ETF Series Solutions

09/23/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/23/2024 14:51

Summary Prospectus by Investment Company - Form 497K

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Defiance Connective Technologies ETF
formerly, Defiance Next Gen Connectivity ETF
Trading Symbol: SIXG
Summary Prospectus
September 23, 2024
Listed on Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC
www.defianceetfs.com
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information ("SAI"), which contain more information about the Fund and its risks. The current Prospectus and SAI, each dated September 23, 2024, as supplemented from time to time, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus. You can find the Fund's Prospectus, reports to shareholder, and other information about the Fund online at www.defianceetfs.com/sixg. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 1-800-617-0004 or by sending an e-mail request to [email protected].
Investment Objective
The Defiance Connective Technologies ETF (the "Fund" or the "Connective ETF") seeks to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, of the BlueStar® Connective Technologies Index (the "Index").
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund ("Shares"). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fees 0.30%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees 0.00%
Other Expenses 0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 0.30%
Expense Example
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then continue to hold or redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
$31 $97 $169 $381
Portfolio Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund's performance. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 56% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund uses a "passive management" (or indexing) approach to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. BlueStar® Connective Technologies Index
The Index is a rules-based index that consists of a tiered, modified market capitalization-weighted portfolio of the U.S.-listed equity securities, including depositary receipts, of companies that derive at least 50% of their revenues from business activities, products, or services that are tied to the development of, or are otherwise instrumental in the rollout of 5G or 6G networks or other connective technologies (collectively, "Connective Technology Companies") as determined by MarketVector Indexes Gmb ("MarketVector" or the "Index Provider"). The Fund defines Connective Technology Companies to include: (i) manufacturers of core carrier grade networking equipment, including cellular antennas, routers and related semiconductor devices, (ii) satellite-based internet technology manufacturers and providers, (iii) mobile network operators ("MNOs"), (iv)
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enhanced mobile broadband chips and smart phone manufacturers, (v) manufacturers of new radio technology, wireless network test and optimization equipment, and cloud computing equipment, (vi) manufacturers and providers of software defined networking or network functions virtualization - including companies that focus on network/cloud analytics and monitoring platforms, and (vii) cell tower or data center real estate investment trusts ("REITs").
To determine whether an investment meets the criteria of a Connective Technology Company and, thus is eligible for inclusion in the Index, companies are screened from the universe of global companies with equity securities or depositary receipts listed on a U.S. exchange by MarketVector based on a company's primary business activities in regulatory filings (e.g., financial statements, annual reports, investor presentations), analyst reports, and industry-specific trade publications. Connective Technology Companies identified by MarketVector's screening process are added to the Index, subject to the 50% revenue threshold described above and meeting the requirements described below.
At the time of each rebalance and reconstitution of the Index, each Connective Technology Company is ranked by its free-float market capitalization. The maximum weight for any single stock is 5% (1.5% for REITs and MNOs). If a stock exceeds the maximum weight, then the weight will be reduced to the maximum weight and the excess weight shall be redistributed proportionally across all other index constituents. This process is repeated until no stocks have weights exceeding the respective maximum weight. Additionally, to qualify for inclusion in the Index, a Connective Technology Company must have a minimum market capitalization of $200 million, and must meet certain liquidity, free-float (i.e., the percentage of shares available to the public), and trading cost thresholds.
Only the three largest investable REITs and the three largest investable MNOs are included in the Index's eligible universe, all investable companies from other segments are included in the eligible universe. The Index includes 50 constituents. The 40 largest members of the eligible universe based on float-adjusted market capitalization are automatically included. The next 10 companies are selected from the largest current Index constituents ranked in the top 60. If fewer than 50 constituents have been selected, the next largest members of the eligible universe will be selected until 50 constituents are selected. The Index may include small-, mid-, and large-capitalization companies.
The Index is rebalanced and reconstituted semi-annually after the close of business on the third Friday of each March and September based on data as of the first Thursday of each such reconstitution month. At the time of each rebalance and reconstitution of the Index, each constituent is weighted as described above, subject to a downward adjustment for securities trading below certain liquidity thresholds. Additionally, the weight of each Index component may rise and/or fall between Index rebalance dates.
To reduce turnover, existing Index components will not be removed from the Index solely for not meeting the minimum market capitalization or liquidity criteria unless they do not meet such requirements for two consecutive reconstitutions.
The Index was established in 2019 and is owned by the Index Provider. The Fund's Index Provider is not affiliated with the Fund's adviser, sub-adviser, administrator, or distributor.
The Fund's Investment Strategy
Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Fund's net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) will be invested in Connective Technologies Companies (as defined above).
