PGIM Rock ETF Trust

11/01/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/01/2024 08:56

Summary Prospectus by Investment Company - Form 497K

November 12 Buffer ETF Summary Prospectus
PGIM US Large-Cap Buffer 12 ETF - November
Ticker Symbol: NOVP
Listing Exchange: Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.
SUMMARY PROSPECTUS  |  May 22, 2024 as reissued November 1, 2024
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund's Prospectus, Statement of Additional Information ("SAI"), Annual Report and other information about the Fund online at www.pgim.com/investments. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 1-888-247-8090 or by sending an e-mail to: [email protected]. The Fund's Prospectus and SAI, both dated December 22, 2023, as supplemented and amended from time to time,
are incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The Fund's investment objective is to provide investors with returns that match the price return of the SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust up to a predetermined upside cap while providing a downside buffer against the first 12% (before fees and expenses) of the SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust's losses over the one year Target Outcome Period. In seeking to achieve this investment objective, the Fund's upside cap over the period November 1, 2024 through October 31, 2025 is 14.05%.
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The table below describes 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 table and example below. The management agreement between PGIM Rock ETF Trust (the "Trust") and PGIM Investments LLC ("PGIM Investments") (the "Management Agreement") provides that PGIM Investments will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except for certain expenses, including but not limited to, interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future Rule 12b-1 fees (if any), and acquired fund fees and expenses. For more information on the fee structure pertaining to the Management Agreement please refer to the Fund's Statement of Additional Information.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management fee
0.50%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees
None
Other expenses
None
Total annual Fund operating expenses
0.50%
Example. The following hypothetical example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other exchange-traded funds. It assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. It assumes a 5% return on your investment each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same. Your actual costs may be higher or lower.
Number of Years You Own Shares
1 Year
3 Years
$51
$160
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 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. The Fund is newly offered; therefore, it does not have a turnover rate for the most recent fiscal year.
INVESTMENTS, RISKS AND PERFORMANCE
Principal Investment Strategies. 
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in investments that provide exposure to equity securities issued by large-capitalization U.S. companies. The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund ("ETF"). The Fund considers large-capitalization companies to be companies in which the Underlying ETF (as defined below) invests and/or which are included in the S&P 500® Index.
To enroll in e-delivery, go to pgim.com/investments/resource/edelivery
ETF1018A_NOV
The Fund will invest substantially all of its assets in customized equity or index option contracts known as FLexible EXchange® Options ("FLEX Options") on the SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust (the "Underlying ETF"). FLEX Options trade on an exchange, but provide investors with the ability to customize key contract terms like expiration date, option type (put or call), exercise style, strike price, premium, trading hours and exercise settlement, among others. Due to the Fund's strategy, the returns an investor will receive from an investment in the Fund have characteristics that are distinct from many other investment vehicles, including the Underlying ETF. It is important that you understand these characteristics before making an investment in the Fund.
The Underlying ETF is an exchange-traded unit investment trust that invests in as many of the stocks in the S&P 500® Index as is practicable. PDR Services, LLC ("PDR") serves as the Underlying ETF's sponsor. The Fund is not affiliated with sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, PDR, Standard & Poor's® or their affiliates. As of its most recent prospectus, the investment objective of the Underlying ETF is to seek to provide investment results that, before expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the S&P 500® Index (the "Index"). As of its most recent prospectus, the Underlying ETF seeks to achieve its investment objective by holding a portfolio of the common stocks that are included in the Index, with the weight of each stock in the Underlying ETF's portfolio substantially corresponding to the weight of such stock in the Index. The Fund's performance will not reflect the payment of dividends by the Underlying ETF or the securities in the Index. You can find the Underlying ETF's prospectus and other information about the ETF, including the most recent reports to shareholders, online at https://us.spdrs.com/en/etf/spdr-sp-500-etf-SPY. The reference to the Underlying ETF's website does not incorporate its contents into this prospectus.
The Fund seeks to produce a targeted range of potential returns (a "target outcome") based upon the share price performance (the "price return") of the Underlying ETF. The returns sought by the Fund, which include limited downside protection (a "limited buffer") against the first 12% (before fees and expenses) of Underlying ETF losses and an upside limit on share price return of the Underlying ETF (a "cap") of 14.05% (before fees and expenses), are based on the price return of the Underlying ETF over an approximate one-year period (the "Target Outcome Period"). When the Fund's management fee is taken into account, the cap is 13.55% and the limited buffer is 11.5%. The cap and limited buffer will be further reduced by any brokerage commissions, trading fees, taxes and extraordinary expenses not included in the Fund's management fee.
