Weitz Funds

07/29/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 07/29/2024 12:28

Summary Prospectus by Investment Company - Form 497K

LARGE CAP EQUITY FUND
WVAIX, WVALX

Summary Prospectus
July 31, 2024

Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. The Fund's Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, both dated July 31, 2024 and as currently filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus. You can find the Fund's Prospectus and other information about the Fund online at https://weitzinvestments.com/resources/product-literature/default.fs. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 888-859-0698 or by sending an e-mail request to [email protected].

Investment Objective

The investment objective of the Fund is capital appreciation.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The tables below describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.

SHAREHOLDER FEES
(fees paid directly from your investment)
Institutional Class Investor Class
Maximum sales charge (load) on purchase None None
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) None None
Redemption fee None None
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Institutional Class Investor Class
Management fees 0.75% 0.75%
Distribution (12b-1) fees None None
Other expenses* 0.12% 0.28%
Total annual fund operating expenses(1)* 0.87% 1.03%

(1) The investment adviser has agreed in writing to waive its fees and reimburse certain expenses (excluding taxes, interest, brokerage costs, acquired fund fees and expenses and extraordinary expenses) to limit the total annual fund operating expenses for Institutional Class shares and Investor Class shares to 0.89% and 1.09%, respectively, of each Class's average daily net assets through July 31, 2025. This agreement may only be terminated by the Board of Trustees of the Fund.

* Due to new agreements entered into by the Funds, Other expenses and Total annual fund operating expenses have been estimated to reflect the new fee arrangements in these agreements and may differ from the Fund's financial highlights in the annual report.

Example

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the periods indicated and then redeem in full at the end of each of the periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and the Fund's operating expenses remain the same each year. The example reflects the contractual fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement arrangement, if applicable, for the current duration of the arrangement only.

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
Institutional Class $89 $278 $482 $1,073
Investor Class $105 $328 $569 $1,259

Weitz Funds - Large Cap Equity Fund

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transactions 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 Fund 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. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 20% of the average value of the portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund's investment strategy (which we call "Quality at a Discount") is to buy above-average to highest-quality businesses, at prices that we believe are less than what the companies are worth. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of large-cap companies. The Fund considers large-cap companies to be those with market capitalizations that would be included in the Russell 1000 Index. As of May 31, 2024, the market capitalization range for the Russell 1000 Index was approximately $351 million to $3,085 billion. The Fund may invest in securities issued by non-U.S. companies, which may be denominated in U.S. dollars or foreign currencies. As part of the Fund's strategy, the Fund may concentrate its investments in securities of relatively few issuers.

We assess a company's quality based on its competitive position, return on invested capital, ability to redeploy capital, cash flow consistency, financial leverage and management team. We compare the company's stock price to our estimate of business value, i.e., all the cash that the company will generate for its owners in the future. For each company, we look at a range of business value estimates. We then seek to buy stocks of companies that meet our quality criteria when they are priced are at a discount to our estimates of business value.

We invest with a multiple-year time horizon. We believe that purchasing stocks at prices less than our business value estimates provides opportunities for stock price appreciation, both as business values grow and as the market recognizes companies' values. Typically, we consider selling stocks as they approach or exceed our business value estimates. We may also sell stocks for other reasons, including for the purchase of stocks that we believe offer better investment opportunities.

We do not try to "time" the market. However, if there is cash available for investment and there are not securities that meet the Fund's investment criteria, the Fund may invest without limitation in high-quality cash and cash equivalents such as U.S. government securities or government money market fund shares. If the Fund takes such a defensive position, it may be temporarily unable to achieve its investment objective.

Principal Investment Risks

You should be aware that an investment in the Fund involves certain risks, including, among others, the following:

