portion (if any) of the securities being offered in an
IPO may be available to the Funds. In addition, under certain market conditions, a relatively small number of companies may issue securities in IPOs. Each Funds investment performance during periods when it is unable to invest significantly or
at all in IPOs may be lower than during periods when it is able to do so.
Risk of Owning Securities of Affiliates (Salient MLP &
Energy Infrastructure Fund II)
From time to time, the Fund may control or may be an affiliate of one or more of
the Funds portfolio companies, each as defined in the 1940 Act. In general, under the 1940 Act, the Fund would control a portfolio company if it owned 25% or more of its outstanding voting securities and would be an
affiliate of a portfolio company if it owned 5% or more of its outstanding voting securities or any of Salients employees serves as a director of such company. The 1940 Act contains prohibitions and restrictions relating to
transactions between investment companies and their affiliates (including the Advisor), principal underwriters and affiliates of those affiliates or underwriters.
There is significant ambiguity in the application of existing SEC staff interpretations of the term voting security to complex structures such as limited partner interests of MLPs in which the
Fund invests. As a result, it is possible that the SEC staff may consider that certain securities of limited partnerships are voting securities under the staffs prevailing interpretations of this term. If such determination is made, the Fund
may be regarded as a person affiliated with and controlling the issuer(s) of those securities for purposes of Section 17 of the 1940 Act.
In light of the ambiguity of the definition of voting securities, the Fund does not intend to treat any class of limited partner interests of MLPs that
the Fund holds as voting securities unless the security holders of such class currently have the ability, under the partnership agreement, to remove the general partner (assuming a sufficient vote of such securities, other than
securities held by the general partner, in favor of such removal) or the Fund has an economic interest of sufficient size that otherwise gives the fund the de facto power to exercise a controlling influence over such MLP. The Fund believes this
treatment is appropriate given that the general partner controls the MLP, and without the ability to remove the general partner or the power to otherwise exercise a controlling influence over the MLP due to the size of an economic interest, the
security holders have no control over the MLP.
There is no assurance that the SEC staff will not consider that other limited partnership
securities that the Fund owns and do not treat as voting securities are, in fact, voting securities for the purposes of Section 17 of the 1940 Act. If such determination were made, the Fund would be required to abide by the restrictions on
control or affiliate transactions as proscribed in the 1940 Act. The Fund or any portfolio company that it controls, and the Funds affiliates, may from time to time engage in certain of such joint transactions,
purchases, sales and loans in reliance upon and in compliance with the conditions of certain exemptive rules promulgated by the SEC. There is no assurance that the Fund would be able to satisfy the conditions of these rules with respect to any
particular eligible transaction, or even if the Fund were allowed to engage in such a transaction that the terms would be more or as favorable to the Fund or any company that the Fund controls as those that could be obtained in an arms length
transaction. As a result of these prohibitions, restrictions may be imposed on the size of positions that may be taken for the Fund or on the type of investments that the Fund could make.
Securities Lending Risk (Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, Salient Global Equity Fund)
To any extent a Fund lends securities, borrowers of the Funds securities typically would provide collateral in the form of cash that is reinvested in securities. The securities in which the
collateral is invested may not perform sufficiently to cover the return collateral payments owed to borrowers. Additionally, delays may occur in the recovery of securities from borrowers, which could interfere with a Funds ability to vote
proxies or to settle transactions. If a borrower is unable to return the loaned securities, a Fund may lose the benefit of a continuing investment in the unreturned securities and the loan could be treated as a taxable transaction for federal income
tax purposes.
Securities of Other Investment Companies
Each Fund may invest in shares of other investment companies, including ETFs, money market mutual funds, and closed-end investment companies, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act. To the extent a Fund
invests in shares of an investment company, it will bear its pro rata share of the other investment companys expenses, such as investment advisory and distribution fees and operating expenses.
32
Short Sales
Each Fund may engage in short sales, including short sales against the box. Short sales (other than against the box) are transactions in which a Fund sells a security it does not own in anticipation of a
decline in the market value of that security. A short sale against the box is a short sale where at the time of the sale, a Fund owns or has the right to obtain securities equivalent in kind and amounts. To complete a short sale transaction, a Fund
must borrow the security to make delivery to the buyer. The Fund then is obligated to replace the security borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The price at such time may be more or less than the price at which
the security was sold by the Fund. Until the security is replaced, the Fund is required to pay to the lender amounts equal to any interest or dividends which accrue during the period of the loan. To borrow the security, the Fund also may be required
to pay a premium, which would increase the cost of the security sold. There will also be other costs associated with short sales.
A 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. Unlike taking a long position in a security by purchasing the
security, where potential losses are limited to the purchase price, short sales have no cap on maximum loss. A Fund will realize a gain if the security declines in price between those dates. This result is the opposite of what one would expect from
a cash purchase of a long position in a security.
Until a Fund replaces a borrowed security in connection with a short sale, the Fund will
(a) designate on its records as collateral cash or liquid assets at such a level that the designated assets plus any amount deposited with the broker as collateral will equal the current value of the security sold short or (b) otherwise
cover its short position in accordance with applicable law. The amount designated on the Funds records will be marked to market daily. This may limit the Funds investment flexibility, as well as its ability to meet redemption requests or
other current obligations.
There is no guarantee that the Funds will be able to close out a short position at any particular time or at an
acceptable price. During the time that a Fund is short a security, it is subject to the risk that the lender of the security will terminate the loan at a time when the Fund is unable to borrow the same security from another lender. If that occurs,
the Fund may be bought in at the price required to purchase the security needed to close out the short position, which may be a disadvantageous price. Thus, there is a risk that the Fund may be unable to fully implement its investment
strategy due to a lack of available stocks or for some other reason. It is possible that the market value of the securities a Fund holds in long positions will decline at the same time that the market value of the securities the Fund has sold short
increases, thereby increasing the Funds potential volatility. Short sales also involve other costs. A Fund must normally repay to the lender an amount equal to any dividends or interest that accrues while the loan is outstanding. In addition,
to borrow the security, a Fund may be required to pay a premium. The Funds also will incur transaction costs in effecting short sales. The amount of any ultimate gain for a Fund resulting from a short sale will be decreased, and the amount of any
ultimate loss will be increased, by the amount of premiums, dividends, interest or expenses a Fund may be required to pay in connection with the short sale.
In addition to the short sales discussed above, each Fund may make short sales against the box, a transaction in which the Fund enters into a short sale of a security that the Fund owns or has
the right to obtain at no additional cost. The Fund does not immediately deliver the securities sold and is said to have a short position in those securities until delivery occurs. If the Fund effects a short sale of securities against the box at a
time when it has an unrealized gain on the securities, it may be required to recognize that gain as if it had actually sold the securities (as a constructive sale) on the date it effects the short sale. However, such constructive sale
treatment may not apply if the Fund closes out the short sale with securities other than the appreciated securities held at the time of the short sale and if certain other conditions are satisfied.
A Fund may also take a short position in a derivative instrument, such as a future, forward or swap. A short position on a derivative instrument involves
the risk of a theoretically unlimited increase in the value of the underlying instrument.
Small and Mid-Capitalization Securities Risk
Each Fund may invest its assets in the common stocks and other equity securities of small and mid-capitalization companies with smaller
market capitalizations. While the Advisor believes these investments may provide significant potential for appreciation, they involve higher risks in some respects than do investments in common stocks and other equity securities of larger companies.
For example, prices of such investments are often more volatile than prices of large-capitalization stocks and other equity securities. In addition, due to thin trading in some such investments, an investment in these common stocks and other equity
securities may be more illiquid than that of common stocks or other equity securities of larger market capitalization issuers (See Liquidity Risk). Smaller capitalization companies also fail more often than larger companies and may have
more limited management and financial resources than larger companies.
Structured Notes
Structured Notes are derivative debt securities, the interest rate or principal of which is determined by an unrelated indicator. A structured note may be
positively, negatively or both positively and negatively indexed; that is, its value or interest rate may increase
33
or decrease if the value of the reference instrument increases. Similarly, its value may increase or decrease if the value of the reference instrument decreases. Further, the change in the
principal amount payable with respect to, or the interest rate of, a structured note may be a multiple of the percentage change (positive or negative) in the value of the underlying reference instrument(s). Structured or indexed securities may also
be more volatile, less liquid, and more difficult to accurately price than less complex securities or more traditional debt securities.
TIPS and Inflation-Linked Bonds Risk (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
The value of inflation-protected securities generally fluctuates in response to changes in real interest rates, which are in turn tied to the relationship
between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if inflation were to rise at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates might decline, leading to an increase in the value of inflation-protected securities. In
contrast, if nominal interest rates increased at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in the value of inflation-protected securities. If a Fund purchases inflation-protected securities in the secondary
market whose principal values have been adjusted upward due to inflation since issuance, the Fund may experience a loss if there is a subsequent period of deflation. The inflation protected securities markets are generally much smaller and less
liquid than the nominal bonds from the same issuers and as such can suffer losses during times of economic stress or illiquidity.
U.S.
Government Securities
U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. Obligations of U.S.
Government agencies or instrumentalities (including certain types of mortgage-backed securities) may or may not be guaranteed or supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. Some are backed by the right of the issuer to
borrow from the U.S. Treasury; others are supported by discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agencies obligations; while still others are supported only by the credit of the instrumentality. If the securities are not
backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, the owner of the securities must look principally to the agency issuing the obligation for repayment and may not be able to assert a claim against the United States in the event that the
agency of instrumentality does not meet its commitment.
Valuation Risk
Market prices may not be readily available for any restricted or unregistered investments in public companies or investments in private companies made by the Funds. The value of such investments will
ordinarily be determined based on fair valuations pursuant to procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees. Restrictions on resale or the absence of a liquid secondary market may adversely affect a Funds ability to determine its net asset
value. The sale price of securities that are not readily marketable may be lower or higher than a Funds most recent determination of their fair value. In addition, the value of these securities typically requires more reliance on the judgment
of a Funds Advisor than that required for securities for which there is an active trading market. Due to the difficulty in valuing these securities and the absence of an active trading market for these investments, a Fund may not be able to
realize these securities carrying value or may have to delay their sale in order to do so.
Value Style Risk (Salient Risk Parity
Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund, Salient Global Equity Fund)
Investing in value stocks presents
the risk that the stocks may never reach what the Advisor believes are their full market values, either because the market fails to recognize what the Advisor considers to be the companies true business values or because the Advisor misjudged
those values. In addition, value stocks may fall out of favor with investors and underperform growth stocks during given periods.
Risks
Related to the Advisor and to its Quantitative and Statistical Approach (Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund)
Trading Judgment
The success of the proprietary valuation techniques and trading
strategies employed by each Fund is subject to the judgment and skills of the Advisor and the research team that it oversees. Additionally, the trading abilities of the portfolio management team with regard to execution and discipline are important
to the return of the Funds. There can be no assurance that the investment decisions or actions of the Advisor will be correct. Incorrect decisions or poor judgment may result in substantial losses.
Model and Data Risk
Given the complexity of the investments and strategies of the Funds, the Advisor relies on quantitative models (both proprietary models developed by the
Advisor, and those supplied by third party vendors) and information and data supplied by third party vendors (Models and Data). Models and Data are used to construct sets of transactions and investments and to provide risk management
insights.
34
When Models and Data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon expose the
Funds to potential risks. The success of relying on such models may depend on the accuracy and reliability of historical data supplied by third party vendors.
All models rely on correct market data inputs. If incorrect market data is entered into even a well-founded model, the resulting information will be incorrect. However, even if market data is input
correctly, model prices will often differ substantially from market prices, especially for securities with complex characteristics, such as derivative securities.
Obsolescence Risk
The Funds are unlikely to be successful unless the assumptions
underlying the models are realistic and either remain realistic and relevant in the future or are adjusted to account for changes in the overall market environment. If such assumptions are inaccurate or become inaccurate and are not promptly
adjusted, it is likely that profitable trading signals will not be generated. If and to the extent that the models do not reflect certain factors, and the Advisor does not successfully address such omission through its testing and evaluation and
modify the models accordingly, major losses may result. The Advisor will continue to test, evaluate and add new models, as a result of which the existing models may be modified from time to time. Any modification of the models or strategies will not
be subject to any requirement that shareholders receive notice of the change or that they consent to it. There can be no assurance as to the effects (positive or negative) of any modification of the models or strategies on a Funds performance.
Crowding/Convergence
There is significant competition among quantitatively-focused managers, and the ability of the Advisor to deliver returns consistent with the Funds objectives and policies is dependent on its
ability to employ models that are simultaneously profitable and differentiated from those employed by other managers. To the extent that the Advisors models used for a Fund come to resemble those employed by other managers, the risk that a
market disruption that negatively affects predictive models will adversely affect the Fund is increased, and such a disruption could accelerate reductions in liquidity or rapid repricing due to simultaneous trading across a number of funds in the
marketplace.
Risk of Programming and Modelling Errors
The research and modelling process engaged in by the Advisor is extremely complex and involves financial, economic, econometric and statistical theories, research and modelling; the results of that
process must then be translated into computer code. Although the Advisor seeks to hire individuals skilled in each of these functions and to provide appropriate levels of oversight, the complexity of the individual tasks, the difficulty of
integrating such tasks, and the limited ability to perform real world testing of the end product raises the chances that the finished model may contain an error; one or more of such errors could adversely affect a Funds performance
and, depending on the circumstances, would generally not constitute a trade error under the
Trusts
policies.
Involuntary Disclosure Risk
As further described in the prospectus, the ability of the Advisor to achieve its investment goals for a Fund is dependent in large part on its ability to develop and protect its models and proprietary
research. The models and proprietary research and the Models and Data are largely protected by the Advisor through the use of policies, procedures, agreements, and similar measures designed to create and enforce robust confidentiality,
non-disclosure, and similar safeguards. However, public disclosure obligations (or disclosure obligations to exchanges or regulators with insufficient privacy safeguards) could lead to opportunities for competitors to reverse-engineer the
Advisors Models and Data, and thereby impair the relative or absolute performance of a Fund.
Proprietary Trading
Methods
Because the trading methods employed by the Advisor on behalf of the Funds are proprietary to the Advisor, a shareholder will not
be able to determine any details of such methods or whether they are being followed.
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS
Each Funds fundamental policies listed below shall not be changed without an affirmative vote of a majority of the Funds
voting securities, which means the lesser of: (i) 67% or more of the shares represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the outstanding shares are represented; or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding shares. Non-fundamental
restrictions are subject to change by the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the Board) without shareholder approval.
When
submitting an investment restriction change to the holders of a Funds outstanding voting securities, the matter shall be deemed to have been effectively acted upon if a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund vote for the
approval of the matter, notwithstanding that the matter has not been approved by: (1) the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of any other series of the Trust affected by the matter; and (2) the vote of a majority of
the outstanding voting securities of the Trust as a whole.
35
No other policy, including a Funds investment objective, is a fundamental policy.
Within the limits of each Funds fundamental policies, the Funds management has reserved freedom of action. To the extent permitted by the
1940 Act, the rules and regulations thereunder, or interpretations, orders, or other guidance provided by the SEC or its staff, each Fund:
1.
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Can borrow money or issue any senior security, to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act, and as interpreted, modified, or otherwise permitted by regulatory authority
having jurisdiction, from time to time.
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2.