To achieve the target outcomes sought by the Fund for a Target Outcome Period, an investor must hold Fund shares for that entire Target Outcome Period. Because the FLEX Options which the Fund invests in are exercisable only on the final day of the Target Outcome Period, as described in more detail below, an investor that sells their shares prior to the end of the Target Outcome Period may experience investment outcomes very different from those sought by the Fund. To achieve the outcomes sought by the Fund over the Target Outcome Period, an investor must hold shares at the beginning and end of the Target Outcome Period, the times when the Fund enters into and exercises the FLEX Options. In general, the target outcomes the Fund seeks for investors that hold Fund shares for the entire Target Outcome Period are as follows, though there can be no guarantee these results will be achieved:
If the Underlying ETF appreciates over the Target Outcome Period, the Fund seeks to provide investors holding the Fund's shares for the entire Target Outcome Period upside participation matching that of the Underlying ETF, up to the cap. The cap for the current Target Outcome Period is 14.05% (before fees and expenses).
If the Underlying ETF depreciates over the Target Outcome Period, the Fund seeks to ensure that investors holding the Fund's shares for the entire Target Outcome Period do not experience the first 12% of Underlying ETF losses, prior to taking into account the Fund's fees and expenses.
If the Underlying ETF depreciates by more than 12% over the Target Outcome Period, the Fund will experience all subsequent losses on a one-to-one basis (i.e., if the Underlying ETF decreases in share price by 25% the Fund is expected to lose 13% before fees and expenses).
The current Target Outcome Period began on November 1, 2024 and will end on October 31, 2025. Subsequent Target Outcome Periods will begin on the day the prior Target Outcome Period ends and will end on the day before the one-year anniversary of that new Target Outcome Period. On the first day of each new Target Outcome Period, the Fund resets by investing in a new set of FLEX Options that are designed to provide a new cap for the new Target Outcome Period. This means that the cap will change for each Target Outcome Period based upon prevailing market conditions at the beginning of each Target Outcome Period. The limited buffer will remain the same for each Target Outcome Period. The cap and limited buffer, and the Fund's value relative to each, should be considered before investing in the Fund. The Fund will not terminate as a result of reaching the end of a Target Outcome Period. Approximately one week prior to the end of the current Target Outcome Period, the Fund's website will be updated to alert existing shareholders that the Target Outcome Period is approaching its conclusion and will disclose the anticipated cap range for the next Target Outcome Period. See "Subsequent Target Outcome Periods" for more information. An investor that purchases Fund shares other than on the first day of a Target Outcome Period and/or sells Fund shares prior to the end of a Target Outcome Period would be expected to experience results that are very different from returns sought by the Fund for that Target Outcome Period and may be exposed to greater risk of loss. While the cap and limited buffer are designed to provide the intended range of returns only for investors that hold their shares throughout the complete term of the Target Outcome Period, an investor can expect their shares to generally move in the same direction as the Underlying ETF during the Target Outcome Period. However, during
the Target Outcome Period, an investor's shares may not experience price movement to the same extent as the price movement of the Underlying ETF. During the Target Outcome Period, there may be periods of significant disparity between the Fund's NAV and the Underlying ETF's price return. As the Underlying ETF's price and the Fund's net asset value ("NAV") change over the Target Outcome Period, an investor acquiring Fund shares after the start of the Target Outcome Period will likely have a different return potential than an investor who purchased Fund shares at the start of the Target Outcome Period. This is because while the cap and limited buffer for the Target Outcome Period are fixed levels that are calculated in relation to the Underlying ETF price and the Fund's NAV at the start of a Target Outcome Period and remain constant throughout the Target Outcome Period, an investor purchasing Fund shares at market price during the Target Outcome Period likely purchased Fund shares at a price that is different from the Fund's NAV at the start of the Target Outcome Period (i.e., the NAV that the cap and limited buffer reference). For example, if an investor purchases Fund shares during a Target Outcome Period at a time when the Fund has decreased in value from the value of the Fund on the first day of the Target Outcome Period, that investor's limited buffer will essentially be decreased by the amount of the decrease in the Underlying ETF's value. Conversely, if an investor purchases Fund shares during a Target Outcome Period at a time when the Fund has increased in value from the value of the Fund on the first day of the Target Outcome Period, that investor's cap will essentially be decreased by the amount of the increase in the Underlying ETF value. See "Limited Buffer and Cap" below for additional information.
The graph below shows hypothetical examples of returns the Fund would experience (before fees and expenses) based on example returns of the Underlying ETF. The hypothetical examples set forth below do not represent the performance of the Fund and investors should not rely on the hypothetical examples shown below as an indication of the actual or future performance of the Fund.
◼ Reference Asset
◼ PGIM US Large-Cap Buffer 12 ETF -
November
The Fund is "non-diversified" for purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the "1940 Act"), which means that it can invest a greater percentage of its assets in fewer issuers than a "diversified" fund.
The Fund's investment objective is not a fundamental policy, and therefore may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval.