Market Risk As with any mutual fund, investment return and principal value will fluctuate, depending on general market conditions and other factors. Market risk includes political, regulatory, economic, social and health risks (including the risks presented by the spread of infectious diseases) which can lead to increased market volatility and negative impacts on local and global financial markets, and the duration and severity of the impact of these risks on markets cannot be reasonably estimated. You may lose money if you invest in the Fund.
Active Management Risk The investment adviser's judgment about the attractiveness, value or potential appreciation of the Fund's investments may prove to be incorrect. The Fund could underperform other funds with similar objectives or investment strategies, if the Fund's overall investment selections or strategies fail to produce the intended results.
Large Company Risk Securities of large companies tend to have less overall volatility compared to those of mid-size and small companies; however, large companies may not be able to attain the high growth rates of successful mid-size or small companies. In addition, large companies may be less capable of responding to competitive challenges and disruptive changes.
Concentration Risk The risk that the Fund's performance may be hurt disproportionately by the poor performance of relatively few stocks. The Fund tends to invest a high percentage of assets in its largest holdings.
Non-U.S. Securities Risk The Fund may invest in securities issued by non-U.S. issuers, which securities may be denominated in U.S. dollars or foreign currencies. Investments in non-U.S. securities may involve additional risks including exchange rate fluctuation, political or economic instability, the imposition of exchange controls, sanctions, expropriation, limited disclosure and illiquid markets.
Large Investor Risk Ownership of shares of the Fund may be concentrated in one or more large investors, including related persons of the investment adviser. These investors may redeem shares in substantial quantities or on a frequent basis, which may negatively impact the Fund's performance, may increase realized capital gains, may accelerate the realization of taxable income to other shareholders and may potentially limit the use of available capital loss carryforwards or certain other losses to offset any future realized capital gains. Large investor redemption activity also may increase the Fund's brokerage and other expenses.
Failure to Meet Investment Objective There can be no assurance that the Fund will meet its investment objective.

Your investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured nor guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other governmental agency.

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Weitz Funds - Large Cap Equity Fund

Performance

The following chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund's performance from year to year over the periods indicated and by showing how the Fund's average annual total returns for the periods indicated, both before and after taxes, compared to those of a relevant broad-based securities market index. The Russell 1000 Index, the Fund's primary comparative index, measures the performance of the large-cap segment of the U.S. equity market. All Fund performance numbers are calculated after deducting fees and expenses, and all numbers assume reinvestment of dividends. Total returns shown include fee waivers and expense reimbursements, if any; total returns would have been lower had there been no waivers and/or reimbursements. The Fund's past performance is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future both before and after taxes. Updated performance information is available at weitzinvestments.com or by calling us toll-free at 888-859-0698.

Calendar Year Total Returns - Investor Class

The year-to-date return for the Fund's Investor Class for the six months ended June 30, 2024 was 5.10%.

BEST AND WORST PERFORMING QUARTERS
(during the period shown above)
Quarter/Year Total Return
Best quarter 2nd quarter 2020 19.11%
Worst quarter 1st quarter 2020 -18.98%
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
(for periods ended December 31, 2023)
1 Year 5 Year 10 Year
Investor Class
Return before taxes 29.62% 15.06% 9.09%
Return after taxes on distributions 28.03% 13.15% 7.25%
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of fund 18.65% 11.85% 6.92%
shares
Institutional Class return before taxes(1) 29.81% 15.27% 9.29%
Comparative Index (reflect no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes):
Russell 1000 Index 26.53% 15.51% 11.80%

(1) Institutional Class shares first became available for sale on July 31, 2014. For performance prior to that date, this table includes the actual performance of the Fund's Investor Class (and uses the actual expenses of the Fund's Investor Class, for such period of time), without any adjustments. For any such period of time, the performance of the Fund's Institutional Class would have been substantially similar to, and higher than, the performance of the Fund's Investor Class, because the shares of both classes are invested in the same portfolio of securities, but Institutional Class shares would have had lower expenses.

After-tax returns are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates 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. In some instances, the return after taxes may be greater than the return before taxes because you are assumed to be able to use the capital loss on the sale of Fund shares to offset other taxable gains. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as a 401(k) account or individual retirement account (IRA).

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Weitz Funds - Large Cap Equity Fund

Fund Management

Investment Adviser

Weitz Investment Management, Inc. ("Weitz Inc.") is the investment adviser for the Fund.

Portfolio Manager

Bradley P. Hinton, CFA is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Mr. Hinton became a portfolio manager of the Fund in 2006.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

For Investor Class shares, the minimum investment required to open an account in the Fund is $2,500. The subsequent minimum investment requirement is $25.

For Institutional Class shares, the minimum investment required to open an account in the Fund is $1,000,000. The subsequent minimum investment requirement is $25.

Investors may purchase, redeem or exchange Fund shares by written request, telephone, online, or through a financial intermediary on any day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business. You may conduct transactions by mail (Weitz Funds, c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, P.O. Box 541150, Omaha, Nebraska 68154), by telephone at 888-859-0698, or online at weitzinvestments.com. Purchases and redemptions by telephone are only permitted if you previously established this option on your account.

Tax Information

The Fund's distributions may be taxable to you as ordinary income and/or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an IRA. Such tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed upon withdrawals made from those arrangements.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a financial adviser), the Fund and/ or its investment adviser may pay the intermediary an administrative fee to compensate them for the services they provide (commonly referred to as administrative fee payments). These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the financial intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.

WVAIX, WVALX Sum Pro
5412024

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