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Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund:
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Cannot invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in the securities of issuers in any single industry or group of industries,
except that securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and repurchase agreements collateralized by securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities may be purchased without limitation, and
each Fund may invest substantially all of its investable assets in one or more registered investment companies. For purposes of this investment restriction, registered investment companies are not considered part of any industry or group of
industries. However, for purposes of determining industry concentration, if a Fund invests in affiliated underlying registered investment companies, the Fund will treat the assets of the underlying registered investment companies as if held directly
by the Fund. Further, if a Fund invests in unaffiliated underlying investment companies, the Fund will consider the concentration policy of the underlying investment companies for purposes of determining compliance with its own concentration policy.
Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II:
Will invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in the securities of issuers in the energy and energy infrastructure industries;
and the Fund cannot invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in the securities of issuers in any other single industry or group of industries, except that securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and
repurchase agreements collateralized by securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities may be purchased without limitation, and the Fund may invest substantially all of its investable assets in one or more registered
investment companies. For purposes of this investment restriction, registered investment companies are not considered part of any industry or group of industries. However, for purposes of determining industry concentration, if the Fund invests in
affiliated underlying registered investment companies, the Fund will treat the assets of the underlying registered investment companies as if held directly by the Fund. Further, if the Fund invests in unaffiliated underlying investment companies,
the Fund will consider the concentration of the underlying investment companies for purposes of determining compliance with its own concentration policy.
3.
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Cannot act as an underwriter of securities of other issuers, except to the extent that in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities, it may be deemed to
be an underwriter under the federal securities laws.
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4.
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Cannot purchase or sell real estate except insofar as such transaction is made through a vehicle whereby the risk of loss is not greater than the investment therein,
although it may purchase and sell securities secured by real estate or interests therein, or securities issued by companies which invest in real estate, or interests therein.
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5.
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Can make loans only as permitted under the 1940 Act, and as interpreted, modified, or otherwise permitted by regulatory authority having jurisdiction, from time to
time.
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6.
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Cannot make a direct purchase or sale of physical commodities and commodity contracts, except: (a) insofar as such transaction is made through a vehicle whereby
the risk of loss is not greater than the investment therein; and (b) it may: (i) enter into futures contracts and options thereon in accordance with applicable law; and (ii) purchase or sell physical commodities if acquired as a
result of ownership of securities or other instruments. The Funds will not consider stock index, currency and other financial futures contracts, swaps, or hybrid instruments to be commodities for purposes of this investment policy.
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As an additional policy, each Fund may pursue the investment program through one or more subsidiary vehicles. The establishment
of such vehicles and a Funds utilization thereof is wholly within the discretion of the Board. To the extent applicable to the investment activities of each Funds respective subsidiary, the subsidiary will be subject to the same
fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund.
36
With respect to the Salient Global Equity Fund, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of
the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will be invested in common stocks and other equity securities, and 40% of the value of the Funds net assets (plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) will
be invested in common stocks and other equity securities of issuers located outside of the United States. The Fund will provide shareholders with at least 60 days notice prior to any change to the preceding limitations.
With respect to these policies and other policies and investment restrictions described herein (except each Funds fundamental policies on
borrowings and the issuance of senior securities), if a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of an investment or transaction, a later change in percentage resulting from a change in the values of investments or the value of a Funds
total assets, unless otherwise stated, will not constitute a violation of such policy or restriction.
PORTFOLIO
TURNOVER
The annual rate of portfolio turnover may vary from year to year as well as within a year. A high rate of portfolio turnover
(100% or more) generally involves correspondingly greater brokerage commission expenses, which must be borne directly by the respective Fund. Portfolio turnover is calculated by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities
during the fiscal year by the monthly average of the value of a Funds securities. (Excluded from the computation are all securities, including options, with maturities at the time of acquisition of one year or less). Portfolio turnover rates
can change from year to year due to various factors, including among others, portfolio adjustments made in response to market conditions.
THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR MANAGEMENT
Each Funds operations are managed under the direction and oversight of the Board. The Board
appoints officers of the Trust who are responsible for the Funds day-to-day business decisions based on policies set by the Board. The officers serve at the pleasure of the Board.
The Trustees and officers of the Trust also may be directors or officers of some or all of the other registered investment companies managed by each Funds Advisor and affiliates (the Fund
Complex). The table below shows, for each Trustee and executive officer, his full name, address and age, the position held with the Trust, the length of time served in that position, his principal occupation during the last five years, and
other directorships held by such Trustee. The information in the table is current as of September 30, 2012. The address of each Trustee and officer is c/o Salient MF Trust, 4265 San Felipe, Suite 800, Houston, Texas 77027.
Interested Trustees*
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Name and Age**
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Position(s) with
Trust
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Principal
Occupation(s)
Directorships During Past 5 Years
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Number of
Portfolios
in Fund
Complex
Overseen
by
Trustee
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Other Directorships During
Past 5
Years
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John A. Blaisdell*
Age:
51
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Trustee, Principal Executive Officer (since 2012); Chairman of the Board (since 2012)
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Member, Investment Committee of the Advisor (since 2002); Managing Director of Salient (since 2002).
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10
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The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010.
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37
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Jeremy L. Radcliffe*
Age:
37
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Trustee, Secretary (since 2012)
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Member, Investment Committee of the Advisor (since 2002); Managing Director of Salient (since 2002).
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10
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Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds
(formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010.
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*
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This persons status as an interested Trustee arises from his affiliation with the Advisor.
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**
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As of December 31, 2011
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Independent Trustees
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Name and Age*
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Position(s) with
Trust
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Principal
Occupation(s)
Directorships During Past 5 Years
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Number of
Portfolios
in Fund
Complex
Overseen
by
Trustee**
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Other Directorships During
Past 5
Years
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Karin B. Bonding
Age:
72
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Trustee (since 2012)
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Lecturer, University of Virginia, since 1996; President of Capital Markets Institute, Inc. (fee-only financial planner and investment advisor) since 1996.
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10
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The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010; Brandes Investment Trust (investment companies) (four funds), since 2006; Credit Suisse
Alternative Capital Funds (investment companies) (six funds), 2005-2010.
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|
|
Jonathan P. Carroll
Age:
50
|
|
Trustee (since 2012)
|
|
President of Lazarus Financial LLC (holding company) since 2006; private investor for past sixteen years.
|
|
10
|
|
The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010; Lazarus Financial LLC, Lazarus Energy Holdings LLC and affiliates, since 2006.
|
38
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dr. Bernard A. Harris
Age: 55
|
|
Trustee (since 2012)
|
|
Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner, Vesalius Ventures, Inc. (venture investing), since 2002; President, The Space Agency (marketing) since 1999; President, The Harris
Foundation (non-profit), since 1998; clinical scientist, flight surgeon and astronaut for NASA, 1986 to 1996.
|
|
10
|
|
The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds) since 2009; Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund
(investment company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010; Monebo Technologies Inc., since 2009; The National Math and Science Initiative, and
Space Agency, since 2008; Sterling Bancshares, Inc., since 2007; Communities in Schools, since 2007; American Telemedicine Association, since 2007; BioHouston, since 2006; U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc., since 2005; Houston Technology Center, since
2004; The Harris Foundation, Inc., since 1998.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Richard C. Johnson
Age:
74
|
|
Trustee (since 2012)
|
|
Senior Counsel (retired), Baker Botts LLP (law firm); Managing Partner, Baker Botts, 1998 to 2002; practiced law at Baker Botts, 1966 to 2002 (1972 to 2002 as a
partner).
|
|
10
|
|
The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010.
|
|
|
|
|
|
G. Edward Powell
Age:
74
|
|
Trustee
Lead Independent
Trustee
(since 2012)
|
|
Principal, Mills & Stowell (private equity), since 2002; Principal, Innovation Growth Partners (consulting), since 2002; Consultant to emerging and middle market businesses,
1994 to 2002; Managing Partner, Price Waterhouse & Co. (Houston office), 1982 to 1994.
|
|
10
|
|
The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010; Energy Services International, Inc., since 2004; Therapy Track, LLC, since 2009.
|
39
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Scott E. Schwinger
Age:
46
|
|
Trustee (since 2012)
|
|
President, The McNair Group (management), since 2006; Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, the Houston Texans (professional football team) (1999).
|
|
10
|
|
The Endowment Funds (investment companies) (five funds); Salient Midstream & MLP Fund (investment company) since 2012; Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund (investment
company) since 2011; Salient Alternative Strategies Funds (formerly the Salient Absolute Return Funds) (investment companies) (three funds) since 2010; The Make-A-Wish Foundation, since 2008; YES Prep Public Schools, since 2001.
|
*
|
As of December 31, 2011
|
Officers of
the Funds Who Are Not Trustees
|
|
|
|
|
Name and Age*
|
|
Position(s) Held with Trust (Since)
|
|
Principal Occupation(s) During the Past 5 Years
|
Paul A Bachtold
Age:
38
|
|
Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) (Since 2012)
|
|
CCO, Salient (since 2010); Consultant, Chicago Investment Group (compliance consulting), 2009-2010; US Compliance Manager, Barclays Global Investors, 2005-2008; Consultant, Wells
Fargo Bank, 2000-2005.
|
|
|
|
John E. Price
Age:
44
|
|
Treasurer; Principal Financial Officer (Since 2012)
|
|
Director and Chief Financial Officer, the Advisor, since 2003; Partner and Director, Salient, since 2003.
|
*
|
As of December 31, 2011
|
Leadership Structure and Board of Trustees
The Board monitors the level and quality of services, including commitments of service providers and the performance of each Funds Advisor. In addition, the Board oversees that processes are in
place to assure the Funds compliance with applicable rules, regulations, and investment policies and addresses possible conflicts of interest. The Board evaluates the services received under the contracts with service providers by, among other
things, receiving reports covering investment performance, shareholder services, distribution and marketing, and the Advisors profitability in order to determine whether to continue existing contracts or negotiate new contracts.
Mr. Blaisdell, the Chairman of the Board, is an interested person (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Trust. Mr. Powell serves as
the Boards Lead Independent Trustee. As Chairman, Mr. Blaisdell presides at meetings of the Trustees and, as necessary, the Trusts shareholders. Based on the specific characteristics of each Fund, including its size and investment
focus, the Board has determined it appropriate that Mr. Blaisdell fulfill the role of Chairman. Prior to each Board meeting, Mr. Blaisdell discusses and formulates with Mr. Powell, the Lead Independent Trustee, an agenda to be
addressed at the meeting, as well as conferring with other representatives of management and with counsel to the Independent Trustees.
As
registered investment companies, each Fund is subject to a number of investment risks (described in the Funds prospectus and this SAI), as well as financial and compliance risks. These risks are mitigated by written policies approved and
overseen by the Board. Each Advisor conducts the respective Funds operations and the Board administers an oversight function. The Board oversees the each Advisors operations and each Funds risk management with the assistance of the
Boards Audit, Compliance and Valuation Committees. Each of these Committees is discussed below under Committees. At each Board meeting, the Board considers reports regarding each Funds operations and oversight thereof,
including oversight of risks, as well as reports from the CCO, who also routinely meets privately with the Independent Trustees. Board Committees receive reports, and meetings may entail further discussion of issues concerning oversight of each
Funds risk management. The Board also may discuss particular risks that are not addressed in the Committee process. Committee Chairs may confer with the Chairman of the Board to discuss various issues discussed in the Committee that may
require further discussion by the full Board or separate reports by the Advisor. In addition, the Chairman of the Board confers with the CCO, the Trustees, the Advisor and counsel, including counsel to the Independent Trustees, to discuss risk
management issues.
40
Trustee Qualifications
This section discusses, for each Trustee, the experience, qualifications, attributes or skills that led to the conclusion that the person should serve as a Trustee. The information in this section should
not be understood to mean that any of the Trustees is an expert within the meaning of the federal securities laws or for any other purpose under state or federal law.
John A. Blaisdell
Through his experience as a senior executive of financial organizations, Mr. Blaisdell contributes
his experience in the investment management industry to the Board. The Board also benefits from his experience as a member of the board of other funds.
Karin B. Bonding, CFA
Through her role as a teacher and her insights on financial markets, Ms. Bonding contributes her experience in marketing to the Board. The Board also benefits from
her experience as a member of the board of other funds.
Jonathan P. Carroll
Through his experience as the
executive of business enterprises, Mr. Carroll contributes experience in overseeing financial and investment organizations to the Board. The Board also benefits from his experience as a member of the board of other funds.
Dr. Bernard A. Harris
Through his experience as a senior officer of and board member of financial and other
organizations, Dr. Harris contributes his management and oversight experience to the Board. The Board also benefits from his experience as a member of the board of other funds and operating companies.
Richard C. Johnson
Through his experience as an attorney, Mr. Johnson contributes his insight and management
experience to the Board. The Board also benefits from his experience as a member of the board of other funds.
G. Edward
Powell
Through his experience as a senior executive and accountant, Mr. Powell contributes his accounting and management experience to the Board. The Board also benefits from his experience as a member of the board of other funds and
operating companies.
Jeremy L. Radcliffe
Through his experience as a senior executive of financial
organizations, Mr. Radcliffe contributes his experience in the investment industry to the Board.
Scott E.
Schwinger
Through his experience as a senior executive and financial officer of financial and business enterprises, Mr. Schwinger contributes his financial and management experience to the Board. The Board also benefits from his
experience as a member of the board of other funds and operating companies.
Committees
Audit Committee
The Board has formed an
Audit Committee that is responsible for meeting with each Funds independent registered public accounting firm, the Administrator, and the Trusts officers (including the CCO) to review financial statements, accounting reports, accounting
issues and matters relating to compliance with the federal securities laws. The Audit Committee reports significant issues to the Board and makes recommendations regarding the selection, retention, or termination of each Funds independent
registered public accounting firm, evaluates its independence, reviews its fees, and pre-approves any non-audit services rendered to each Fund or Advisor. The Committee also meets at least annually with the CCO without the presence of management to
discuss issues arising under each Funds compliance program. Messrs. Carroll, Harris, Powell and Schwinger, each an Independent Trustee, constitute the Audit Committee.
Nominating Committee
The Board has formed a Nominating Committee that recommends
nominations for Independent Trustee membership on the Board. It evaluates candidates qualifications for Board membership and, with respect to nominees for positions as Independent Trustee, as well as their independence from the Advisors and
other principal service providers. The Committee meets as necessary to identify and evaluate nominees for Trustee and to make its recommendations to the Board. The Nominating Committee is composed of all the Independent Trustees.
While the Nominating Committee is solely responsible for the selection and nomination of potential Independent Trustee candidates to serve on the Board,
the Nominating Committee may consider and evaluate nominations properly submitted by shareholders of the Trust. Nominations proposed by shareholders will be properly submitted for consideration by the Committee only if a Shareholder submits a
nomination in accordance with the procedures set forth in the charter of the Nominating Committee. It is in the Nominating Committees sole discretion whether to seek corrections of a deficient submission or to exclude a nominee from
consideration.
41
Compliance Committee
The Board has formed a Compliance Committee that is responsible for meeting with the Trusts CCO to review matters relating to compliance with the federal securities laws. The Committee meets at
least annually with the CCO without the presence of management to discuss issues arising, among other things, under each Funds compliance program and operations. Messrs. Carroll, Johnson and Powell, each an Independent Trustee, constitute the
Compliance Committee.
Valuation Committee
The Board has formed a Valuation Committee that is responsible for overseeing each Funds valuation policy, making recommendations to the Board on valuation-related matters, and overseeing
implementation by the Advisors Valuation Committee (as defined below) of each Funds valuation policy and procedures. Ms. Bonding and Messrs. Harris, Johnson and Schwinger constitute the Board Valuation Committee.