FLEX Options
The Fund invests in FLEX Options, which are a type of derivative. For each Target Outcome Period, the Fund will invest in a combination of purchased and written FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF. Because a portion of the value of the Fund is based on FLEX Options that reference the Underlying ETF and not the Underlying ETF directly, variations in the value of the FLEX Options affect the correlation between the Fund's NAV and the price of the Underlying ETF. The Fund utilizes European style option contracts, which are exercisable only on the expiration date of the option contract.
The Fund will generally, under normal market conditions, hold four kinds of FLEX Options for each Target Outcome Period. The Fund seeks to achieve the limited buffer by using the four kinds of FLEX Options, and the price of the FLEX Options is used to establish the Fund's cap. The Fund intends to structure the FLEX Options so that any amount owed by the Fund on the written FLEX Options will be covered by payouts at expiration from the purchased FLEX Options. As a result, the FLEX Options written by the Fund will be fully covered and no additional collateral will be necessary at expiration. Each of the FLEX Options purchased and sold throughout the Target Outcome Period will have the same terms, such as strike price and expiration date, as the FLEX Options purchased and sold on the first day of the Target Outcome Period. On the termination date of an outcome period, the Fund will invest in a new set of FLEX Options and another outcome period will commence.
Limited Buffer and Cap
The Fund seeks to provide a limited buffer to absorb the first 12% loss (before fees and expenses) of the Underlying ETF at the end of each Target Outcome Period. If the Underlying ETF has decreased in price by more than 12%, the Fund will experience subsequent losses on a one-to-one basis (i.e., if the Underlying ETF decreases in price by 25%, the Fund is expected to lose 13% before fees and expenses). The limited buffer is set before taking into account the Fund's
management fees and expenses charged to shareholders. When the Fund's management fees are taken into account, the limited buffer is 11.5%. The limited buffer will be further reduced by any brokerage commissions, trading fees, taxes and extraordinary expenses not included in the Fund's management fee. The Fund does not seek to provide a limited buffer on the first 12% loss (before fees and expenses) of the Underlying ETF as of any time other than the end of the Target Outcome Period.
If an investor purchases Fund shares during a Target Outcome Period at a time when the Fund's NAV has decreased in value by 12% or more (before fees and expenses) from the value of the Fund on the first day of the Target Outcome Period (the "Initial Fund Value"), that investor's limited buffer will essentially be zero (meaning the investor is exposed to a greater risk of losing their entire investment). If an investor purchases Fund shares at a time when the Fund's NAV has decreased in value by less than 12% (before fees and expenses) from the Initial Fund Value, that investor's limited buffer will be reduced by the difference between the Initial Fund Value and the NAV of the Fund on the date the investor purchases the shares. However, that investor's potential gain could be larger than the Fund's cap for the Target Outcome Period because the investor may experience the full gain if the Fund recovers the value it has lost from the first day of the Target Outcome Period through the date the investor purchased its Fund shares plus any additional gains between the Initial Fund Value and the cap. There is no guarantee that the Fund will recover such value or experience such gains. The cap and limited buffer relative to the Initial Fund Value, however, will not change over the Target Outcome Period. Conversely, if an investor purchases Fund shares during a Target Outcome Period at a time when the Fund has increased in value from its Initial Fund Value for a Target Outcome Period, then a shareholder must experience losses prior to gaining the protection offered by the limited buffer (because the Fund must first decrease in value to its Initial Fund Value for the Target Outcome Period before subsequent losses will be protected by the limited buffer). While the Fund seeks to limit losses to the extent of the limited buffer (before fees and expenses) for shareholders who hold Fund shares for an entire Target Outcome Period, there is no guarantee it will successfully do so. If the Fund's NAV has decreased below the limited buffer at the time of purchase, a shareholder that purchases Fund shares after the first day of a Target Outcome Period could lose their entire investment . An investment in the Fund is only appropriate for shareholders willing to bear those losses. There is no guarantee the limited buffer will be successful and a shareholder investing at the beginning of a Target Outcome Period could also lose their entire investment.
The returns of the Fund are subject to a cap for the Target Outcome Period of 14.05% (before fees and expenses) and 13.55% (after the Fund's management fee but excluding brokerage commissions, trading fees, taxes and extraordinary expenses not included in the Fund's management fee) for the Target Outcome Period. Unlike other investment products, the potential returns an investor can receive from the Fund are subject to a pre-determined upside return cap that represents the maximum percentage return an investor can achieve from an investment in the Fund for an entire Target Outcome Period. If the Underlying ETF experiences any percentage gains over the amount of the cap, Fund shareholders will not experience those gains. Therefore, regardless of the price return of the Underlying ETF, the cap (net of fees) is the maximum return an investor can achieve from an investment in the Fund for that Target Outcome Period. The cap is set on the first day of each Target Outcome Period. The cap is provided prior to taking into account annual Fund management fees of 0.50% of the Fund's daily net assets, brokerage commissions, trading fees, taxes and any extraordinary expenses (such as unexpected litigation) incurred by the Fund. The defined cap applicable to a Target Outcome Period will vary based on prevailing market conditions at the time that the cap is set, including interest rate levels, Underlying ETF volatility, and the relationship of puts and calls on the FLEX Options.