The Fund will generally use a "replication" strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning the Fund will generally invest in all of the component securities of the Index in the same approximate proportions as in the Index. However, the Fund may use a "representative sampling" strategy, meaning it may invest in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return, and other characteristics closely resemble the risk, return, and other characteristics of the Index as a whole, when the Fund's sub-adviser believes it is in the best interests of the Fund (e.g., when replicating the Index involves practical difficulties or substantial costs, an Index constituent becomes temporarily illiquid, unavailable, or less liquid, or as a result of legal restrictions or limitations that apply to the Fund but not to the Index).
The Fund generally may invest in securities or other investments not included in the Index, but which the Fund's sub-adviser believes will help the Fund track the Index. For example, the Fund may invest in securities that are not components of the Index to reflect various corporate actions and other changes to the Index (such as reconstitutions, additions, and deletions).
To the extent the Index concentrates (i.e., holds more than 25% of its total assets) in the securities of a particular industry or group of related industries, the Fund will concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the Index. As of September 11, 2024, the Index was concentrated in the semiconductor and communications equipment industries.
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Principal Investment Risks
The principal risks of investing in the Fund are summarized below. The principal risks are presented generally in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a "principal risk" of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. As with any investment, there is a risk that you could lose all or a portion of your investment in the Fund. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect the Fund's net asset value per share ("NAV"), trading price, yield, total return and/or ability to meet its objectives. For more information about the risks of investing in the Fund, see the section in the Fund's Prospectus titled "Additional Information About the Fund."
•Connective Technology Investment Risk. Companies across a wide variety of industries, primarily in the technology sector, are exploring the possible applications of 5G, 6G, and other connective technologies. The extent of such technologies' versatility has not yet been fully explored. Consequently, the Fund's holdings may include equity securities of operating companies that focus on or have exposure to a wide variety of industries, and the economic fortunes of certain companies held by the Fund may not be significantly tied to such technologies. These technologies may not ultimately have a material effect on the economic returns of companies in which the Fund invests.
•Capital Controls and Sanctions Risk. Economic conditions, such as volatile currency exchange rates and interest rates, political events, military action and other conditions may, without prior warning, lead to foreign government intervention (including intervention by the U.S. government with respect to foreign governments, economic sectors, foreign companies and related securities and interests) and the imposition of capital controls and/or sanctions, which may also include retaliatory actions of one government against another government, such as seizure of assets. Capital controls and/or sanctions include the prohibition of, or restrictions on, the ability to transfer currency, securities or other assets. Capital controls and/or sanctions may also impact the ability of the Fund to buy, sell or otherwise transfer securities or currency, negatively impact the value and/or liquidity of such instruments, adversely affect the trading market and price for Shares, and cause the Fund to decline in value.
•Concentration Risk.The Fund's investments will be concentrated in an industry or group of industries to the extent that the Index is so concentrated. In such event, the value of the Shares may rise and fall more than the value of shares of a fund that invests in securities of companies in a broader range of industries.
•Depositary Receipt Risk.Depositary Receipts involve risks similar to those associated with investments in foreign securities, such as changes in political or economic conditions of other countries and changes in the exchange rates of foreign currencies. Depositary Receipts listed on U.S. exchanges are issued by banks or trust companies and entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares ("Underlying Shares"). When the Fund invests in Depositary Receipts as a substitute for an investment directly in the Underlying Shares, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the Depositary Receipts may not provide a return that corresponds precisely with that of the Underlying Shares.
•Emerging Technologies Investment Risk. The Fund invests primarily to gain exposure to emerging technologies, such as 5G, 6G, and other connective technologies, in accordance with the Index. Companies across a wide variety of industries, primarily in the technology sector, are exploring the possible applications of these technologies. The extent of such technologies' versatility has not yet been fully explored. Consequently, the Fund's holdings may include equity securities of operating companies that have exposure to a wide variety of industries, and the economic fortunes of certain companies held by the Fund may be significantly tied to such industries. Currently, there are few public companies for which these emerging technologies represent an attributable and significant revenue or profit stream, and such technologies may not ultimately have a material effect on the economic returns of companies in which the Fund invests.
•Equity Market Risk.The equity securities held in the Fund's portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors that affect securities markets generally or factors affecting specific issuers, industries, or sectors in which the Fund invests. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from issuers. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious diseases or other public health issues (such as the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus), recessions, rising inflation, or other events could have a significant negative impact on the Fund and its investments. Such events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors and industries more significantly than others. Such events could adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the Fund's portfolio securities or other instruments and could result in disruptions in the trading markets.