In addition, the Board, for each Fund
,
has authorized the establishment of and delegation to an Advisors Valuation Committee, consisting of
Messrs. Blaisdell and Radcliffe, and additional officers of the Trust and representatives of the Funds respective Advisors to serve as the Advisors Valuation Committee. The Advisors Valuation Committee is not a Board committee. The
Advisors Valuation Committees function, subject to the oversight of the Board Valuation Committee and the Board, is generally to review each Funds valuation determinations, and any information provided to the Advisors
Valuation Committee by a Funds Advisor or the Administrator. The Advisors Valuation Committee has been assigned to act in accordance with each Funds valuation procedures as approved by the Board and to report to the Board and the
Board Valuation Committee. Changes in its membership are subject to Board notification. The Board Valuation Committee members are encouraged to attend Advisor Valuation Committee meetings and the Board Valuation Committee reviews matters arising
from the Advisors Valuation Committees considerations.
Other Committee Information
In addition, each Advisor has established an Investment Committee, which is not a Board committee. The Investment Committee considers investment
management policies and strategies, investment performance, risk management techniques, and securities trading practices and reports areas of concern to the Board.
Each of the above Board committees is expected to hold meetings in the current fiscal year. All actions taken by a committee of the Board are recorded and reported to the full Board at its next meeting
following such actions.
Trustees Holdings
The dollar range of equity securities of the Funds owned by each Trustee is set forth below (1)
|
|
|
|
|
Name of Trustee
|
|
Dollar Range of Equity Securities
in the Funds as of September
30, 2012 (1)
|
|
Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities in all Registered
Investment
Companies Overseen by Trustee in the Fund
Complex as of September 30, 2012 (1)
|
Independent Trustees
|
Karin B. Bonding
|
|
None
|
|
$10,001 to $50,000
|
Jonathan P. Carroll
|
|
None
|
|
None
|
Dr. Bernard A. Harris
|
|
None
|
|
None
|
Richard C. Johnson
|
|
None
|
|
None
|
G. Edward Powell
|
|
None
|
|
None
|
Scott E. Schwinger
|
|
None
|
|
None
|
Trustees who are Interested Persons
|
John A. Blaisdell
|
|
None
|
|
Over $100,000
|
Jeremy L. Radcliffe
|
|
None
|
|
Over $100,000
|
(1)
|
The dollar ranges of equity securities reflected in the table above are as follows: None; $1 to $10,000; $10,001 to $50,000; $50,001 to $100,000; or over $100,000.
|
The total of equity securities of the Funds held directly or indirectly by all Trustees, Officers and members of any
advisory board is approximately $0 as of September 30, 2012.
42
Independent Trustee Ownership of Securities
As of September 30, 2012, the Independent Trustees (and their respective immediate family members) did not beneficially own securities of the Advisors or
an entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Advisors (not including registered investment companies).
Compensation for Trustees
The
Funds Independent Trustees are paid annual compensation for service on the Board and its Committees in an aggregate annual amount of $15,000 each. Such compensation encompasses attendance and participation at Board and Committee meetings,
including telephonic meetings, if any. There are currently six Independent Trustees. In the interest of recruiting and retaining Independent Trustees of high quality, the Board intends to periodically review such compensation and may modify it as
the Board deems appropriate. In addition, the Trust reimburses each Independent Trustee for travel and other expenses incurred in connection with attendance at such meetings. Other Officers (apart from the CCO) and Trustees of the Trust receive no
compensation in such role.
The following table sets forth estimated compensation to be paid by the Fund to the Independent Trustees and
officers during the Funds first full fiscal year after commencement of operations. The Fund has no retirement or pension plans.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name of Trustee or Officer
|
|
Aggregate
Compensation
from the Fund
|
|
|
Total Compensation
from the Fund and
Fund Complex
|
|
Karen B. Bonding
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
Jonathan P. Carroll
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr.
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
Richard C. Johnson
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
G. Edward Powell
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
Scott E. Schwinger
|
|
$
|
15,000
|
|
|
$
|
65,000
|
|
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
Other Accounts Managed by Portfolio Managers
The following table reflects information
regarding accounts other than the Funds for which each portfolio manager to the Funds has day-to-day management responsibilities. Accounts are grouped into three categories: (i) other investment companies, (ii) other pooled investment
vehicles, and (iii) other accounts. To the extent that any of these accounts pay advisory fees that are based on account performance (performance-based fees), information on those accounts is specifically broken out. In addition,
any assets denominated in foreign currencies have been converted into U.S. dollars using the exchange rates as of the applicable date. Also shown below the chart is each portfolio managers investments in the fund that he or she manages.
Information is shown as of September 30, 2012. Asset amounts have been rounded.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other Registered
Investment Companies
|
|
|
Other Pooled
Investment Vehicles
|
|
|
Other Accounts
|
|
Portfolio
Manager
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in
millions)
|
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in millions)
|
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in millions)
|
|
Lee Partridge
|
|
|
10
|
|
|
$
|
3,781
|
|
|
|
14
|
|
|
$
|
420
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
|
$
|
8,712
|
|
Roberto M. Croce
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
325
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gregory A. Reid
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
461
|
|
|
|
4
|
|
|
$
|
286
|
|
|
|
164
|
|
|
$
|
391
|
|
Frank Ted Gardner
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
461
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
225
|
|
|
|
164
|
|
|
|
391
|
|
William K. Enszer
|
|
|
1
|
|
|
$
|
110
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ajay Mehra
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other Accounts That Pay Performance-Based Advisory Fees Managed by Portfolio Managers
The following table reflects information regarding accounts other than the Funds for which each portfolio manager to the Funds has day-to-day management
responsibilities and with respect to which the advisory fee is based on account performance. Information is shown as of September 30, 2012. Asset amounts have been rounded.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other Registered
Investment Companies
|
|
|
Other Pooled
Investment Vehicles
|
|
|
Other Accounts
|
|
Portfolio
Manager
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in
millions)
|
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in millions)
|
|
|
Number
of
Accounts
|
|
|
Assets
(in millions)
|
|
Lee Partridge
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
|
$
|
8,712
|
|
Roberto M. Croce
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gregory A. Reid
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4
|
|
|
$
|
287
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
57
|
|
Frank T. Gardner III
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
$
|
225
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
William K. Enszer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ajay Mehra
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
43
Ownership of Fund Shares
None of the portfolio managers listed in the above table beneficially owned any shares of either Fund as of the date of this SAI.
Compensation of the Portfolio Managers
Mr. Partridge indirectly owns equity
interests in the Advisors. As it relates to each Fund, Mr. Partridge receives all of his compensation based on the size of the Fund and the management and advisory fees charged thereon. Accordingly, he believes that a significant driver of his
compensation is the performance of each Fund, which has a significant bearing on the ability to raise additional assets. Mr. Partridge also owns, indirectly, equity in the general partner and advisor of other fund complexes for which he is
compensated based on the size of the Fund for the fund complexes. In addition, Mr. Partridge is a partner and principal executive officer of each Advisor and related affiliated subsidiaries (collectively, the Salient Group), which
pays him a base salary (but no bonus) and is obligated to make distributions of profits to him, as well as the other partners, on an annual basis. Mr. Partridge, among others, is responsible for the investment processes and management of the
Salient Group. Mr. Partridge believes that to the extent that he is successful in his investment endeavors, the greater the number of assets over time and the more significant his compensation will be from the Salient Group.
Dr. Croce and Mr. Enszer are each compensated by Salient in the form of a fixed salary and a discretionary bonus. The bonus paid to each
Dr. Croce and Mr. Enszer for any year may be tied, in part, to the performance of the Funds or any other Salient funds or accounts during such year, as well as a variety of other factors, including execution of managerial responsibilities, the
financial performance of Salient Advisors and the financial performance of Salient as the parent company of the Advisor.
Gregory A. Reid,
Frank Ted Gardner and Ajay Mehra are compensated by Salient through distributions in respect of profits interests in Salient, based on the amount of assets that they manage (including, with respect to Messrs. Reid and Gardner, the
Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II and with respect to Mr. Mehra, the Salient Global Equity Fund). Pursuant to such profits interests, Messrs. Reid, Gardner and Mehra receive a portion of the advisory fees and any performance based
incentive allocations applicable to those accounts. Furthermore, Mr. Partridge, who is Salients Chief Investment Officer, and who oversees risk management for the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II and Salient Global Equity
Fund, also has a profits interest in Salient, pursuant to which he receives a portion of the advisory fees and any performance based incentive allocation applicable to certain accounts that he manages (including the Salient MLP & Energy
Infrastructure Fund II and Salient Global Equity Fund). With respect to certain accounts, such profits interests are based in part on the performance of those accounts. Some of the other accounts managed by Messrs. Gardner, Reid, Croce, Partridge,
Enszer and Mehra may have investment strategies that are similar to the Funds. However, Salient manages potential conflicts of interest by allocating investment opportunities in accordance with its allocation policies and procedures.
Conflicts of Interest of the Advisor
From time to time, potential conflicts of interest may arise between a portfolio managers management of the investments of the respective Fund, on the one hand, and the management of other
registered investment companies, pooled investment vehicles and other accounts (collectively, other accounts), on the other. Other accounts might have similar investment objectives or strategies as a Fund, track the same index that a
Fund tracks or otherwise hold, purchase, or sell securities and other investments that are eligible to be held, purchased or sold by a Fund. Other accounts might also have different investment objectives or strategies than the Funds.
Knowledge and Timing of Fund Trades
. A potential conflict of interest may arise as a result of the portfolio managers day-to-day management
of the Funds. Because of their positions with the Funds, the portfolio managers know the size, timing and possible market impact of each Funds trades. It is theoretically possible that the portfolio managers could use this information to the
advantage of other accounts they manage and to the possible detriment of a Fund.
Investment Opportunities
. A potential conflict of
interest may arise as a result of the portfolio managers management of a number of accounts. On occasion, an investment opportunity may be suitable for both a Fund and other accounts managed by the portfolio manager, but may not be available
in sufficient quantities for both the Fund and the other accounts to participate fully. Similarly, there could be limited opportunity to sell an investment held by the Fund and other accounts. Each Advisor has adopted policies and procedures
reasonably designed to allocate investment opportunities on a fair and equitable basis over time. However, there is a risk that a conflict of interest may occur when allocating investment opportunities and that the conflict may not be resolved in
favor of a Fund.
44
Performance Fees
. A portfolio manager may advise certain accounts with respect to which advisory fees
are based entirely or partially on performance. Performance fee arrangements may create a conflict of interest for the portfolio manager in that the manager may have an incentive to allocate the investment opportunities that he believes might be the
most profitable to such other accounts instead of allocating them to a Fund.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS
AND OTHER SERVICES
Investment Management Agreements
Under a separate investment management agreement (Investment Management Agreement), subject to the general supervision of the Board and in accordance with the investment objective, policies,
and restrictions of each Fund, each Advisor provides the respective Fund with ongoing investment guidance, policy direction and monitoring.
Each Investment Management Agreement provides that respective Advisor (or its delegate) will, subject to the Boards oversight, provide investment
advice consistent with the respective Funds investment objective and policies; buy, retain and sell the Funds portfolio investments; select brokers or dealers to execute transactions; prepare and make available to the Fund all necessary
research and statistical data; maintain or cause to be maintained all required books, records, and reports, and other information not maintained or furnished by another service provider of the Fund; and all other services required in connection with
management of the Fund. Each Advisor may, subject to Board approval and oversight, enter into a subadvisory agreement, pursuant to which a subadvisor would provide day-to-day investment management services with respect to such portions of a
Funds assets as the Advisor in its discretion may determine from time to time. Provided that a Fund obtains the appropriate exemptive relief from the SEC, the Fund or its Advisor may enter into such subadvisory arrangements with subadvisors
without first obtaining the approval of the Funds shareholders.
Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient MLP & Energy
Infrastructure Fund II.
The Investment Management Agreements became effective as of June 19, 2012 with respect Salient Risk Parity Fund and Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II, and each Investment Management Agreement
remains in effect for an initial term until January 31, 2014.
Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund, Salient Global
Equity Fund. The Investment Management Agreements became effective as of November 19, 2012 with respect to Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund, and each Investment Management Agreement remains in
effect for an initial term until January 31, 2014.
After the initial term, each Investment Management Agreement continues in effect from
year to year thereafter, but only so long as the continuance of such agreement is specifically approved at least annually by the affirmative vote of: (i) a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to the Investment Management Agreement or
interested persons of any party to the Investment Management Agreement, or of any entity regularly furnishing investment advisory services with respect to the applicable Fund pursuant to an agreement with any party to the Investment Management
Agreement, cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval; and (ii) a majority of the applicable Funds Trustees or the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
A discussion of the factors considered by the Trustees in approving each Funds Investment Management Agreement will be included in each Funds
first shareholder report.
The Investment Management Agreements are terminable at any time without penalty upon 60 days written notice
by the Board, by vote of holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the applicable Fund, or by the Funds Advisor. The Investment Management Agreements will terminate automatically with respect to each Fund in the event of
its assignment, as defined in the 1940 Act, provided that an assignment to a corporate successor to all or substantially all of an Advisors business or to a wholly-owned subsidiary of such corporate successor which does not result in a change
of actual control or management of the Advisors business will not be deemed to be an assignment for the purposes of the Investment Management Agreements. A subadvisory agreement would terminate upon the termination of the Investment Management
Agreement.
Each Investment Management Agreement provides that, in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless
disregard of its obligations to the applicable Fund, the Funds Advisor and any partner, director, officer or employee of the Advisor, or any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, will not be
liable to the Fund for any error of judgment, for any mistake of law or for any act or omission by the person in connection with the performance of services to the Fund. Each Investment Management Agreement also provides for indemnification by each
Fund, to the fullest extent permitted by law, of its Advisor or any partner, director, officer or employee of the Advisor, and any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, against any liability or
expense to which the person may be liable that arises in connection with the performance of services to the Fund, so long as the liability or expense is not incurred by reason of the persons willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of its obligations to the Fund.
45
Securities held by each Fund also may be held by other funds or investment advisory clients for which each
Funds Advisor, a subadvisor or their respective affiliates provide investment advice. Because of different investment objectives or other factors, a particular security may be bought for one or more funds or clients when one or more are
selling the same security. If opportunities for purchase or sale of securities by a Funds Advisor or a subadvisor for the Fund or for other funds or clients for which the Advisor or a subadvisor renders investment advice arise for
consideration at or about the same time, transactions in such securities will be made, insofar as feasible, for the respective funds or clients in a manner deemed equitable to all of them. To the extent that transactions on behalf of more than one
client of a Funds Advisor or a subadvisor or their respective affiliates may increase the demand for securities being purchased or the supply of securities being sold, there may be an adverse effect on price.
Administration Agreement
Citi
Fund Services Ohio, Inc. serves as the Transfer Agent and Administrator of the Funds and has the responsibility for providing transfer agent and administrative services, and for assisting the Funds with its operational needs, pursuant to the
Administration Agreement. In consideration for transfer agent, administrative, accounting, and recordkeeping services, the Administration Agreement provides that each Fund will pay the Administrator a monthly trust level administration
fee (Administration Fee) based on the Funds proportional share of the Trusts month-end aggregate NAV. The Administration Agreement also provides for certain other annual fees, such as per account fees and fees for additional
investment managers. In addition, the Administrator is entitled to reimbursement of certain expenses. Per the Administration Agreements, the Funds will not be charged Administration Fees during the first four months of each Funds existence.
The Administrator also may provide the Funds with legal, compliance, transfer agency, and other investor-related services for an additional
cost.