The cap level is a result of the design of the Fund's principal investment strategy. To provide the target outcome, the Fund purchases and sells a series of put and call FLEX Options on or around the last business day of the month prior to the beginning of a Target Outcome Period. As the purchaser of these FLEX Options, the Fund is obligated to pay a premium to the seller of those FLEX Options. The Fund's subadviser will calculate the amount of premiums that the Fund will owe on the put options acquired and sold to provide the limited buffer and will then sell call FLEX Options with terms that entitle the Fund to receive premiums such that the net amount of premiums paid per unit of the Underlying ETF is approximately equal to the price per unit of shares of the Underlying ETF. The cap is the strike price of those FLEX Options the Fund is selling. The cap, and the Fund's value relative to it on any given day, should be considered before investing in the Fund. If an investor purchases Fund shares during a Target Outcome Period, and the Fund has already increased in value above its Initial Fund Value for that Target Outcome Period to a level near the cap, an investor purchasing Fund shares will have limited to no gain potential for the remainder of the Target Outcome Period (because the investor's potential gain will be limited to the difference between the Fund's NAV on the date the investor purchased the Fund shares and the cap). However, the investor will remain vulnerable to significant downside risk because the investor will bear the losses between the price at which it purchased its Fund shares and the Initial Fund Value for the Target Outcome Period before subsequent losses will be protected by the limited buffer. If an investor buys Fund shares when the price exceeds the cap, an investor selling their shares at the end of the Target Outcome Period will not experience any gain regardless of the price return of the Underlying ETF. There is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in providing these investment outcomes for any Target Outcome Period, and an investor may experience returns on the Fund significantly below the cap.
In periods of extreme market volatility or during market disruption events, the Fund's ability to offset investor losses through the use of the FLEX Options to achieve the stated limited buffer, or provide a return up to the stated upside cap may be impaired, resulting in an upside limit significantly below the cap and downside protection significantly lower than the limited buffer, because the Fund may not be able to trade or exercise existing FLEX Options, or may not receive timely payment from its counterparties. An investor may lose their entire investment and an investment in the Fund is only appropriate for investors willing to bear those losses.
Investors purchasing shares of the Fund during a Target Outcome Period will experience different results. The Fund's website, https://www.pgim.com/investments/etf-buffer-fund, Ticker: NOVP, provides information relating to the possible outcomes for an investor of an investment in the Fund on a daily basis, if purchased on that date and held through the end of the Target Outcome Period, including the Fund's value relative to the cap and limited buffer. Before purchasing Fund shares, an investor should visit the Fund's website to review this information and understand the possible outcomes of an investment in Fund shares on a particular day and held through the end of the Target Outcome Period.
Principal Risks. All investments have risks to some degree. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return, if any, you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day-to-day and over time.
You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments.
An investment in the Fund is not guaranteed to achieve its investment objective; is not a deposit with a bank; and is not insured, endorsed or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The following is a summary description of principal risks of investing in the Fund.
The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in "How to Buy and Sell Shares of the Fund" in the Fund's Prospectus) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of intermediaries that act as Authorized Participants and none of these Authorized Participants is or will be obligated to engage in creation or redemption transactions. To the extent that these Authorized Participants exit the business or are unable to or choose not to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized Participant creates or redeems, shares of the Fund may trade at a substantial discount or premium to net asset value ("NAV"), may trade at larger spreads, and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.
Buffered Loss Risk. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its strategy to provide limited downside protection against Underlying ETF losses. The Fund does not provide principal protection and a shareholder may experience significant losses including losing their entire investment. The Fund's strategy seeks to deliver returns that match the price return of the Underlying ETF (up to the cap), while limiting downside losses, if shares are bought on the first day of the Target Outcome Period and held until the end of the Target Outcome Period. If an investor purchases shares after the first day of the Target Outcome Period or sells shares prior to the end of the Target Outcome Period, the buffer that the Fund seeks to provide may not be available. A shareholder may also bear losses against which the buffer is intended to protect. In periods of extreme market volatility, the Fund's downside protection may be significantly less than the limited buffer. In addition, because the buffer is structured to protect the Fund's loss of NAV, to the extent an investor sells Fund shares on an exchange and the Fund's shares are trading at prices that deviate from NAV, a shareholder may not realize the full value of the of the downside protection or benefit from the full value of any appreciation up to the cap.
Cap Change Risk. A new cap is established at the beginning of each Target Outcome Period and is dependent on prevailing market conditions. As a result, the cap may rise or fall from one Target Outcome Period to the next and is unlikely to remain the same for consecutive Target Outcome Periods.