•ETF Risks. The Fund is an ETF, and, as a result of an ETF's structure, it is exposed to the following risks:
◦Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that may act as Authorized Participants ("APs"). In addition, there may be a limited number of market makers and/or liquidity providers in the marketplace. To the extent either of the following events occur, Shares
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may trade at a material discount to NAV and possibly face delisting: (i) APs exit the business or otherwise become unable to process creation and/or redemption orders and no other APs step forward to perform these services, or (ii) market makers and/or liquidity providers exit the business or significantly reduce their business activities and no other entities step forward to perform their functions.
◦Costs of Buying or Selling Shares. Due to the costs of buying or selling Shares, including brokerage commissions imposed by brokers and bid/ask spreads, frequent trading of Shares may significantly reduce investment results and an investment in Shares may not be advisable for investors who anticipate regularly making small investments.
◦Shares May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all ETFs, Shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. Although it is expected that the market price of Shares will approximate the Fund's NAV, there may be times when the market price of Shares is more than the NAV intra-day (premium) or less than the NAV intra-day (discount) due to supply and demand of Shares or during periods of market volatility. This risk is heightened in times of market volatility, periods of steep market declines, and periods when there is limited trading activity for Shares in the secondary market, in which case such premiums or discounts may be significant. Because securities held by the Fund may trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund's primary listing exchange is open, there are likely to be deviations between the current price of a security and the security's last quoted price from the closed foreign market. This may result in premiums and discounts that are greater than those experienced by domestic ETFs.
◦Trading.Although Shares are listed for trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC (the "Exchange") and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that Shares will trade with any volume, or at all, on any stock exchange. In stressed market conditions, the liquidity of Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Fund's underlying portfolio holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than Shares.
•Foreign Securities Risk. Investments in non-U.S. securities involve certain risks that may not be present with investments in U.S. securities. For example, investments in non-U.S. securities may be subject to risk of loss due to foreign currency fluctuations or to political or economic instability. There may be less information publicly available about a non-U.S. issuer than a U.S. issuer. Investments in non-U.S. securities also may be subject to withholding or other taxes. These and other factors can make investments in the Fund more volatile and potentially less liquid than other types of investments.
•Index Methodology Risk. The Index may not include all Connective Technology Companies around the globe because the Index includes only those companies meeting the Index criteria. For example, companies that would otherwise be included in the Index might be excluded from the Index if they omit discussion of their development of 5G or 6G networks and other connective technologies from descriptions of their business in regulatory filings, analyst reports, and industry-specific trade publications screened by the Index Provider or otherwise keep such work hidden from public (and the Index Provider's) view.
•Index Provider Risk. There is no assurance that the Index Provider, or any agents that act on its behalf, will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, maintained, constructed, reconstituted, rebalanced, composed, calculated or disseminated accurately. The Adviser relies upon the Index Provider and its agents to compile, determine, maintain, construct, reconstitute, rebalance, compose, calculate (or arrange for an agent to calculate), and disseminate the Index accurately. Any losses or costs associated with errors made by the Index Provider or its agents generally will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders.
•Market Capitalization Risk
◦Large-Capitalization Investing.The securities of large-capitalization companies may be relatively mature compared to smaller companies and therefore subject to slower growth during times of economic expansion. Large-capitalization companies may also be unable to respond quickly to new competitive challenges, such as changes in technology and consumer tastes.
◦Mid-Capitalization Investing. The securities of mid-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large-capitalization companies, but they may also be subject to slower growth than small-capitalization companies during times of economic expansion. The securities of mid-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole.
◦Small-Capitalization Investing. The securities of small-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large- or mid-capitalization companies. The securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large- or mid-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. There is typically less publicly available information concerning smaller-capitalization companies than for larger, more established companies.
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•Passive Investment Risk. The Fund is not actively managed, and its sub-adviser would not sell shares of an equity security due to current or projected underperformance of a security, industry, or sector, unless that security is removed from the Index or the selling of shares of that security is otherwise required upon a reconstitution or rebalancing of the Index in accordance with the Index methodology.
•REIT Investment Risk. Investments in REITs involve unique risks. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in limited volume, and may be more volatile than other securities. REITs may be affected by changes in the value of their underlying properties or mortgages or by defaults by their borrowers or tenants. Furthermore, these entities depend upon specialized management skills, have limited diversification and are, therefore, subject to risks inherent in financing a limited number of projects. In addition, the performance of a U.S. REIT may be affected by changes in the tax laws or by its failure to qualify for tax-free pass-through of income.
•Sector Risk. To the extent the Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors of the economy, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors.