Under each Administration Agreement, the Administrator is responsible for, among other things: (1) maintaining a list of
shareholders and generally performing all actions related to the issuance and repurchase of Fund shares, if any, including with regard to reinvestment of dividends; (2) providing the Fund with certain administrative, clerical, recordkeeping and
bookkeeping services; (3) assisting in supervising the entities retained by the Fund, if any, to provide transfer agency services, services related to the payment of distributions, and accounting services; (4) computing the NAV of each
class of the Fund; (5) preparing accounting information, or overseeing the preparation of, monthly, quarterly, semi-annual and annual financial statements of the Fund, quarterly reports of the operations of the Fund and maintaining information
to facilitate the preparation of annual tax returns; (6) supervising regulatory compliance matters and assisting in the preparation of certain regulatory filings; and (7) performing additional services, as agreed upon, in connection with
the administration of the Fund. Subject to approval of the Board, the Administrator may from time to time delegate its responsibilities under the Administration Agreement to one or more parties selected by the Administrator.
Proxy Voting
Each Fund has delegated
proxy voting responsibilities with respect to the Funds portfolio securities to its Advisor, subject to the Boards general oversight and with the direction that proxies should be voted consistent with the Funds best economic
interests.
Each Advisor has adopted its own proxy voting policies and procedures for this purpose. A summary of these policies and procedures
is included as Appendix A to this SAI. As a general principle, the Advisors will vote to maximize shareholder value, while considering all relevant factors, and vote without undue influence from individuals or groups who may have an economic
interest in the outcome of the proxy vote. If it is determined that a proxy presents a material conflict of interest, then the affected Funds Advisor shall vote the proxy in accordance with the recommendations of Institutional Shareholder
Services (ISS) or another nationally recognized party, if available, or, if ISS or such party has disclosed that it has a conflict of interest with the vote, another independent third party.
Each Fund is required to file Form N-PX, with its complete proxy voting record for the twelve months ended June 30, no later than August 31 of
each year. Each Funds Form N-PX filing for the period ended June 30, 2012 will be available: (i) without charge, upon request, by calling 1-866-667-9228, or (ii) by visiting the SECs website at www.sec.gov.
DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENTS
Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the Distributor), is the distributor (also known as the principal underwriter) of the shares of the Funds and is located at Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland,
Maine 04101. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Under the Distribution Agreement with the Trust dated May 31, 2012, the Distributor acts as the agent of the Trust in connection with the continuous
offering of shares of the Funds. During the continuous public offering of shares of the Funds, the Distributor shall use commercially reasonable efforts to distribute the shares of the Funds. The Distributor shall devote its best efforts to effect
sales of shares of the Funds but is not obligated to sell any certain number of shares. The Distributor and its offices have no role in determining the investment policies or which securities are to be purchased or sold by the Trust.
46
The Distributor may, in its discretion, and shall, at the request of the Trust, enter into agreements with
selected broker-dealers, banks or other financial intermediaries (Selling Firms) for distribution of shares of the Funds. With respect to certain Selling Firms and related fund supermarket platform arrangements, the Fund
and/or the Advisor, rather than the Distributor, typically enter into such agreements. These Selling Firms may charge a fee for their services and may receive shareholder service or other fees from parties other than the Distributor. These Selling
Firms may otherwise act as processing agents and are responsible for promptly transmitting purchase, redemption and other requests to the Fund. Investors who purchase Shares through Selling Firms will be subject to the procedures of those Selling
Firms through which they purchase Shares, which may include charges, investment minimums, cutoff times and other restrictions in addition to, or different from, those listed herein. Information concerning any charges or services will be provided to
customers by the Selling Firm through which they purchase shares. Investors purchasing shares of the Fund through Selling Firms should acquaint themselves with their Selling Firms procedures and should read the Prospectus in conjunction
with any materials and information provided by their Selling Firm. The Selling Firm, and not its customers, will be the shareholder of record, although customers may have the right to vote shares depending upon their arrangement with the
intermediary. The Distributor does not receive compensation from the Fund for its distribution services except the distribution/service fees with respect to the shares of those classes for which a Rule 12b-1 Plan is effective.
The Funds have adopted an Administrative Services Plan applicable to Shares sold through certain Selling Firms that offer so-called mutual fund
supermarkets to their customers, including retirement plan administrators and investment advisers and other sponsors of advisory wrap and similar programs (collectively, Supermarket Intermediaries). Under the
Administrative Services Plan a Class may pay certain Supermarket Intermediaries for non-distribution related administration and recordkeeping services. Any such payments may be negotiated with Supermarket Intermediaries, must be approved by the
Board as not related to distribution and may not exceed 0.10%. Any such payments may be made in conjunction with Rule 12b-1 payments and payments by the Advisor (and/or its affiliates) and the Board oversees any such allocation.
The Board has adopted a Rule 12b-1 Plan with respect to each class of shares of each Fund, as described below in further detail.
Class A and C Shares
.
Under each Funds Class A Rule 12b-1 Plan, the Fund will pay distribution and service fees at an aggregate annual rate of 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the Fund attributable to
Class A Shares.
Under each Funds Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan, the Fund will pay distribution and service fees at an
aggregate annual rate of 1.00% of the average daily net assets of the Fund attributable to Class A Shares.
Each
Class A and Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan provides that the Distributor may incur expenses for any distribution-related purpose that is primarily intended to result in the sale of shares of the Class A and Class C shares, including but not
limited to: (i) compensation to Selling Firms and others (including affiliates of the Funds Advisor) that engage in or support the sale of the Class A and Class C shares; and (ii) marketing, promotional and overhead expenses
incurred in connection with the distribution of Class A and Class C shares. Service fees under each Class A and Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan may be used to compensate Selling Firms and others for providing personal and account maintenance
services to shareholders.
The Advisor, Distributor or other third party provider may pay for the administration and
shareholder servicing of Class A and Class C shareholder accounts, including, but not limited to, responding to inquiries from shareholders or their representatives requesting information regarding matters such as shareholder account or
transaction status, net asset value of Class A and Class C Shares, performance, services, plans and options, investment policies, portfolio holdings, and redemptions of shares and distributions and taxation thereof; and dealing with complaints
and correspondence of shareholders; including compensation to organizations and employees who service Class A and Class C shareholder accounts, and expenses of such organizations, including overhead and telephone and other communications
expenses.
Each Class A and Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan was approved by the Trustees, including a majority of the Independent
Trustees, by a vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the respective Class A and Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan.
Class I Shares
.
The Class I Rule 12b-1 Plan for each Fund is a no
fee plan, and provides that the Class I Shares of the Fund shall not pay to the distributor or third-party provider any fee for providing distribution or shareholder services to Class I shareholders.
Amounts paid by any class of shares of a Fund will not be used to pay the expenses incurred with respect to any other class of shares of that Fund;
provided, however, that expenses attributable to the Fund as a whole will be allocated, to the extent permitted by law, according to a formula based upon gross sales dollars and/or net assets of each such class, as may be approved from time to time
by vote of a majority of the Trustees.
From time to time, a Fund may participate in joint distribution activities with other mutual funds and
the costs of those activities will be borne by each fund in proportion to the relative NAVs of the participating funds.
Each Rule 12b-1 Plan
recognizes that each Funds Advisor may use its management fee revenue under its Investment Management Agreement with a Fund as well as its past profits or other resources from any source to make payments with respect to expenses incurred in
connection with the distribution of shares of the Fund. To the extent that the payment of management fees by a Fund to its Advisor should be deemed to be the indirect financing of any activity primarily intended to result in the sale of shares of a
class within the meaning of Rule 12b-1, such payments are deemed to be authorized by each Rule 12b-1 Plan.
In adopting each Rule 12b-1 Plan,
the Trustees concluded that, in their judgment, there is a reasonable likelihood that the Plan will benefit the holders of the respective Funds Class A, Class C and Class I shares, respectively.
47
Each Rule 12b-1 Plan provides that it will continue in effect only so long as its continuance is approved at
least annually by a majority of both the Trustees and the Independent Trustees. Each Class A and Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan provides that it may be terminated without penalty: (a) by a vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees; and
(b) by a vote of a majority of the respective Funds outstanding Class A, Class C or Class I shares, respectively, upon 60 days written notice to the Distributor.
Pursuant to each Rule 12b-1 Plan, at least quarterly, any person authorized to direct the disposition of monies paid or payable (if any) by a Fund shall provide the Board and the Board shall review, at
least quarterly, a written report of the amounts expended under the Plan and the purpose for which these expenditures were made.
Each Rule
12b-1 Plan further provides that it may not be amended to increase materially the amount of the fees to be paid by a Fund without the approval of a majority of the outstanding securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the class of shares of the
Fund, which has voting rights with respect to the Plan. Further, each Rule 12b-1 Plan provides that no material amendment to the Plan shall be made unless it is approved by a majority vote of the Trustees and the Independent Trustees of the Trust.
The holders of Class A shares of a Fund have exclusive voting rights with respect to the Funds Class A Rule 12b-1 Plan; the
holders of Class C shares of a Fund have exclusive voting rights with respect to the Funds Class C Rule 12b-1 Plan; and the holders of Class I shares of a Fund have exclusive voting rights with respect to the Funds Class I Rule 12b-1
Plan.
SALES COMPENSATION
As part of their business strategy, the Funds pay compensation to Selling Firms that sell the shares of the Funds. These firms typically pass along a portion of this compensation to your broker or
financial representative.
The primary sources of Selling Firm compensation payments for sales of shares of a Fund are: (1) the Rule
12b-1 fees that are applicable to the Funds Class C shares being sold and that are paid out of the Funds assets; and (2) in the case of Class A shares, sales charges paid by investors. The sales charges and the Rule 12b-1 fees
are detailed in the prospectus and under Distribution Agreements, Initial Sales Charge on Class A Shares, and Deferred Sales Charge on Class C Shares in this SAI.
Initial Compensation.
Whenever an investor purchases Class A shares of a Fund, the Selling Firm receives a reallowance/payment/commission as
described in the section First Year Broker or Other Selling Firm Compensation. The Selling Firm also receives the first years Rule 12b-1 service fee at that time.
If shares of a Fund are tendered for redemption or repurchased by the Fund for any reason within seven business days after confirmation of the purchase order for such shares, the full sales load or other
concession will be returned to the shareholder and any financial intermediary making such sale forfeits the right to receive any compensation on such shares.
Annual Compensation.
For Class C shares of a Fund, the Selling Firm receives an annual 12b-1 service fee of 0.25% of its average daily net (aged) assets and the Selling Firm may receive a
distribution fee in an amount not to exceed 0.75% of the respective Funds average daily net (aged) assets. These service and distribution fees are paid monthly in arrears.
Additional Payments to Financial Intermediaries.
Shares of each Fund are sold primarily through financial intermediaries, such as broker/dealers, banks, registered investment advisers, independent
financial planners, and retirement plan administrators. The Advisor may make out of its own resources, additional payments to firms. These payments are sometimes referred to as revenue sharing. Many financial intermediaries that sell
shares of a Fund receive one or more types of these cash payments. The categories of payments that the Advisor provides to intermediaries are described below. These categories are not mutually exclusive and the Advisor may make additional types of
revenue sharing payments in the future. The same intermediaries may receive payments under more than one or all categories. These payments assist in the Advisors efforts to promote the sale of the Funds shares. The Advisor agrees with
the intermediary on the methods for calculating any additional compensation, which may include the level of sales or assets attributable to the firm. Not all intermediaries receive additional compensation, and the amount of compensation varies.
These payments could be significant to an intermediary firm. The Advisor determines which intermediaries to support and the extent of the payments it is willing to make. The Advisor generally chooses to compensate intermediaries that have a strong
capability to distribute shares of the Funds and that are willing to cooperate with the Advisors promotional efforts. The Advisor does not make an independent assessment of the cost of providing such services.
As of September 30, 2012, the following FINRA member firms have arrangements in effect with the Advisor pursuant to which the firm is entitled to revenue
sharing payments: None.
The Advisor also may have revenue sharing arrangements with financial intermediaries that are not members of
FINRA.
Sales and Asset Based Payments.
The Advisor makes revenue sharing payments as incentives to certain firms to promote and sell
shares of the Funds. The Advisor hopes to benefit from revenue sharing by increasing the Funds net assets, which, as well as benefiting the Funds, would result in additional management and other fees for each Funds Advisor and its
affiliates. In consideration for revenue sharing, a firm may feature certain funds in its sales system or give the Advisor additional access to members of its sales force or management. In addition, a firm may agree to participate in the marketing
efforts of the Advisor by allowing it to participate in conferences, seminars or other programs attended by the intermediarys sales force. Although an intermediary may seek revenue sharing payments to offset costs incurred by the firm in
servicing its clients that have invested in a Fund, the intermediary may earn a profit on these payments. Revenue sharing payments may provide a firm with an incentive to favor a Fund.
48
The revenue sharing payments the Advisor makes may be calculated on sales of shares of a Fund
(Sales-Based Payments). Such payments also may be calculated on the average daily net assets of a Fund attributable to that particular financial intermediary (Asset-Based Payments). Sales-Based Payments primarily create
incentives to make new sales of shares of a Fund and Asset-Based Payments primarily create incentives to retain previously sold shares of the Fund in investor accounts. The Advisor may pay a firm either or both Sales-Based Payments and Asset-Based
Payments.
Administrative and Processing Support Payments.
The Funds have adopted an Administrative Services Plan applicable to
Shares sold through certain Selling Firms that offer so-called mutual fund supermarkets to their customers, including retirement plan administrators and investment advisers and other sponsors of advisory wrap and similar
programs (collectively, Supermarket Intermediaries). Under the Administrative Services Plan a Class may pay certain Supermarket Intermediaries for non-distribution related administration and recordkeeping services. Any such payments may
be negotiated with Supermarket Intermediaries, must be approved by the Board as not related to distribution and may not exceed 0.10%. Any such payments may be made in conjunction with Rule 12b-1 payments and payments by the Advisor (and/or its
affiliates) and the Board oversees any such allocation.
The Advisor also may make payments to certain firms that sell shares of a Fund
for certain administrative services, including record keeping and sub-accounting shareholder accounts, to the extent that the Fund does not pay for these costs directly. The Advisor also may make payments to certain firms that sell shares of a Fund
in connection with client account maintenance support, statement preparation and transaction processing. The types of payments that the Advisor may make under this category include, among others, payment of ticket charges per purchase or exchange
order placed by a financial intermediary, payment of networking fees in connection with certain mutual fund trading systems, or one-time payments for ancillary services such as setting up a Fund on a firms mutual fund trading system.
Other Cash Payments.
From time to time, the Advisor may provide, either from Rule 12b-1 distribution fees or out of its own
resources, additional compensation to firms that sell or arrange for the sale of shares of a Fund. Such compensation provided by the Advisor may include financial assistance to firms that enable the Advisor to participate in and/or present at
conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, client entertainment, client and investor events, and other firm-sponsored events, and travel expenses, including lodging incurred by
registered representatives and other employees in connection with client prospecting, retention and due diligence trips. Other compensation may be offered to the extent not prohibited by federal or state laws or any self-regulatory agency, such as
FINRA. The Advisor makes payments for entertainment events it deems appropriate, subject to the Advisors guidelines and applicable law. These payments may vary depending upon the nature of the event or the relationship.
The Advisor and its affiliates may have other relationships with firms relating to the provisions of services to a Fund, such as providing omnibus
account services, transaction processing services, or effecting portfolio transactions for the Fund. If a firm provides these services, a Funds Advisor or the Fund may compensate the firm for these services. In addition, a firm may have other
compensated or uncompensated relationships with each Funds Advisor or its affiliates that are not related to the Funds.