Capped Upside Risk. The Fund's strategy seeks to provide returns subject to a pre-determined upside cap. The upside cap is the approximate maximum return that an investor can achieve from an investment in the Fund over an entire Target Outcome Period. If the Underlying ETF experiences gains during a Target Outcome Period, the Fund will not participate in those gains beyond the cap. If an investor does not hold its Fund shares for an entire Target Outcome Period, the returns realized by that investor may not match those the Fund seeks to achieve. As a result of the Fund's fees and expenses and because the Fund's returns are subject to a cap, the return of the Fund could represent a return that is worse than the price performance of the Underlying ETF. In periods of heightened market volatility, the Fund's upside limit may be significantly lower than the cap.
Cash Transactions Risk. Unlike ETFs that engage almost exclusively in creations and redemptions in exchange for a basket of portfolio securities (an "in-kind" transaction), the Fund may effect creations and redemptions in cash or partially in cash. Therefore, it may be required to sell portfolio securities and subsequently recognize gains on such sales that the Fund might not have recognized if it were to distribute portfolio securities in-kind. Investments in shares of the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that distributes portfolio securities entirely in-kind.
Counterparty Risk. Derivatives are subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will be unable or unwilling to fulfill its contractual obligation, and the related risks of having concentrated exposure to such a counterparty. The OCC acts as guarantor and central counterparty with respect to the FLEX Options. As a result, the ability of the Fund to meet its objective depends on the OCC being able to meet its obligations. In the unlikely event that the OCC becomes insolvent or is otherwise unable to meet its settlement obligations, the Fund could suffer significant losses.
Derivatives Risk. Derivatives involve special risks and costs and may result in losses to the Fund. The successful use of derivatives requires sophisticated management, and, to the extent that derivatives are used, the Fund will depend on the subadviser's ability to analyze and manage derivatives transactions. The prices of derivatives may move in unexpected ways, especially in abnormal market conditions. Some derivatives are "leveraged" or may create economic leverage for the Fund and therefore may magnify or otherwise increase investment losses to the Fund. The Fund's use of derivatives may also increase the amount of taxes payable by shareholders.
Other risks arise from the potential inability to terminate or sell derivatives positions. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund's derivatives positions. In fact, many over-the-counter derivative instruments will not have liquidity beyond the counterparty to the instrument. Over-the-counter derivative instruments also involve the risk that the other party will not meet its obligations to the Fund. The use of derivatives also exposes the Fund to operational issues, such as documentation and settlement issues, systems failures, inadequate control and human error.
Derivatives may also involve legal risks, such as insufficient documentation, the lack of capacity or authority of a counterparty to execute or settle a transaction, and the legality and enforceability of derivatives contracts. The U.S. Government and foreign governments have adopted (and may adopt further) regulations governing derivatives markets, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin and reporting requirements and risk exposure limitations. Regulation of derivatives may make derivatives more costly, limit their availability or utility to the Fund, or otherwise adversely affect their performance or disrupt markets.
Economic and Market Events Risk. Events in the U.S. and global financial markets, including actions taken by the U.S. Federal Reserve or foreign central banks to stimulate or stabilize economic growth or the functioning of the securities markets, or otherwise reduce inflation, may at times result in unusually high market volatility, which could negatively impact performance. Governmental efforts to curb inflation often have negative effects on the level of economic activity. Relatively reduced liquidity in credit and fixed income markets could adversely affect issuers worldwide.
Equity and Equity-Related Securities Risk. The Fund is exposed to the performance of the equity markets through its exposure to options on the Underlying ETF. Equity and equity-related securities may be subject to changes in value, and their values may be more volatile than those of other asset classes. In addition to an individual security losing value, the value of the equity markets or a sector in which the Fund invests could go down. Different parts of a market can react differently to adverse issuer, market, regulatory, political and economic developments.
ETF Shares Trading Risk. Fund shares are listed for trading on an exchange (the "Exchange") and the shares are bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. The market prices of the shares of the Fund are expected to fluctuate in response to changes in the Fund's NAV, the intraday value of the Fund's holdings and supply and demand for shares of the Fund. During periods of stressed market conditions, the market for the shares of the Fund may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund portfolio investments.
Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of significant market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for the shares of the Fund (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in the Fund shares trading on the Exchange significantly above (at a premium) or below (at a discount) to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund holdings.
Cost of Buying or Selling Shares. When you buy or sell shares of the Fund through a broker, you will likely incur a brokerage commission or other charges imposed by brokers. In addition, the market price of shares of the Fund, like the price of any exchange-traded security, includes a "bid-ask spread" charged by the market makers or other participants that trade the particular security. The spread of the Fund shares varies over time based on the Fund's trading volume, the spread of the Fund's underlying securities, and market liquidity and may increase if the Fund's trading volume or market liquidity decreases, or if the spread on the Fund's underlying securities increases.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market Risk. While shares of the Fund are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that active trading markets for the shares will develop or be maintained by market makers or by Authorized Participants. The distributor of the Fund's shares does not maintain a secondary market in the shares.