◦Communications Services Sector Risk. The Fund is generally expected to invest significantly in companies in the communications services sector, including those in the communications equipment industry, and therefore the performance of the Fund could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. Communications services companies are subject to extensive government regulation. The costs of complying with governmental regulations, delays or failure to receive required regulatory approvals, or the enactment of new adverse regulatory requirements may adversely affect the business of such companies. Companies in the communications services sector can also be significantly affected by intense competition, including competition with alternative technologies such as wireless communications (including with 5G, 6G, and other connective technologies), product compatibility, consumer preferences, rapid product obsolescence, and research and development of new products. Technological innovations may make the products and services of such companies obsolete.
◦Information Technology Sector Risk. The Fund is generally expected to invest significantly in companies in the information technology sector, including those in the semiconductor industry, and therefore the performance of the Fund could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. Market or economic factors impacting information technology companies and companies that rely heavily on technological advances could have a significant effect on the value of the Fund's investments. The value of stocks of information technology companies and companies that rely heavily on technology is particularly vulnerable to rapid changes in technology product cycles, rapid product obsolescence, government regulation and competition, both domestically and internationally, including competition from foreign competitors with lower production costs. Stocks of information technology companies and companies that rely heavily on technology, especially those of smaller, less-seasoned companies, tend to be more volatile than the overall market. Information technology companies are heavily dependent on patent and intellectual property rights, the loss or impairment of which may adversely affect profitability. Information technology companies and companies that rely heavily on technology may also be prone to operational and information security risks resulting from cyber-attacks and/or technological malfunctions.
•Securities Lending Risk. There are certain risks associated with securities lending, including the risk that the borrower may fail to return the securities on a timely basis or even the loss of rights in the collateral deposited by the borrower, if the borrower should fail financially. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. As a result, the Fund may lose money.
•Tracking Error Risk. As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and its Index may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs not incurred by the Index. In addition, the Fund may not be fully invested in the securities of the Index at all times or may hold securities not included in the Index.
Performance
The following performance information indicates some of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows the Fund's performance for the most recent calendar year ended December 31. The table illustrates how the Fund's average annual returns for the 1-year and since inception periods compare with those of a broad measure of market performance and the Index. The Fund's past performance, before and after taxes, does not necessarily indicate how it will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available on the Fund's website at www.defianceetfs.com.
On September 23, 2024, the Index's name and methodology and the Fund's name, investment objective, and principal investment strategies changed. Therefore, the performance and average annual total returns shown for periods prior to
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September 23, 2024 may have differed had the Index's current methodology and the Fund's current investment strategies been in effect during those periods.
Calendar Year Total Returns
During the period of time shown in the bar chart, the highest quarterly return was 25.18% for the quarter ended June 30, 2020, and the lowest quarterly return was -16.38% for the quarter ended March 31, 2020.
Average Annual Total Returns
(For the Periods ended December 31, 2023)
Defiance Connective Technologies ETF
1 Year
Since Inception
(3/4/2019)
Return Before Taxes 21.88% 9.18%
Return After Taxes on Distributions 21.44% 8.84%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares 13.21% 7.21%
BlueStar Connective Technologies Index1
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)
21.57% 9.32%
S&P 500 TR Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)
26.29% 13.63%
1 Effective September 23, 2024, the Fund's investment objective changed to track the performance, before fees and expenses, of the BlueStar® Connective Technologies Index. Prior to September 23, 2024, the Fund's investment objective was to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, of the BlueStar 5G Communications Index. Performance shown for periods prior to September 23, 2024, is that of the BlueStar 5G Communications Index.
After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates during the period covered by the table above and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as an individual retirement account ("IRA") or other tax-advantaged accounts.
Portfolio Management
Adviser
Defiance ETFs, LLC
Sub-Adviser
Penserra Capital Management LLC ("Penserra" or the "Sub-Adviser")
Portfolio Managers
Dustin Lewellyn, CFA, Managing Director of Penserra; Ernesto Tong, CFA, Managing Director of Penserra; and Christine Johanson, CFA, Director and Senior Portfolio Manager of Penserra are portfolio managers of the Fund. Messrs. Lewellyn and Tong have been portfolio managers of the Fund since its inception in March 2019 and and Ms. Johanson has been portfolio manager of the Fund since August 2024.
Purchase and Sale of Shares
Shares are listed on the Exchange, and individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market through brokers at market prices, rather than NAV. Because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount).
The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as "Creation Units," which only APs (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash.
Investors may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (ask) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market
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(the "bid-ask spread"). Recent information about the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads is available on the Fund's website at www.defianceetfs.com.
Tax Information
Fund distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains (or a combination), unless your investment is in an IRA or other tax-advantaged account. Distributions on investments made through tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of assets from those accounts.
Financial Intermediary Compensation
If you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an "Intermediary"), the Adviser or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary's website for more information.
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