First Year Broker or Other Selling Firm Compensation
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sales charge
(% of offering
price)
(1)(2)
|
|
|
Sales Charges (%
of net amount
invested)
(1)(2)
|
|
|
Dealer
Reallowance as
a
Percentage of the
Offering
Price
(2)(3)
|
|
Class A
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Up to $50,000
|
|
|
5.50
|
%
|
|
|
5.82
|
%
|
|
|
5.50
|
%
|
$50,000 but less than $100,000
|
|
|
4.50
|
%
|
|
|
4.71
|
%
|
|
|
4.50
|
%
|
$100,000 but less than $250,000
|
|
|
3.50
|
%
|
|
|
3.63
|
%
|
|
|
3.50
|
%
|
$250,000 but less than $500,000
|
|
|
2.75
|
%
|
|
|
2.83
|
%
|
|
|
2.75
|
%
|
$500,000 but less than $1,000,000
|
|
|
2.00
|
%
|
|
|
2.04
|
%
|
|
|
2.00
|
%
|
|
|
|
|
Class C
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All amounts
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0.00
|
%
|
|
|
|
|
Class I
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All amounts
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0.00
|
%
|
(1)
|
Class A shares are available with no front-end sales charge on investments of $1 million or more. There is, however, a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of
1.00% on any Class A shares upon which a commission or finders fee was paid that are sold within one year of purchase. Brokers that initiate and are responsible for purchases of $1 million or more may receive a sales commission of up to
1.00% of the offering price of Class A shares. In addition, while Class C shares are offered at NAV, without any initial sales charge, a 1.00% CDSC may be charged on any Class C shares upon which a finders fee has been paid that are sold
within one year of purchase. See Initial Sales Charge on Class A Shares for discussion on how to qualify for a reduced sales charge. The Advisor may take recent redemptions into account in determining if an investment qualifies as a
new investment.
|
49
(2)
|
Because of rounding in the calculation of the offering price, actual sales charges you pay may be more or less than those calculated using these percentages.
|
(3)
|
Distributor retains the balance, if any, and uses it solely for distribution purposes.
|
Contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) revenues may be used to pay Selling Firm commissions when there is no initial sales charge. Please refer to the previous section for a discussion of
12b-1 distribution and service fees.
If shares of a Fund are tendered for redemption or repurchased by the Fund for any reason within
seven business days after confirmation of the purchase order for such shares, the full sales load or other concession will be returned to the shareholder and any financial intermediary making such sale forfeits the right to receive any compensation
on such shares.
NET ASSET VALUE
Securities are valued by various methods which are generally described below. As noted in the Prospectus, each Funds portfolio securities also may be fair valued by the respective Advisors Valuation
Committee in certain instances.
Valuation of Portfolio Securities
Except as noted below, securities held by a Fund may be primarily valued on the basis of market quotations or official closing prices from recognized exchanges. Each Funds advisor or administrator,
as delegated by the advisor, may use third party pricing vendors to supply the valuations for the publicly traded securities and certain derivative securities in the portfolio:
Exchange-Traded Debt and Equity Securities:
Debt and equity securities (including exchange-traded funds (ETF) and closed-end investment companies) traded on a recognized exchange or on
the Nasdaq National Market Listing are valued using the last sale price on each securitys primary exchange on the valuation date.
Debt and Equity Securities Traded Over-The-Counter:
Debt and equity securities traded over-the-counter (OTC) (but excluding the Nasdaq
National Market Listing) are valued at the last reported sales price on the valuation date. If there are no trades of the security on the valuation date, the price of the security shall generally be the mean of the quotations as provided by two or
more makers (if available). If quotations from market makers are not available, the Advisors Valuation Committee will determine the fair value in good faith using information available at such time. Certain short-term debt instruments with
maturities of 60 days and shorter may be valued on the basis of amortized cost. If on the valuation date the primary exchange is closed, the prior day price will be used.
Exchange-Traded Options Contracts:
Written/purchased option contracts on securities, currencies, indices and other financial instruments traded on one or more exchanges shall be valued on the
valuation date at the last bid/ask price for options held long/short, respectively, from an exchange on which the option is listed. If no such bid/ask price is reported by such exchange, such instruments shall be valued at the last reported sales
price on the valuation date. If no such sales price is reported, the Advisors Valuation Committee will determine the fair value of such options in good faith using publicly available data where possible.
OTC Options:
Option contracts on securities, currencies and other financial instruments traded in the OTC market shall generally be valued using
the midpoint of the closing bid/offer quotations published by an approved pricing vendor. If a quotation is not available from an approved pricing vendor, the price will be obtained from a broker (typically the counterparty to the option) on the
valuation date. If no such bid/ask price is reported, such instruments shall be valued at the last sales price on the valuation date. If no such sales price is reported, the Advisors Valuation Committee will determine the fair value of such
options in good faith using information that is available at such time.
Futures:
Exchange-traded futures are valued at the last
trade on the primary exchange on which the futures contracts trade. Third party pricing vendors will be used as primary pricing sources for these contracts.
Swaps:
Swaps are valued using prices obtained from third party pricing vendors, which are based on standard industry models using publicly available data where available. If prices from third party
pricing vendors are not available, the advisors investment committee will determine the fair value using industry standard models.
Forward Contracts:
Forward foreign currency contracts shall be valued at prices supplied by a third party pricing vendor.
Government Obligations
: U.S. Government obligations (including U.S. Treasury securities and U.S. Government Agency securities) shall be valued at
prices supplied by a third party pricing vendor.
Securities Traded on Foreign Exchanges:
A Fund may invest in securities primarily
traded in the United States as well as foreign securities markets. The Funds utilize fair value pricing on a daily basis for all securities that are not primarily traded in United States markets because trading in these securities typically is
completed at times that can vary from the closing of the NYSE. This fair value pricing process for securities primarily traded on foreign exchanges uses the quotations of third party pricing vendors to value such securities unless the use of another
fair valuation methodology is deemed appropriate by the advisors investment committee. This policy is designed to help ensure that a Funds NAV per share appropriately reflects its investments values on the valuation date. If a Fund
has portfolio securities that are primarily listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not price its shares, the NAV of the Funds shares may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase
or redeem the Funds shares. Foreign currencies, securities and other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars at the exchange rates generally determined as of 4:00 p.m. (Eastern standard time).
50
Private securities with no public market, and other illiquid securities:
If market quotations or
official closing prices are not readily available or do not accurately reflect fair value for a security, or if a securitys value has been materially affected by events occurring before the Funds pricing time but after the close of the
exchange or market on which the security is primarily traded, the security will be valued at its fair value as determined in good faith by the Trustees. The Trustees have delegated the responsibility to estimate the fair value of securities to the
advisors valuation committee, and the actual calculation of a securitys fair value may be made by persons acting pursuant to the direction of the Trustees. Further, the advisor may engage third party valuation firms to assist in
determining the estimated fair values of such securities.
Fair value pricing of securities is intended to help ensure that a Funds NAV
reflects the fair value of the Funds portfolio securities as of the close of regular trading on the valuation date, thus limiting the opportunity for aggressive traders or market timers to purchase shares of a Fund at deflated prices
reflecting stale security valuations and promptly sell such shares at a gain, thereby diluting the interests of long-term shareholders. However, a securitys valuation may differ depending on the method used for determining value, and no
assurance can be given that fair value pricing of securities will successfully eliminate all potential opportunities for such trading gains. The use of fair value pricing has the effect of valuing a security based upon the price the Fund might
reasonably expect to receive if it sold that security in an orderly transaction between market participants, but does not guarantee that the security can be sold at the fair value price. Further, because of the inherent uncertainty and subjective
nature of fair valuation, a fair valuation price may differ significantly from the value that would have been used had a readily available market price for the investment existed and these differences could be material.
Investments in unregistered and open-ended investment companies:
The fair value of investments in non-registered and open-ended investment
companies is based on the NAV of that investment company in conformity with applicable accounting standards, so long as such funds NAV is based on fair value reporting of its underlying securities.
POLICY REGARDING DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS
The Board has adopted the Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings to protect the interests of the shareholders of the Trust and to address potential conflicts of interest that could arise
between the interests of shareholders and the interests of the Advisors, or the interests of a Funds subadvisor, principal underwriter or affiliated persons of its Advisor or principal underwriter. The Trusts general policy with respect
to the release of portfolio holdings to nonaffiliated persons is to do so only in limited circumstances and only to provide nonpublic information regarding portfolio holdings to any person, including affiliated persons, on a need to know
basis and, when released, to release such information only as consistent with applicable legal requirements and the fiduciary duties owed to shareholders. The Trust applies its policy uniformly to all investors, including individual and
institutional investors, intermediaries, affiliated persons of a Fund, and to all third party service providers and rating agencies.
Each
Fund discloses its complete portfolio holdings information quarterly to the SEC using Form N-Q within 60 days of the first and third quarter ends of the Funds fiscal year and on Form N-CSR on the second and fourth quarter ends of the
Funds fiscal year. Form N-Q is not required to be mailed to shareholders but is made public through the SEC electronic filings. Shareholders receive either complete portfolio holdings information or summaries of a Funds holdings with
their annual and semiannual Reports.
Portfolio holdings information that is not publicly available will be released only pursuant to the
exceptions described in the Policy Regarding Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings. Material nonpublic holdings information may be provided to nonaffiliated persons as part of the investment activities of a Fund to: entities which, by explicit agreement,
are required to maintain the confidentiality of the information disclosed; rating organizations, such as Broadridge/Proxy Edge, or other entities for the purpose of compiling reports and preparing data; proxy voting services for the purpose of
voting proxies; entities providing computer software; courts (including bankruptcy courts) or regulators with jurisdiction over the Trust, and its affiliates; and, institutional traders to assist in research and trade execution. Exceptions to the
portfolio holdings release policy can only be approved by the Trusts CCO or his or her duly authorized delegate after considering: (a) the purpose of providing such information; (b) the procedures that will be used to ensure that
such information remains confidential and is not traded upon; and (c) whether such disclosure is in the best interest of the shareholders.
At this time, the entities receiving information described in the preceding paragraph are: None.
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The CCO is also required to pre-approve the disclosure of nonpublic information regarding portfolio holdings
to any affiliated persons of the Trust. The CCO will use the same three considerations stated above before approving disclosure of nonpublic information to affiliated persons.
The CCO shall report to the Board whenever additional disclosures of portfolio holdings are approved. The CCOs report shall be at the Board meeting following such approval. The CCO then provides
annually a report to the Board regarding the operation of the policy and any material changes recommended as a result of such review.
When
the CCO believes that the disclosure of nonpublic information to a nonaffiliated person is a potential conflict of interest between the interest of the shareholders and the interest of affiliated persons of the Trust, the CCO shall refer the
conflict to the Board. The Board shall then only permit such disclosure of the nonpublic information if in their reasonable business judgment they conclude such disclosure will be in the best interests of the Trusts shareholders.
The receipt of compensation by a Fund, its Advisor (or subadvisor) or an affiliate as consideration for disclosing nonpublic portfolio holdings
information is not deemed a legitimate business purpose and is strictly forbidden.
INITIAL SALES CHARGE ON
CLASS A SHARES
Class A shares of the Funds are offered at a price equal to their NAV plus a sales charge. The Funds do not issue
share certificates. Shares are electronically recorded. The Trustees reserve the right to change or waive a Funds minimum investment requirements and to reject any order to purchase shares (including purchase by exchange) when in the judgment
of the Advisor such rejection is in the Funds best interests.
The sales charges applicable to purchases of Class A shares of
the Funds are described in the Prospectus. If shares of a Fund are tendered for redemption or repurchased by the Fund for any reason within seven business days after confirmation of the purchase order for such shares, the full sales load or other
concession will be returned to the shareholder and any financial intermediary making such sale forfeits the right to receive any compensation on such shares.
Methods of obtaining reduced sales charges referred to generally in the Prospectus are described in detail below. In calculating the sales charge applicable to current purchases of a Funds
Class A shares, the investor is entitled to accumulate current purchases with the current offering price of the shares of other Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust owned by the investor (see Accumulation Privilege
below).
In order to receive the reduced sales charge, the investor must notify his or her financial adviser and/or the financial adviser must
notify the Funds transfer agent, Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc., at the time of purchase of Class A shares, about any other Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust owned by the investor, the investors spouse and their children
under the age of 21 living in the same household (See Accumulation Privilege below). This includes investments held in an IRA, including those held at a broker or financial adviser other than the one handling your current purchase.
Additionally, individual purchases by a trustee or other fiduciary also may be aggregated if the investments are for a single trust estate or for a group retirement plan. Assets held within a group retirement plan may not be combined with any assets
held by those same participants outside of the plan.
The transfer agent will credit the combined value, at the current offering price, of all
eligible accounts to determine whether you qualify for a reduced sales charge on your current purchase. The transfer agent will automatically link certain accounts registered in the same client name, with the same taxpayer identification number, for
the purpose of qualifying you for lower initial sales charge rates. You must notify the transfer agent and your broker-dealer (financial adviser) at the time of purchase of any eligible accounts held by your spouse or children under 21, living in
the same household in order to insure these assets are linked to your accounts.
Without Sales Charges.
Class A shares may be
offered without a front-end sales charge or CDSC to various individuals and institutions as follows:
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A Trustee or officer of the Trust; a Director or officer of the Advisor and its affiliates, subadvisors or Selling Firms; employees or sales
representatives of any of the foregoing; retired officers, employees or Directors of any of the foregoing; a member of the immediate family (spouse, domestic partner, child or relative living in the same household; Immediate Family) of
any of the foregoing; or any fund, pension, profit sharing or other benefit plan for the individuals described above.
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A broker, dealer, financial planner, consultant, or registered investment advisor that has entered into a signed agreement with the Fund and/or
Distributor providing specifically for the use of Fund shares in certain retirement platforms, fee-based investment products or services (including wrap accounts) made available to their clients.
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In Kind Re-Registrations.
A shareholder who withdraws funds via a tax reportable transaction from the
account of one Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust that has previously paid a sales charge, and reregisters those assets directly to the account of another Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust, without the assets ever leaving
the Salient fund complex, may do so without paying a sales charge. The beneficial owner must remain the same, i.e., in kind.
Class A
shares also may be purchased without an initial sales charge in connection with certain liquidation, merger or acquisition transactions involving other investment companies or personal holding companies.
Reducing Your Class A Sales Charges
Accumulation Privilege.
Class A investors may reduce their Class A sales charge by taking into account not only the amount being invested but also the current offering price of all
Salient funds contained in the Salient MF Trust already held by such persons. To receive a reduced sales charge, the investor must tell his or her financial adviser or the transfer agent at the time of the purchase about any other Salient funds
contained in the Salient MF Trust held by that investor, his or her spouse and their children under the age of 21 living in the same household. Further information about combined purchases, including certain restrictions on combined group purchases,
is available from the transfer agent or a Selling Firms representative.
Letter of Intention.
Reduced Class A sales charges
under the Accumulation Privilege also are applicable to investments made pursuant to a Letter of Intention (the LOI), which should be read carefully prior to its execution by an investor. An investor may make his or her investments over
a specified period of thirteen (13) months. Purchases made within 90 days prior to the signing of an LOI will be counted towards fulfillment of the LOI, however, the original sales charge will not be recalculated for these previous purchases.
The sales charge applicable to all amounts invested after an LOI is signed is computed as if the aggregate amount intended to be invested had been invested immediately. If such aggregate amount is not actually invested, the difference in the sales
charge actually paid and the sales charge payable had the LOI not been in effect is due from the investor. However, for the purchases actually made within the specified period (either 13 or 48 months) the applicable sales charge will not be higher
than that which would have applied (including accumulations) had the LOI been for the amount actually invested.