FLEX Options Risk. When the Fund purchases an option, it may lose the premium paid for it if the price of the underlying security, commodity or other asset decreases or remains the same (in the case of a call option) or increases or remains the same (in the case of a put option). If a put or call option purchased by the Fund were permitted to expire without being sold or exercised, its premium would represent a loss to the Fund. To the extent that the Fund writes or sells an option, if the decline or increase in the underlying asset is significantly below or above the exercise price of the written option, the Fund could experience a substantial or unlimited loss. Options pricing is volatile, and the price may fluctuate based on
movements in the value of the underlying asset or for reasons other than changes in the value of the underlying asset. Investments in options are considered speculative.
FLEX Options are subject to the risk that they may be less liquid than other securities, including standardized options. FLEX Options are listed on an exchange; however, there is no guarantee that a liquid secondary trading market will exist for the FLEX Options. In a less liquid market for the FLEX Options, liquidating the FLEX Options may require the payment of a premium (for written FLEX Options) or acceptance of a discounted price (for purchased FLEX Options) and may take longer to complete. A less liquid trading market may adversely impact the value of the FLEX Options and Fund shares and result in the Fund being unable to achieve its investment objective.
FLEX Options Trading Risk. Transactions in FLEX Options are required to be centrally cleared. In a transaction involving FLEX Options, the Fund's counterparty is the OCC, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of the OCC and only members ("clearing members") can participate directly in the OCC, the Fund will hold its FLEX Options through accounts at clearing members. For FLEX Options positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from the OCC through its accounts at clearing members. Although clearing members guarantee their clients' obligations to the OCC, there is a risk that a clearing member may default. The OCC collects margin, maintains a clearing fund specifically to mitigate a clearing member default and segregates all customer accounts from a clearing member's proprietary accounts, however customer accounts are held in an omnibus account and are not identified with the name of an individual customer. As a result, assets deposited by the Fund with a clearing member as margin for FLEX Options may be used to satisfy losses of other clients of the Fund's clearing member. There is a risk that the assets of the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of a clearing member's default and the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the clearing member's customers for the relevant account. Therefore, the Fund could experience and significant loss in the event of a clearing member's default. Additionally, the OCC may be unable to perform its obligations under the FLEX Options contracts due to unexpected events, which could negatively impact the value of the Fund.
FLEX Options Valuation Risk. The FLEX Options held by a Fund will be exercisable at the strike price only on their expiration date. As an in-the-money FLEX Option approaches its expiration date, its value typically will increasingly move with the value of the Underlying ETF. However, the value of the FLEX Options prior to the expiration date may vary because of related factors other than the value of the Underlying ETF. The value of the FLEX Options will be determined based upon market quotations or using other recognized pricing methods. Factors that may influence the value of the FLEX Options generally include interest rate changes, dividends, the actual and implied volatility levels of the Underlying ETF's share price, and the remaining time until the FLEX Options expire, among others. The value of the FLEX Options held by a Fund typically do not increase or decrease at the same rate as the Underlying ETF's share price on a day-to-day basis due to these factors (although they generally move in the same direction), and, as a result, the Fund's NAV may not increase or decrease at the same rate as the Underlying ETF's share price.
Large Capitalization Companies Risk. Companies with large market capitalizations go in and out of favor based on market and economic conditions. Larger companies tend to be less volatile than companies with smaller market capitalizations. In exchange for this potentially lower risk, the Fund's value may not rise or fall as much as the value of funds that emphasize companies with smaller market capitalizations.
Large Shareholder and Large Scale Redemption Risk. Certain individuals, accounts, funds (including funds affiliated with the Manager) or institutions, including the Manager and its affiliates, may from time to time own or control a substantial amount of the Fund's shares. There is no requirement that these entities maintain their investment in the Fund. There is a risk that such large shareholders or that the Fund's shareholders generally may redeem all or a substantial portion of their investments in the Fund in a short period of time, which could have a significant negative impact on the Fund's NAV, liquidity, and brokerage costs. Large redemptions could also result in tax consequences to shareholders and impact the Fund's ability to implement its investment strategy. The Fund's ability to pursue its investment objective after one or more large scale redemptions may be impaired and, as a result, the Fund may invest a larger portion of its assets in cash or cash equivalents.
Leverage Risk. FLEX Options and other derivatives may give rise to leverage. The use of leverage exaggerates the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of the Fund's holdings, and makes any change in the Fund's net asset value greater than it would be without the use of leverage. This could result in increased volatility of investment return. The Fund may be required to pledge its assets or post margin in connection with certain borrowings or derivatives transactions that involve leverage. There is a possibility that posting or pledging a large portion of the assets of the Fund could impede portfolio management or the Fund's ability to meet redemption requests or other current obligations or that the Fund may be required to dispose of some of its investment at unfavorable prices or times.
Liquidity Risk. The Fund may invest in instruments that trade in lower volumes and are more illiquid than other investments. If the Fund is forced to sell these investments to pay redemption proceeds or for other reasons, the Fund may lose money. In addition, when there is no willing buyer and investments cannot be readily sold at the desired time or price, the Fund may have to accept a lower price or may not be able to sell the instrument at all. An inability to sell a portfolio position can adversely affect the Fund's value or prevent the Fund from being able to take advantage of other investment opportunities.
Management Risk. Actively managed funds are subject to management risk. The subadviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but the subadviser's judgments about the attractiveness, value or market trends affecting a particular security, industry or sector or about market movements may be incorrect. Additionally, the investments selected for the Fund may underperform the markets in general, the Fund's benchmark and other funds with similar investment objectives.
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risks. Market disruption can be caused by economic, financial or political events and factors, including but not limited to, international wars or conflicts (including Russia's military invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war), geopolitical developments (including trading and tariff arrangements, sanctions and cybersecurity attacks), instability in regions such as Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, terrorism, natural disasters and public health epidemics (including the outbreak of COVID-19 globally).
The extent and duration of such events and resulting market disruptions cannot be predicted, but could be substantial and could magnify the impact of other risks to the Fund. These and other similar events could adversely affect the U.S. and foreign financial markets and lead to increased market volatility, reduced liquidity in the securities markets, significant negative impacts on issuers and the markets for certain securities and commodities and/or government intervention. They may also cause short- or long-term economic uncertainties in the United States and worldwide. As a result, whether or not the Fund invests in securities of issuers located in or with significant exposure to the countries directly affected, the value and liquidity of the Fund's investments may be negatively impacted. Further, due to closures of certain markets and restrictions on trading certain securities, the value of certain securities held by the Fund could be significantly impacted, which could lead to such securities being valued at zero.
Market Risk. The markets for securities and other financial instruments may be volatile and the market prices of the Fund's holdings may decline. Securities and other financial instruments fluctuate in price based on changes in an issuer's financial condition and overall market and economic conditions. If the market prices of the securities or other assets owned by the Fund or the Underlying ETF fall, the value of your investment in the Fund will decline.
New/Small Fund Risk. The Fund recently commenced operations and has a limited operating history. As a new and relatively small fund, the Fund's performance may not represent how the Fund is expected to or may perform in the long term if and when it becomes larger and has fully implemented its investment strategies. Investment positions may have a disproportionate impact (negative or positive) on performance in new and smaller funds. New and smaller funds may also require a period of time before they are invested in securities that meet their investment objectives and policies and achieve a representative portfolio composition. Since the Fund is new, an active secondary market for the shares of the Fund may not develop or may not continue once developed. Shareholders holding large blocks of shares of the Fund, including the Manager and its affiliates, may hold their shares for long periods of time, which may lead to reduced trading volumes, wider trading spreads and impede the development or maintenance of an active secondary trading market for Fund shares. These large shareholders may also loan or sell all or a portion of their Fund shares, which may result in increasing concentration of Fund shares in a small number of holders, and the potential for large redemptions, decreases in Fund assets and increased expenses for remaining shareholders.
Non-Diversified Investment Company Risk. The Fund is non-diversified for purposes of the 1940 Act. This means that the Fund may invest a greater percentage of its assets in the securities of a single company or other issuer than a diversified fund. Investing in a non-diversified fund involves greater risk than investing in a diversified fund because a loss resulting from the decline in value of any one security may represent a greater portion of the total assets of a non-diversified fund.
Target Outcome Period Risk. The Fund is designed to deliver returns that approximate the Underlying ETF if Fund shares are bought on the first day of a Target Outcome Period and held until the end of the Target Outcome Period, subject to the limited buffer and the cap. If an investor purchases Fund shares after the first day of a Target Outcome Period or sells shares prior to the expiration of the Target Outcome Period, the returns realized by the investor will not match those that the Fund seeks to provide.
Tax Risk. The Fund intends to qualify as a regulated investment company ("RIC") under Subchapter M of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"); however, the federal income tax treatment of certain aspects of the proposed operations of the Fund are not clear. This includes the tax aspects of the Fund's options strategy (including the distribution of options as part of the Fund's in-kind redemptions), the possible application of the "straddle" rules, and various loss limitation provisions of the Code. To qualify and maintain its status as a RIC, the Fund must meet certain income, diversification and distribution tests. If the Fund did not qualify as a RIC for any taxable year and certain relief provisions were not available, the Fund's taxable income would be subject to tax at the Fund level and to a further tax at the shareholder level when such income is distributed. In such event, in order to re-qualify for taxation as a RIC, a Fund might be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay substantial taxes and interest and make certain distributions. This would cause investors to incur higher tax liabilities than they otherwise would have incurred and would have a negative impact on Fund returns. In such event, a Fund may reorganize, close or materially change its investment objective and strategies.