The LOI authorizes the
transfer agent to hold in escrow sufficient Class A shares (approximately 5% of the aggregate) to make up any difference in sales charges on the amount intended to be invested and the amount actually invested, until such investment is completed
within the specified period, at which time the escrowed Class A shares will be released. If the total investment specified in the LOI is not completed, the Class A shares held in escrow may be redeemed and the proceeds used as required to
pay such sales charge as may be due. By signing the LOI, the investor authorizes the transfer agent to act as his or her attorney-in-fact to redeem any escrowed Class A shares and adjust the sales charge, if necessary. An LOI does not
constitute a binding commitment by an investor to purchase, or by a Fund to sell, any additional Class A shares and may be terminated at any time.
DEFERRED SALES CHARGE ON CLASS A AND CLASS C SHARES
Class A shares are available with no front-end sales charge on investments of $1 million or more. There is a CDSC on any Class A shares upon
which a commission or finders fee was paid that are sold within one year of purchase.
Investments in Class C shares are purchased at
NAV per share without the imposition of an initial sales charge so that the fund will receive the full amount of the purchase payment. Class C shares that are redeemed within one year of purchase will be subject to a CDSC.
The CDSC to which redemptions of Class A or Class C shares may be subject will be charged at the rates set forth in the prospectus as a percentage
of the dollar amount subject to the CDSC. The charge will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of the current market value or the original purchase cost of the Class A or Class C shares being redeemed. No CDSC will be imposed on
increases in account value above the initial purchase prices or on shares derived from reinvestment of dividends or capital gains distributions.
Solely for purposes of determining the number of years from the time of any payment for purchases of Class A or Class C shares subject to a CDSC, all payments during a month will be aggregated and
deemed to have been made on the first day of the month.
In determining whether a redemption of Class A or Class C shares is subject to
the imposition of a CDSC, the calculation will be determined in a manner that results in the lowest possible rate being charged. It will be assumed that the redemption comes first from shares the shareholder has held beyond the one year CDSC
redemption period, or those shares acquired by the shareholder through dividend and capital gain reinvestment. For this purpose, the amount of any increase in a shares value above its initial purchase price is not subject to a CDSC. Thus, when
a share that has appreciated in value is redeemed during the CDSC period, a CDSC is assessed only on its initial purchase price.
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When requesting a redemption for a specific dollar amount, the shareholder should indicate if proceeds equal
to the dollar amount requested are required. If not indicated, only the specified dollar amount will be redeemed from the shareholders account and the proceeds will be less any applicable CDSC.
With respect to a CDSC imposed on a redemption of Class A shares, proceeds from the imposition of a CDSC are used in whole or in part to pay
expenses related to paying a commission or finders fee in connection with the purchase at NAV of Class shares with a value of $1 million or more.
With respect a CDSC imposed on a redemption of Class C shares, proceeds from the imposition of a CDSC are used in whole or in part to pay expenses related to providing distribution-related services to the
funds in connection with the sale of the Class C shares, such as the payment of compensation to select Selling Firms for selling Class C shares. The combination of the CDSC and the distribution and service fees facilitates the ability of the funds
to sell Class C shares without a sales charge being deducted at the time of the purchase.
Waiver of Contingent Deferred Sales Charge.
The CDSC will be waived on redemptions of Class A or Class C shares that are subject to a CDSC, unless indicated otherwise, in the circumstances defined below:
For all account types:
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Redemptions made pursuant to a Funds right to liquidate your account if you own shares worth less than the stated account minimum in the
section Small accounts in the prospectus.
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Redemptions made under certain liquidation, merger or acquisition transactions involving other investment companies or personal holding
companies.
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Redemptions due to death or disability. (Does not apply to trust accounts unless trust is being dissolved.)
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Redemptions made under the Reinstatement Privilege, as described in the Sales charge reductions and waivers section of the
prospectus.
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If a shareholder qualifies for a CDSC waiver under one of these situations, the shareholder must notify the
transfer agent at the time that the request is made. The waiver will be granted once the transfer agent has confirmed that the shareholder is entitled to the waiver.
ADDITIONAL SERVICES AND PROGRAMS
Exchange Privilege.
The
Trust permits exchanges of shares of any class for shares of the same class in any other series of the Trust or fund within the Salient fund complex offering that same class at the time of the exchange. The registration for both accounts involved
must be identical. Identical registration is determined by having the same beneficial owner on both accounts involved in the exchange.
Exchanges between a Fund and other funds are based on their respective NAVs. No sales charge is imposed. For purposes of computing the CDSC payable upon
redemption of shares acquired in an exchange, the holding period of the original shares is added to the holding period of the shares acquired in an exchange.
Investors may exchange Class I shares for Class I shares of any other Salient fund contained in the Salient MF Trust.
Each Fund reserves the right to require that previously exchanged shares (and reinvested dividends) be in the Fund for 90 days before a shareholder is permitted a new exchange.
An exchange of shares is treated as a redemption of shares of one fund and the purchase of shares of another for federal income tax purposes. An exchange
may result in a taxable gain or loss. See Additional Information Concerning Taxes.
Systematic Withdrawal Plan.
The Trust
permits the establishment of a Systematic Withdrawal Plan. Payments under this plan represent proceeds arising from the redemption of shares. Since the redemption price of shares may be more or less than the shareholders cost, depending upon
the market value of the securities owned by the fund at the time of redemption, the distribution of cash pursuant to this plan may result in realization of gain or loss for purposes of federal, state and local income taxes. The maintenance of a
Systematic Withdrawal Plan concurrently with purchases of additional shares of a Fund could be disadvantageous to a shareholder because of the initial sales charge payable on such purchases of Class A shares and because redemptions are taxable
events. Therefore, a shareholder should not purchase shares at the same time that a Systematic Withdrawal Plan is in effect. Each Fund reserves the right to modify or discontinue the Systematic Withdrawal Plan of any shareholder on 30 days
prior written notice to such shareholder, or to discontinue the availability of such plan in the future. The shareholder may terminate the plan at any time by giving proper notice to the transfer agent.
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Monthly Purchase Program.
The program is explained in the prospectus. The program, as it relates to
automatic investment checks, is subject to the following conditions:
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The investments will be drawn on or about the day of the month indicated.
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The privilege of making investments through the program may be revoked by the transfer agent without prior notice if any investment is not
honored by the shareholders bank. The bank shall be under no obligation to notify the shareholder as to the nonpayment of any checks.
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The program may be discontinued by the shareholder either by calling the transfer agent or upon written notice to the transfer agent which is
received at least five (5) business days prior to the due date of any investment.
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Reinstatement Or Reinvestment
Privilege.
If the transfer agent and the financial adviser are notified prior to reinvestment, a shareholder who has redeemed shares of a Fund may, within 120 days after the date of redemption, reinvest without payment of a sales charge any part
of the redemption proceeds in shares back into the same share class of the same Fund and account from which it was removed, subject to the minimum investment limit in that Fund. The proceeds from the redemption of Class A shares may be
reinvested at NAV without paying a sales charge in Class A shares of the Fund. If a CDSC was paid upon a redemption, a shareholder may reinvest the proceeds from this redemption at NAV in additional shares of the same class, Fund and account
from which the redemption was made. The shareholders account will be credited with the amount of any CDSC charged upon the prior redemption and the new shares will continue to be subject to the CDSC. The holding period of the shares acquired
through reinvestment will, for purposes of computing the CDSC payable upon a subsequent redemption, include the holding period of the redeemed shares.
Redemption proceeds that are otherwise prohibited from being reinvested in the same account or the same fund may be invested in another account for the same shareholder in the same share class of the same
fund (or different fund if original fund is no longer available) without paying a sales charge. Any such reinvestment is subject to the minimum investment limit.
Each Fund may refuse any reinvestment request and may change or cancel its reinvestment policies at any time.
A redemption or exchange of Fund shares is a taxable transaction for federal income tax purposes even if the reinvestment privilege is exercised, and any gain or loss realized by a shareholder on the
redemption or other disposition of Fund shares will be treated for tax purposes as described under the caption Additional Information Concerning Taxes.
PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS THROUGH THIRD PARTIES
Shares of the
Funds may be purchased or redeemed through certain Selling Firms. Selling Firms may charge the investor additional fees for their services. A Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized Selling Firm, or if
applicable, a Selling Firms authorized designee, receives the order. Orders may be processed at the NAV next calculated after the Selling Firm receives the order. The Selling Firm must segregate any orders it receives after the close of
regular trading on the NYSE and transmit those orders to the applicable Fund for execution at the NAV next determined. Some Selling Firms that maintain network/omnibus/nominee accounts with a Fund for their clients charge an annual fee on the
average net assets held in such accounts for accounting, servicing, and distribution services they provide with respect to the Fund shares. This fee is paid by a Funds Advisor, the Fund and/or the Distributor pursuant to the Funds Rule
12b-1 Plan.
DESCRIPTION OF FUND SHARES
The Trustees are responsible for the management and supervision of the Trust. The Trust Instrument permits the Trustees to issue an unlimited number of full and fractional shares of beneficial interest of
a Fund or other series of the Trust without par value. Under the Trust Instrument, the Trustees have the authority to create and classify shares of beneficial interest in separate series and classes without further action by shareholders. As of the
date of this SAI, the Trustees have authorized shares of five series, including the Funds. Additional series may be added in the future. The Trustees also have authorized the issuance of three classes of shares for each Fund, designated as
Class A, Class C, and Class I. Additional classes of shares may be authorized in the future.
The shares of each class of each Fund
represent an equal proportionate interest in the aggregate net assets attributable to that class of the Fund. Holders of each class of shares have certain exclusive voting rights on matters relating to their respective distribution plan, if any. The
different classes of a Fund may bear different expenses relating to the cost of holding shareholder meetings necessitated by the exclusive voting rights of any class of shares.
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Dividends paid by a Fund, if any, with respect to each class of shares will be calculated in the same
manner, at the same time and on the same day and will be in the same amount, except for differences resulting from the facts that: (i) the distribution and service fees, if any, relating to each class will be borne exclusively by that class;
and (ii) each class of shares will bear any class expenses properly allocable to that class of shares, subject to the conditions the IRS imposes with respect to the multiple- class structures. Similarly, the NAV per share may vary depending on
which class of shares is purchased. No interest will be paid on uncashed dividend or redemption checks.
In the event of liquidation,
shareholders of each class are entitled to share pro rata in the net assets of the applicable Fund available for distribution to these shareholders. Shares entitle their holders to one vote per share (and fractional votes for fractional shares), are
freely transferable and have no preemptive, subscription or conversion rights. When issued, shares are fully paid and non-assessable, except as set forth below.
Unless otherwise required by the 1940 Act or the Trust Instrument, the Trust has no intention of holding annual meetings of shareholders. Trust shareholders may remove a Trustee by the affirmative vote of
at least two-thirds of the Trusts outstanding shares and the Trustees shall promptly call a meeting for such purpose when requested to do so in writing by the record holders of not less than 10% of the outstanding shares of the Trust.
Shareholders may, under certain circumstances, communicate with other shareholders in connection with requesting a special meeting of shareholders. However, at any time that less than a majority of the Trustees holding office were elected by the
shareholders, the Trustees will call a special meeting of shareholders for the purpose of electing Trustees.
Each Fund reserves the right to
reject any purchase order application that conflicts with the Funds internal policies or the policies of any regulatory authority. The Funds do not accept starter, credit card or third party checks. All checks returned by the post office as
undeliverable will be reinvested at NAV in the Fund from which a redemption was made or dividend paid. Information provided on the account application may be used by the Funds to verify the accuracy of the information or for background or financial
history purposes. A joint account will be administered as a joint tenancy with right of survivorship, unless the joint owners notify the transfer agent of a different intent. A shareholders account is governed by the laws of the State of
Delaware. For telephone transactions, the transfer agent will take measures to verify the identity of the caller, such as asking for name, account number, Social Security or other taxpayer ID number and other relevant information. If appropriate
measures are taken, the transfer agent is not responsible for any loss that may occur to any account due to an unauthorized telephone call. Also for your protection telephone redemptions are not permitted on accounts whose names or addresses have
changed within the past 30 days. Proceeds from telephone transactions can only be mailed to the address of record.
Shares of the Funds
generally may be sold only to U.S. citizens, U.S. residents, and U.S. domestic corporations, partnerships, trusts or estates, but a Funds Advisor may make certain exceptions.
SAMPLE CALCULATION OF MAXIMUM OFFERING PRICE
Class A
shares of the Funds are sold with a maximum initial sales charge of 5.50%. Class C shares of the Funds are sold at NAV without any initial sales charges, but have a CDSC of 1.00%. Class I are sold at NAV without any initial sales charges or CDSCs.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING TAXES
This section and the discussion in the Funds prospectus (see Tax Matters) provide a general summary of the material federal income tax consequences to the persons who purchase, own and
dispose of a Funds securities. It does not address all federal income tax consequences that may apply to an investment in the Funds securities or to particular categories of investors, some of which may be subject to special rules.
Unless otherwise indicated, this discussion is limited to taxpayers who are U.S. persons, as defined herein. The discussion that follows is based on the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code) and Treasury
regulations promulgated thereunder as in effect on the date hereof and on existing judicial and administrative interpretations thereof. These authorities are subject to change and to differing interpretations, which could apply retroactively.
Potential investors should consult their own tax advisers in determining the federal, state, local, foreign and any other tax consequences to them of the purchase, ownership and disposition of the Funds securities. This discussion does not
address all tax consequences that may be applicable to a U.S. person that is a beneficial owner of the Funds securities, nor does it address, unless specifically indicated, the tax consequences to, among others, (i) persons that may be
subject to special treatment under federal income tax law, including, but not limited to, banks, insurance companies, thrift institutions, regulated investment companies, real estate investment trusts, tax-exempt organizations and dealers in
securities or currencies, (ii) persons that will hold the Funds securities as part of a position in a straddle or as part of
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a hedging, conversion or other integrated investment transaction for federal income tax purposes, (iii) persons whose functional currency is not the United States
dollar, or (iv) persons that do not hold the Funds securities as capital assets within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code.
For purposes of this discussion, a U.S. person is (i) an individual citizen or resident of the United States, (ii) a corporation or
other entity treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes, created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or any state thereof or the District of Columbia, (iii) an estate the income of which is subject to U.S.
federal income taxation regardless of its source, or (iv) a trust if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of such trust and one or more U.S. persons have the authority to control all
the substantial decisions of such trust. Notwithstanding clause (iv) above, to the extent provided in regulations, certain trusts in existence on August 20, 1996, and treated as U.S. persons prior to such date that elect to continue to be
so treated also shall be considered U.S. persons.
If a partnership (including an entity treated as a partnership for federal income tax
purposes) holds a Funds common shares, the tax treatment of a partner in a partnership will generally depend upon the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. A prospective shareholder that is a partner of a partnership
holding a Funds common shares should consult its tax advisers with respect to the purchase, ownership and disposition of the Funds common shares. The discussion reflects applicable tax laws of the United States as of the date of this
Statement of Additional Information, which tax laws may be changed or subject to new interpretations by the courts or the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS) retroactively or prospectively.
Taxation of the Funds
Each Fund intends
to qualify for the special tax treatment afforded to regulated investment companies (RICs) under Subchapter M of the Code. As long as a Fund qualifies, it (but not its shareholders) will not be subject to federal income tax on the part
of its net ordinary income and net realized capital gains that it distributes to its shareholders. In order to qualify as a RIC for federal income tax purposes, each Fund must meet three key tests, which are described below, and be registered as a
management company under the 1940 Act at all times during each taxable year. Failure to meet any of the quarterly tests would disqualify the Fund from RIC tax treatment for the entire year. However, in certain situations a Fund may be able to take
corrective action within 30 days of the end of a quarter, or within 6 months of the end of a quarter in which a failure is discovered if the failure is de minimis and certain other requirements are met, which would allow the Fund to remain
qualified.