The Fund's investments in offsetting positions with respect to the Underlying ETF may affect the character of gains or losses realized by the Fund under the Code's "straddle" rules and may increase the amount of short-term capital gain realized by the Fund. Short-term capital gains are taxed as ordinary income when distributed to U.S. shareholders in a non-liquidating
distribution. As a result, if the Fund makes a non-liquidating distribution of its short-term capital gain, the amount which U.S. shareholders must treat as ordinary income may be increased substantially as compared to a fund that did not engage in such transactions. Accordingly, shareholders could have a lower after-tax return from investing in the Fund than investing directly in the Underlying ETF (even if the value of the Underlying ETF does not exceed the cap).
The FLEX Options included in the Fund's portfolio are exchange-traded options. The tax treatment of certain derivatives contracts including listed non-equity options written or purchased by the Fund on U.S. exchanges (such as options on futures contracts, broad-based equity indices and debt securities) may be governed by Section 1256 of the Code ("Section 1256 Contracts"). Section 1256 Contracts are treated as if they were sold (i.e., "marked to market") at the end of each year. Gain or loss is recognized on this deemed sale. Such treatment could cause the Fund to recognize taxable income without receiving cash. In order to maintain its RIC qualification, the Fund must distribute at least 90% of its income annually. If FLEX Options held by the Fund are subject to Section 1256 of the Code, and the Fund is unable to distribute marked-to-market gains to its shareholders, the Fund may lose its RIC qualification and be taxed as a regular corporation. The Fund believes that the FLEX Options typically held in its portfolio will not be subject to Section 1256, and disposition of such options will likely result in short-term capital gains or losses.
In addition, the Fund generally does not expect to recognize taxable gains on the in-kind distribution of appreciated portfolio securities to a redeeming shareholder, which may reduce the amount of taxable gains the Fund would otherwise be required to distribute. However, certain tax aspects of the Fund's in-kind distributions, including the treatment of certain options, are not clear. If the Fund were required to recognize gain on its in-kind distributions, the effect on the Fund would be similar to the Fund effecting a portion of its redemptions for cash. This generally would cause the Fund to recognize gain it might not otherwise have recognized, or to recognize such gain sooner than would otherwise have been required, and would increase the amount required to be distributed by the Fund in order to maintain its qualification as a RIC.
Additionally, buying securities shortly before the record date for a taxable dividend or capital gain distribution is commonly known as "buying a dividend." If a shareholder purchases Fund shares after the Hedge Period has begun and shortly thereafter a Fund issues a dividend, the entire distribution may be taxable to the shareholder even though a portion of the distribution effectively represents a return of the purchase price.
Underlying ETF Risk. The value of an investment in the Fund will be related, to a degree, to the investment performance of the Underlying ETF. Therefore, the principal risks of investing in the Fund are closely related to the principal risks associated with the Underlying ETF and its investments. Exposure to the Underlying ETF will also expose the Fund to a pro rata portion of the Underlying ETF's fees and expenses. The Fund's value may not directly correlate to the value of the Underlying ETF due to the Fund's fees and transaction expenses related to the FLEX Options and that the FLEX Options are only exercisable on the expiration date. The fluctuating value of the FLEX Options will affect the Fund's value.
Performance.The Fund has not been in operation for a full calendar year, and hence has no past performance data to present. Once the Fund has a performance record of at least one calendar year, the Fund's performance will be included in its Prospectus. Updated Fund performance information, including current net asset value, is available online at www.pgim.com/investments.
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND
The following individuals are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.
Investment Manager
Subadviser
Portfolio Managers
Title
Service Date
PGIM Investments LLC
PGIM Quantitative Solutions LLC
Marco Aiolfi
Managing Director and
Portfolio Manager
March 2024
John Hall, CFA
Vice President
December 2023
Devang Gambhirwala
Principal and Portfolio
Manager
December 2023
BUYING AND SELLING FUND SHARES
Individual shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through brokers or other financial intermediaries at market prices and are not individually redeemable by the ETF. Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on the Exchange, and because the shares of the Fund trade at market prices rather than NAV, shares of the Fund may trade at a price greater than NAV (a "premium") or less than NAV (a "discount"). You may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund ("bid") and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund ("ask") when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the "bid-ask spread").
TAX INFORMATION
Dividends, Capital Gains and Taxes. The Fund's dividends and distributions are taxable and will be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account. Such tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of monies from those arrangements.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), PGIM or other related companies may pay the intermediary for marketing activities and presentations, educational training programs, conferences, the development of technology platforms and reporting systems or other services related to the sale or promotion of the Fund. 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 intermediary's website for more information.
Notes
By Mail:
PGIM Investments LLC, 655 Broad Street, Newark NJ 07102
By Telephone:
(888) 247-8090 or (973) 802-2093 (outside the US)
On the Internet:
www.pgim.com/investments
ETF1018A_NOV