The Income Test
. At least 90% of each Funds gross income in each taxable year must be derived from dividends,
interest, payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale of shares or securities, foreign currencies or other income (including gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to the Funds business of
investing in such shares, securities or currencies. Net income from a qualified publicly traded partnership will also be included as qualifying income for purposes of the 90% gross income test. A qualified publicly traded
partnership is a publicly traded partnership that is treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes and that derives less than 90% of its gross income from the foregoing types of income. To the extent a Fund holds interests in
entities that are taxed as grantor trusts for federal income tax purposes or are partnerships that are not treated as qualified publicly traded partnerships, the income derived from such investments may not be treated as qualifying
income for purposes of the 90% gross income test, depending on the underlying source of income to such partnerships or grantor trusts.
The
Diversification Tests
. Each Fund must diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each quarter of each taxable year (i) at least 50% of the value of its total assets is represented by cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S.
Government securities, the securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities limited for purposes of such calculation, in respect of any one issuer, to an amount not greater than 5% of the value of the Funds total
assets and not more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of the Funds total assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. Government securities or the securities of
other RICs) of any one issuer, the securities (other than the securities of other RICs) of any two or more issuers that the Fund controls (by owning 20% or more of their voting power) and that are determined to be engaged in the same or similar
trades or businesses or related trades or businesses, or the securities of one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships. Each Fund refers to these tests as the Diversification Tests.
The Annual Distribution Requirement
. Each Funds deduction for dividends paid to its shareholders during the taxable year must equal or
exceed 90% of the sum of (i) its investment company taxable income (which includes, among other items, dividends, interest and the excess of any net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss and other taxable income, other than
any net long-term capital gain, reduced by deductible expenses) determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid, and (ii) the Funds net tax-exempt interest, if any (the excess of the Funds gross tax-exempt interest
over certain disallowed deductions). For purposes of this distribution test, a Fund may elect to treat as paid on the last day of the fiscal year all or part of any dividends that it declares after the end of its taxable year. Such dividends must be
declared before the due date for filing the Funds tax return, including any extensions. Each Fund intends to distribute at least annually substantially all of such income. Each Fund will refer to this distribution requirement as the
Annual Distribution Requirement.
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Amounts not distributed on a timely basis in accordance with a calendar year distribution requirement are
subject to a nondeductible 4% excise tax at the fund level. To avoid the tax, a Fund must distribute during each calendar year an amount at least equal to the sum of (i) 98% of its ordinary income (not taking into account any capital gain or
loss) for the calendar year, (ii) 98.2% of its capital gains in excess of the Funds capital losses (adjusted for certain ordinary losses) for the one-year period ending on November 30, the last day of each Funds taxable year
(which the Fund intends to elect to use for this purpose), and (iii) certain undistributed amounts from previous years on which the Fund paid no federal income tax. Each Fund refers to this distribution requirement as the Excise Tax
Avoidance Requirement. While each Fund intends to distribute any income and capital gain in the manner necessary to minimize imposition of the 4% excise tax, there can be no assurance that sufficient amounts of the Funds taxable income
and capital gain will be distributed to avoid entirely the imposition of the tax. In that event, the Fund will be liable for the tax only on the amount by which it does not meet the foregoing distribution requirement.
A Fund may be required to recognize taxable income in circumstances in which it does not receive cash. For example, if a Fund holds debt obligations that
are treated under applicable tax rules as having original issue discount (such as debt instruments with payment-in-kind interest or, in certain cases, increasing interest rates or that were issued with warrants), the Fund must include in income each
year a portion of the original issue discount that accrues over the life of the obligation, regardless of whether cash representing such income is received by the Funds in the same taxable year. Because any original issue discount accrued will be
included in a Funds investment company taxable income for the year of accrual, the Fund may be required to make a Distribution to its shareholders in order to satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement or the Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement,
even though the Fund will not have received any corresponding cash amount.
Although the Funds presently do not intend to do so, they are
authorized to borrow funds and to sell assets in order to satisfy Distribution requirements. However, under the 1940 Act, the Funds are not permitted to make Distributions to their shareholders while their debt obligations and other senior
securities are outstanding unless certain asset coverage tests are met. See Description of Capital Structure. Moreover, the Funds ability to dispose of assets to meet their Distribution requirements may be limited by
other requirements relating to their status as RICs, including the Diversification Tests. If a Fund disposes of assets in order to meet the Annual Distribution Requirement or the Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement, the Fund may make such dispositions
at times that, from an investment standpoint, are not advantageous.
If either Fund failed to qualify as a RIC, that Fund would incur regular
corporate income tax on its taxable income and net capital gain for that year, it would lose its deduction for dividends paid to shareholders, and it would be subject to certain gain recognition and distribution requirements upon requalification.
Further distributions of income by the Fund to its shareholders would be treated as dividend income, although such dividend income would constitute qualified dividend income subject to reduced federal income tax rates if the shareholder satisfies
certain holding period requirements with respect to its shares in the Fund (which reduced rates are currently scheduled to expire after 2012). Compliance with the RIC 90% qualifying income test and with the asset diversification requirements is
carefully monitored by the Advisor (and the subadvisors, as applicable) and it is intended that each Fund will comply with the requirements for qualification as regulated investment companies.
The remainder of this discussion assumes that each Fund will qualify as a RIC and has satisfied the Annual Distribution Requirement.
Special Considerations Applicable to Salient Risk Parity Fund, Salient Alternative Beta Fund and Salient Pure Trend Fund
Under an IRS revenue ruling effective after September 30, 2006, income from certain commodities-linked derivatives is not considered qualifying
income for purposes of the 90% qualifying income test. This ruling limits the extent to which the Salient Risk Parity Fund may receive income from direct investments in such commodity-linked derivatives to a maximum of 10% of its annual gross
income.
The IRS has indicated in a series of private letter rulings that income derived from a wholly-owned offshore subsidiary, such as the
Risk Parity Subsidiary, Alternative Beta Subsidiary and Pure Trend Subsidiary (each, a Subsidiary), that invests in such commodity-linked derivative instruments constitutes qualifying income. The Funds have not applied for such a private
letter ruling, but each Fund intends to secure an opinion of counsel based on customary representations that income derived from each Funds respective Subsidiary and distributed or imputed for income tax purposes to the Fund should be treated
as qualifying income. In July 2011, the IRS suspended further issuance of these private letter rulings, indicating that it was reconsidering the underlying policies. The IRS subsequently indicated informally that it intends to issue public guidance
regarding the use of offshore subsidiaries by regulated investment companies to invest indirectly in commodities and that such guidance will be prospective in application and provide for
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transition periods for affected funds. It is also possible that legislation on this issue could be introduced. If the IRS does issue public guidance, or if legislation is enacted, that results in
an adverse determination relating to the treatment of income derived by each Fund from its respective Subsidiary, the Funds would likely need to significantly change its investment strategy, which could adversely affect the Funds. It is possible
that the Funds may be unable to qualify as a regulated investment company for one or more years, meaning that all of its income and gains could be taxed first at the Fund level and again when paid out to shareholders
Special Considerations Applicable to Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II
In order to increase its investments in master limited partnerships, the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II may invest in one or more taxable subsidiary C corporations that invest in
different master limited partnerships than those in which the Fund invests directly. In addition, equity securities issued by certain non-traded limited partnerships (or other pass-through entities, such as grantor trusts) in which the
Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II invests may not produce qualifying income for purposes of determining its compliance with the 90% gross income test applicable to RICs. As a result, the Fund may form one or more wholly-owned
taxable subsidiaries to make and hold certain investments in accordance with its investment objective.
Although, as a RIC, dividends received
by the Fund from any such taxable subsidiary and distributed to shareholders will not be subject to federal income taxes at the RIC level, the taxable subsidiary will generally be subject to federal and state income taxes on its income, including
any income the Domestic Subsidiary may recognize on the sale of an interest in a master limited partnership that it holds. As a result, the net return to the Fund on such investments that are held by the Domestic Subsidiary will be reduced to the
extent that the Domestic Subsidiary is subject to income taxes.
In calculating the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund
IIs daily net asset value in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, the Fund will account for the deferred tax liability and/or asset balances of the Domestic Subsidiary C corporation. The Domestic Subsidiary will accrue a
deferred income tax liability balance, at the currently effective statutory U.S. federal income tax rate (currently 35%) plus an estimated state and local income tax rate, for its future tax liability associated with the capital appreciation of its
investments and the distributions received by it on equity securities of master limited partnerships considered to be return of capital. Upon the Domestic Subsidiarys sale of a portfolio security, the Domestic Subsidiary will be liable for
previously deferred taxes. Any deferred tax liability balance of the Domestic Subsidiary will reduce the Funds net asset value. Any taxes incurred may differ from the amounts accrued. This can be a benefit or detriment to investors in
subsequent periods when any such amounts are actually due.
Taxation of the Funds Investments
Certain of the Funds investment practices are subject to special and complex federal income tax provisions that may, among other things,
(i) disallow, suspend or otherwise limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions, (ii) convert lower taxed long-term capital gains into higher taxed short-term capital gains or ordinary income, (iii) convert ordinary loss or a
deduction into capital loss (the deductibility of which is more limited), (iv) cause the Funds to recognize income or gain without a corresponding receipt of cash, (v) adversely affect the time as to when a purchase or sale of shares or
securities is deemed to occur and (vi) adversely alter the characterization of certain complex financial transactions. The Funds intend to monitor their transactions and may make certain tax elections to mitigate the effect of these rules and
prevent their disqualification as a RIC.
The Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II intends to invest in equity securities of
MLPs that are expected to derive income and gains from the exploration, development, mining or production, processing, refining, transportation (including pipeline transporting gas, oil, or products thereof), or the marketing of any mineral or
natural resources. The Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II expects that these MLPs will be treated as qualified publicly traded partnerships (as defined in Section 851(h) of the Code). Accordingly, it is expected
that the net income derived by the Fund from such investments will qualify as good income for purposes of the 90% gross income test. If the MLPs in which the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II invests, however, do not
qualify as qualified publicly traded partnerships under the new rules or otherwise are not treated as corporations for federal income tax purposes, the income derived by the Fund from such investments may not qualify as good income under
the 90% gross income test and, therefore, could adversely affect the Funds status as a RIC.
The master limited partnerships in which
the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II intends to invest are expected to be treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and therefore, the cash distributions received by the Fund from a master limited partnership
may not correspond to the amount of income allocated to it by the master limited partnership in any given taxable year. If the amount of income allocated by a master limited partnership to the Fund exceeds the amount of cash received by the Fund
from such master limited partnership, the Fund may have difficulty making distributions in the amounts necessary to satisfy the requirements for maintaining RIC status and avoiding any income and excise taxes. Accordingly, the Salient MLP &
Energy Infrastructure Fund II may have to dispose of securities under disadvantageous circumstances in order to generate sufficient cash to satisfy the distribution requirements.
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The Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II may invest in Canadian income trusts that are
expected to derive income and gains from the exploration, development, mining or production, processing, refining, transportation (including pipeline transporting gas, oil, or products thereof), or the marketing of any mineral or natural resources.
Canadian income trusts are generally treated as either corporations or partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes. If the Canadian income trusts in which this Fund invests are treated as corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the
income and gain generated by the Fund from such investments will generally be qualifying income, and a trust unit will generally be a qualifying asset, for purposes of the Funds qualification as a RIC. Moreover, if the Canadian income trust is
a PFIC (as defined below), the Fund will be subject to additional rules described below relating to tax consequences of an investment in a PFIC.
If the Canadian income trusts in which the Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II invests are treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the effect on the Company will
depend on whether the Canadian income trust is a qualified publicly traded partnership (as described above) or not. If the Canadian income trust is a qualified publicly traded partnership, this Funds investment therein would generally be
subject to the rules described above relating to investments in MLPs. If the Canadian income trust, however, is not treated as a qualified publicly traded partnership, then the consequences to the Fund of an investment in such Canadian income trust
will depend upon the amount and type of income and assets of the Canadian income trust allocable to the Fund. The Salient MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund II intends to monitor its investments in Canadian income trusts to prevent its
disqualification as a RIC.
Income received by the Funds with respect to non-U.S. securities may be subject to withholding and other taxes
imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions may reduce or eliminate such taxes. Due to the makeup of the Funds investment portfolio, shareholders will not be entitled to claim a credit or deduction with respect to such foreign taxes.
Investments by the Funds in certain passive foreign investment companies (PFIC) could subject the Funds to U.S.
federal income tax (including interest charges) on certain distributions or dispositions with respect to those investments which cannot be eliminated by making distributions to shareholders. Elections may be available to the Funds to mitigate the
effect of this provision provided that the PFIC complies with certain reporting requirements, but the elections generally accelerate the recognition of income without the receipt of cash. Dividends paid by PFICs will not qualify for the reduced tax
rates discussed below under Taxation of Shareholders.
Under Section 988 of the Code, gains or losses attributable to
fluctuations in exchange rates between the time a Fund accrue income or receivables or expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time the Fund actually collects such income or receivables or pays such liabilities are
generally treated as ordinary income or loss. Similarly, gains or losses on foreign currency forward contracts and the disposition of debt securities denominated in a foreign currency, to the extent attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates
between the acquisition and disposition dates, are also treated as ordinary income or loss.
Taxation of Shareholders
For United States federal income tax purposes, distributions paid out of either Funds current or accumulated earnings and profits will, except in
the case of distributions of qualified dividend income and capital gain dividends described below, be taxable as ordinary dividend income. Certain income distributions paid by a Fund (whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional Fund shares) to
individual taxpayers are taxed at rates applicable to net long-term capital gains (a maximum rate of 15%). This tax treatment applies only if certain holding period requirements and other requirements are satisfied by the shareholder and the
dividends are attributable to qualified dividend income received by the Fund itself. These special rules relating to the taxation of ordinary income dividends paid by regulated investment companies generally apply to taxable years beginning before
January 1, 2013. Thereafter, the Funds dividends, other than capital gain dividends, will be fully taxable at ordinary income tax rates unless further Congressional action is taken. There can be no assurance as to what portion of a
Funds dividend distributions will qualify as qualified dividend income.
Shareholders receiving any distribution from a Fund in the form
of additional shares pursuant to the dividend reinvestment plan will be treated as receiving a taxable distribution in an amount equal to the fair market value of the shares received, determined as of the reinvestment date.
Distributions of net capital gain, if any, designated as capital gains dividends are taxable to a shareholder as long-term capital gains, regardless of
how long the shareholder has held Fund shares. A distribution of an amount in excess of the Funds current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated by a shareholder as a return of capital which is applied against and reduces the
shareholders basis in his or her shares. To the extent that the amount of any such distribution exceeds the shareholders basis in his or her shares, the excess will be treated by the shareholder as gain from a sale or exchange of the
shares. Distributions of gains from the sale of investments that a Fund owned for one year or less will be taxable as ordinary income.
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A Fund may elect to retain its net capital gain or a portion thereof for investment and be taxed at
corporate rates on the amount retained. In such case, it may designate the retained amount as undistributed capital gains in a notice to its shareholders who will be treated as if each received a distribution of his pro rata share of such gain, with
the result that each shareholder will: (i) be required to report his pro rata share of such gain on his tax return as long-term capital gain; (ii) receive a refundable tax credit for his pro rata share of tax paid by the Fund on the gain;
and (iii) increase the tax basis for his shares by an amount equal to the deemed distribution less the tax credit.
Selling shareholders
will generally recognize gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the shareholders adjusted tax basis in the shares sold and the sale proceeds. If the shares are held as a capital asset, the gain or loss will be a capital gain
or loss. The maximum tax rate applicable to net capital gains recognized by individuals and other non-corporate taxpayers is: (i) the same as the maximum ordinary income tax rate for gains recognized on the sale of capital assets held for one
year or less; or (ii) 15% for gains recognized on the sale of capital assets held for more than one year (as well as certain capital gain distributions) but only for taxable years beginning on or before December 31, 2012. Thereafter, the
maximum rate will increase to 20%, unless Congress enacts legislation providing otherwise.
Any loss realized upon the sale or exchange of
Fund shares with a holding period of six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any capital gain distributions received (or amounts designated as undistributed capital gains) with respect to such shares. In
addition, all or a portion of a loss realized on a sale or other disposition of Fund shares may be disallowed under wash sale rules to the extent the shareholder acquires other shares of the same Fund (whether through the reinvestment of
distributions or otherwise) within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date of disposition of the shares. Any disallowed loss will result in an adjustment to the shareholders tax basis in some or all of
the other shares acquired.
Sales charges paid upon a purchase of shares cannot be taken into account for purposes of determining gain or loss
on a sale of the shares before the 91st day after their purchase to the extent a sales charge is reduced or eliminated in a subsequent acquisition of shares of the Fund (or of another fund), during the period beginning on the date of the sale and
ending on January 31 of the calendar year following the calendar year in which the sale was made, pursuant to the reinvestment or exchange privilege. Any disregarded amounts will result in an adjustment to the shareholders tax basis in
some or all of any other shares acquired.
Dividends and distributions on a Funds shares are generally subject to federal income tax as
described herein to the extent they do not exceed the Funds realized income and gains, even though such dividends and distributions may economically represent a return of a particular shareholders investment. Such distributions are
likely to occur in respect of shares purchased at a time when the Funds NAV reflects gains that are either unrealized, or realized but not distributed. Such realized gains may be required to be distributed even when the Funds NAV also
reflects unrealized losses. Certain distributions declared in October, November or December to shareholders of record of such month and paid in the following January will be taxed to shareholders as if received on December 31 of the year in
which they were declared. In addition, certain other distributions made after the close of a taxable year of the Fund may be spilled back and treated as paid by the Fund (except for purposes of the non-deductible 4% federal excise tax)
during such taxable year. In such case, shareholders will be treated as having received such dividends in the taxable year in which the distributions were actually made.
Each Fund will inform shareholders of the source and tax status of all distributions promptly after the close of each calendar year.
The benefits of the reduced tax rates applicable to long-term capital gains and qualified dividend income may be impacted by the application of the alternative minimum tax to individual shareholders.
If a shareholder realizes a loss on disposition of Fund shares of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for
a corporate shareholder, the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886. Direct shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of
a regulated investment company are not excepted. Future guidance may extend the current exception from this reporting requirement to shareholders of most or all regulated investment companies.
Under legislation enacted in 2010, effective for tax years beginning after December 31, 2012, certain net investment income received by an
individual having modified adjusted gross income in excess of $200,000 (or $250,000 for married individuals filing jointly) will be subject to a tax of 3.8% percent. Undistributed net investment income of trusts and estates in excess of a specified
amount also will be subject to this tax. Dividends paid by a Fund will constitute investment income of the type subject to this tax.
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Each Fund generally is required to withhold and remit to the U.S. Treasury a percentage of the taxable
dividends and other distributions paid to and proceeds of share sales, exchanges, or redemptions made by any individual shareholder (including foreign individuals) who fails to furnish the Fund with a correct taxpayer identification number, who has
under-reported dividends or interest income, or who fails to certify to the Fund that he or she is a United States person and is not subject to such withholding. The backup withholding tax rate is 28% for amounts paid through 2012 and 31% for
amounts paid thereafter. Distributions will not be subject to backup withholding to the extent they are subject to the withholding tax on foreign persons described in the next section. Any tax withheld as a result of backup withholding does not
constitute an additional tax imposed on the record owner of the account and may be claimed as a credit on the record owners federal income tax return.
Taxation of Non-U.S. Shareholders
Whether an investment in a Funds shares is
appropriate for a non-U.S. shareholder will depend upon that persons particular circumstances. An investment in a Funds shares by a non-U.S. shareholder may have adverse tax consequences because the interest income and certain short-term
capital gains that generally would not be subject to tax if earned directly by a non-U.S. shareholder are transformed into dividends that are subject to U.S. income tax as described below. Non-U.S. shareholders should consult their tax advisers
before investing in a Funds common shares.
Distributions of a Funds investment company taxable income to non-U.S.
shareholders (including interest income and the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital losses), will generally be subject to withholding of federal tax at a 30% rate (or lower rate provided by an applicable treaty) to the
extent of the Funds current and accumulated earnings and profits unless the
Distributions are effectively connected with a U.S. trade
or business of the non-U.S. shareholder, and, if an income tax treaty applies, attributable to a permanent establishment in the United States of the non-U.S. shareholder. In such latter case, the Distributions will be subject to federal income tax
at the rates applicable to U.S. persons, plus, in certain cases where the non-U.S. shareholder is a corporation, a branch profits tax at a 30% rate (or lower rate provided by an applicable treaty), and the Funds will not be required to withhold
federal tax if the non-U.S. shareholder complies with applicable certification and disclosure requirements. Special certification requirements apply to a non-U.S. shareholder that is a foreign partnership or a foreign trust, and such entities are
urged to consult their own tax advisers.
Actual or deemed distributions of a Funds net capital gains (i.e., net long-term capital gains
in excess of short-term capital losses) to a non-U.S. shareholder, and gains realized by a non-U.S. shareholder upon the sale of its common shares, will not be subject to federal withholding tax and generally will not be subject to federal income
tax unless (a) the distributions or gains, as the case may be, are effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the non-U.S. shareholder and, if an income tax treaty applies, are attributable to a permanent establishment or fixed base
maintained by the non-U.S. shareholder in the United States, or (b) the non-U.S. shareholder is an individual, has been present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable, and certain other conditions are satisfied. In
addition, gain on the non-U.S. shareholders sale of the Funds common shares will be subject to federal income tax if the Funds are or have been a United States real property holding corporation for federal income tax purposes
at any time during the shorter of the five-year period ending on the date the non-U.S. shareholder sells the Funds common shares and such common shareholder held more than 5% of a Funds common shares at any time during the five-year period
preceding the disposition. Generally, a corporation is a United States real property holding corporation if the fair market value of its United States real property interests equals or exceeds 50% of the sum of the fair market value of
its worldwide real property interests plus its other assets used or held for use in a trade or business.
If the Funds distribute their net
capital gains in the form of deemed rather than actual distributions (which the Funds may do in the future), a non-U.S. shareholder will be entitled to a federal income tax credit or tax refund equal to the shareholders allocable share of the
tax the Funds pay on the capital gains deemed to have been distributed. In order to obtain the refund, the non-U.S. shareholder must obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number and file a federal income tax return even if the non-U.S. shareholder
would not otherwise be required to obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number or file a federal income tax return. For a corporate non-U.S. shareholder, distributions (both actual and deemed), and gains realized upon the sale of a Funds
common shares that are effectively connected to a U.S. trade or business may, under certain circumstances, be subject to an additional branch profits tax at a 30% rate (or at a lower rate if provided for by an applicable treaty).
A non-U.S. shareholder can have all cash Distributions automatically reinvested in additional common shares. If the Distribution is a
distribution of a Funds investment company taxable income and is not effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the non-U.S. shareholder (or, if a treaty applies, it is not attributable to a permanent establishment or a
fixed base), the amount distributed (to the extent of a Funds current and accumulated earnings and profits) will be subject to withholding of U.S. federal income tax at a rate of 30% (or lower rate provided by an applicable treaty) and only
the net after-tax amount will be reinvested in the Funds
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common shares. If the Distribution is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business or attributable to a permanent establishment or fixed base, generally the full amount of the Distribution
will be reinvested in the DRIP and will nevertheless be subject to U.S. federal income tax at the ordinary income rates applicable to U.S. shareholders. The non-U.S. shareholder will have an adjusted basis in the additional common shares purchased
through the DRIP equal to the amount reinvested.
The additional shares will have a new holding period commencing on the day following the day
on which the shares are credited to the non-U.S. shareholders account.
A non-U.S. shareholder who is a non-resident alien individual,
and who is otherwise subject to withholding of federal tax, may be subject to information reporting and backup withholding of federal income tax on dividends unless the non-U.S. shareholder provides a Fund or the dividend paying agent with an IRS
Form W-8BEN (or an acceptable substitute form) or otherwise meets documentary evidence requirements for establishing that it is a non-U.S. shareholder or otherwise establishes an exemption from backup withholding.
Recently-enacted legislation generally imposes a U.S. withholding tax of 30% on payments to certain foreign entities of U.S.-source dividends paid after
December 31, 2013, and the gross proceeds paid after December 31, 2014, from dispositions of shares that produces U.S.-source dividends, unless various U.S. information reporting and due diligence requirements that are different from, and
in addition to, the beneficial owner certification requirements described above have been satisfied. Non-U.S. shareholders should consult their tax advisers regarding the effect, if any, of this legislation on their ownership and sale or disposition
of a Funds common shares.
The foregoing is a general and abbreviated summary of the applicable provisions of the Code and Treasury
Regulations currently in effect. It is not intended to be a complete explanation or a substitute for consultation with individual tax advisors. For the complete provisions, reference should be made to the pertinent Code sections and the Treasury
Regulations promulgated thereunder. The Code and Treasury Regulations are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect.
PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE
It is the policy of the Trust to obtain the best execution of the Funds investment portfolio transactions,
if any, taking into account certain factors as set forth below.
Each Fund contemplates that, consistent with the policy of obtaining the best
net result, any brokerage transactions may be conducted through affiliates of its Advisor. The Board has adopted procedures in conformity with Section 17(e) of the 1940 Act to ensure that all brokerage commissions paid to affiliates are fair
and reasonable. Transactions for a Fund will not be effected on a principal basis with its Advisor, any of its affiliates, or other affiliates of the Fund (unless permitted under the 1940 Act). However, such entities may effect brokerage
transactions for the Fund. These transactions would be effected in accordance with procedures adopted by a Fund pursuant to Section 17(e) of the 1940 Act and rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. Among other things, Section 17(e)
and those procedures provide that, when acting as broker for a Fund in connection with the sale of securities to or by the Fund, its Advisor or its affiliates may receive compensation not exceeding: (i) the usual and customary brokers
commission for transactions effected on a national securities exchange; (ii) 2% of the sales price for secondary distributions of securities; and (iii) 1% of the sales price for other purchases or sales.
Each Fund will bear any commissions or spreads in connection with the Funds portfolio transactions. In placing orders, it is the policy of the
Funds to obtain the best results taking into account the broker-dealers general execution and operational facilities, the type of transaction involved, and other factors such as the broker-dealers risk in positioning the securities
involved. While each Funds Advisor generally seeks reasonably competitive spreads or commissions, a Fund will not necessarily be paying the lowest spread or commission available. In executing portfolio transactions and selecting brokers or
dealers, each Funds Advisor seeks to obtain the best overall terms available for the Fund. In assessing the best overall terms available for any transaction, each Funds Advisor considers factors deemed relevant, including the breadth of
the market in the security, the price of the security, the financial condition and execution capability of the broker or dealer, and the reasonableness of the commission, if any, both for the specific transaction and on a continuing basis. The
overall reasonableness of brokerage commissions paid is evaluated by the Advisor based upon its knowledge of available information as to the general level of commission paid by other institutional investors for comparable services. Transactions on
U.S. stock exchanges and on some foreign stock exchanges involve the payment of negotiated brokerage commissions. On the great majority of foreign stock exchanges, however, commissions are fixed. No stated commission is generally applicable to
securities traded in over-the-counter markets, but the prices of those securities include undisclosed commissions or mark-ups.
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Occasionally, securities may be purchased directly from the issuer. For securities traded primarily in the
OTC market, each Funds Advisor will, where possible, deal directly with dealers who make a market in the securities unless better prices and execution are available elsewhere. Such dealers usually act as principals for their own account.
Allocation of Trades by the Advisor
.
Each Funds Advisor manages a number of accounts other than the Fund. Although
investment determinations for the Fund will be made by the Advisor independently from the investment determinations it makes for any other account, investments deemed appropriate for the Fund by the Advisor also may be deemed appropriate by it for
other accounts. Therefore, the same security may be purchased or sold at or about the same time for both the Fund and other accounts. In such circumstances, the Advisor may determine that orders for the purchase or sale of the same security for the
Fund and one or more other accounts should be combined. In this event the transactions will be priced and allocated in a manner deemed by the Advisor to be equitable and in the best interests of the Fund and such other accounts. While in some
instances combined orders could adversely affect the price or volume of a security, the Fund believes that its participation in such transactions on balance will produce better overall results for the Fund.
Affiliated Underwriting Transactions by the Advisor.
The Trust has approved procedures in conformity with Rule 10f-3 under the 1940 Act whereby a
Fund may purchase securities that are offered in underwritings in which an affiliate of its Advisor participates. These procedures prohibit the Fund from directly or indirectly benefiting an Advisor affiliate in connection with such underwritings.
In addition, for underwritings where an Advisor affiliate participates as a principal underwriter, certain restrictions may apply that could, among other things, limit the amount of securities that the Fund could purchase.
TRANSFER AGENT SERVICES
Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc., located at 3435 Stelzer Road, Columbus, Ohio 43219, is the transfer and dividend paying agent for the Funds Class A, Class C, and Class I shares.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
KPMG LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, has been appointed as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Funds. KPMG LLP has offices at 191 W. Nationwide Blvd., Suite
500, Columbus, Ohio 43215.
LEGAL MATTERS
K&L Gates LLP, located at One Lincoln Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, serves as legal counsel to the Funds and also serves as legal counsel to the Independent Trustees.
CUSTODY OF PORTFOLIO SECURITIES
Citibank, N.A. (the Custodian) serves as custodian for the Funds. Pursuant to a custodian agreement, the Custodian maintains a separate account in the name of each Fund, holds and transfers
portfolio securities on account of the Fund, accepts receipts and makes disbursements of money on behalf of the Fund, collects and receives all income and other payments and distributions on account of the Funds securities. The Funds also may
enter into principal transactions with one or more affiliates of the Custodian.
CODES OF ETHICS
Each of the Trust and Advisors have adopted a code of ethics as required by applicable law, which is designed to prevent affiliated persons of the Funds
and the Advisors from engaging in deceptive, manipulative or fraudulent activities in connection with securities held or to be acquired by the Funds (which may also be held by persons subject to a code of ethics). There can be no assurance that the
codes of ethics will be effective in preventing such activities. Each code of ethics may be examined on the Internet from the SECs website at www.sec.gov. In addition, each code of ethics can be reviewed and copied at the SECs Public
Reference Room in Washington, DC. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-202-942-8090. Copies of these codes of ethics may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request
at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing the SECs Public Reference Section, Washington, DC 20549-0102.
Each
Advisors code of ethics allows personnel to invest in securities for their own account, but requires compliance with the codes provisions. The code of ethics requires prior approval of purchases of securities in initial public offerings
or private placements.
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FINANCIALS
As of the date of this SAI, the Salient Alternative Beta Fund, Salient Pure Trend Fund and Salient Global Equity Fund had not commenced operations and thus do not have audited financial statements.
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