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Mutual Fund Alternative Event Driven

Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund

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Ticker
WCERX
CUSIP
95737C509
POP
$ (as of )
Inception
03/22/2017
Total Assets by Class
$3,968,594.96 (as of 03/27/2024)
Total Assets by Fund
$496,965,527.45 (as of 03/27/2024)
Morningstar Category
Event Driven

Portfolio Overview

Investment Overview

The Fund seeks to deliver consistent, positive absolute returns with lower volatility to traditional stocks by investing in corporate reorganizations diversified across companies, sectors, and asset classes globally. The highly specialized team seeks to profit from the successful completion of catalyst-specific transactions including split-ups, spin-offs, recapitalizations, mergers, acquisitions, late-stage bankruptcies, share buy-backs, or other special situations/restructurings, with minimal correlation to traditional stocks and bonds in virtually all market environments.

Management Team

Investment Partner

Westchester Capital Management, LLC

For over 30 years, Westchester Capital Management has endeavored to deliver consistent, absolute returns through the disciplined execution of event-driven alternative investment strategies.


Learn more about Westchester Capital Management, LLC

Investment Professionals

Roy Behren 400 x 400

Roy D. Behren

Co-President and Co-Chief Investment Officer

Industry start date: 1987
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 2014

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Michael Shannon 400 x 400

Michael T. Shannon, CFA

Co-President and Co-Chief Investment Officer

Industry start date: 1988
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 2014

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Key Features

Portfolio Diversifier and Potential Volatility Dampener

Event driven strategies have historically provided attractive absolute returns with lower volatility and minimal correlation relative to traditional stock and bond strategies, making for a powerful portfolio diversifier.

A Pioneer in Liquid Alternative Investments

With a history spanning more than three decades, Westchester is one of the leading investment managers of event-driven strategies. The Firm has a proven track record of identifying profitable event-driven opportunities through all market cycles.

Proven Expertise

A leader in global event driven investing for over 30 years, Westchester has evaluated more than 10,000 announced transactions, and invested in over 5,000 mergers, acquisitions, and corporate reorganizations, of which more than 98% were completed.

Portfolio Characteristics

Position Summary

(as of 12/29/2023)
Average position size 1.72%
Number of long positions(1) 66
Percent Invested 113.34%

Exposure (%)

(as of 12/29/2023)
Long 113.34%
Short 27.13%
Net 86.21%

Top 10 Positions

(as of 12/29/2023)
Hess Corporation
Pioneer Natural Resources Company
Splunk Inc.
WestRock Company
Capri Holdings Limited
Spirit Realty Capital, Inc.
Amedisys, Inc.
United States Steel Corporation
Carrier Global Corporation
Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc.
Top 10 Positions as % of Fund 42.51%
Holdings are subject to change.

Strategy Allocation and Contribution to Performance

(as of 12/29/2023)
Strategy Allocations Contribution
Arbitrage 54.95% 1.45%
Restructuring 18.77% 0.54%
Special Situations 17.23% 0.46%
Credit-Catalyst Opportunities 9.06% 0.53%
Total 100.00% 2.98%

Regional and sector exposure, top positions, and strategy allocation are subject to change.

Strategy allocation reflects the breakdown of opportunities classified by type of transaction. Arbitrage, in general, reflects investments after a public announcement is made; special situations reflect transactions that take advantage of valuation disparities produced by corporate events; credit events involve opportunities in late-stage bankruptcies; and extraordinary events attempt to isolate value enhancing events like restructurings.

Sector Exposure (% Long Positions ex-SPACs)

(as of 12/29/2023)
Energy
24.34
 24.34%
Materials
14.42
 14.42%
Information Technology
11.11
 11.11%
Consumer Discretionary
10.57
 10.57%
Health Care
10.40
 10.40%
Financials
7.30
 7.30%
Consumer Staples
6.32
 6.32%
Real Estate
4.82
 4.82%
Industrials
4.73
 4.73%
Communication Services
4.48
 4.48%
Utilities
1.52
 1.52%

Regional Exposure (% Long Positions)

(as of 12/29/2023)
United States
81.19
 81.19%
Europe ex-U.K.
7.58
 7.58%
United Kingdom
4.68
 4.68%
Japan
1.75
 1.75%
Australia
1.37
 1.37%
Canada
1.33
 1.33%
North America Offshore
0.91
 0.91%
Asia ex-Japan
0.73
 0.73%
South America
0.45
 0.45%

Performance & Risk

Growth of $10,000 Investment

From to
This chart assumes an initial investment of $10,000 made on for Class ddd shares including any applicable sales charges. Performance assumes reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions.

Performance

As of
As of

Performance data quoted represents past results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than the performance shown. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so your shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

Sales Charge and Expenses

The Index shown represents the Fund's performance index, which may differ from the Fund's regulatory index included in the Fund's Prospectus.

Risk Statistics3

(as of )
Fund Index
R2
Beta
Alpha
Std Dev

Risk Considerations

Fundamental Risk of Investing: There can be no assurance that the portfolio will achieve its investment objectives. An investment in the portfolio is subject to the risk of loss of principal; shares may decrease in value.
Merger-arbitrage & Event-driven Investing: Merger-arbitrage and event-driven investing involve the risk that the adviser's evaluation of the outcome of a proposed event, whether it be a merger, reorganization, regulatory issue, or other event, will prove incorrect and that the Fund's return on the investment may be negative.
Foreign Investing: Investing in foreign securities subjects the portfolio to additional risks such as increased volatility; currency fluctuations; less liquidity; less publicly available information about the foreign investment; and political, regulatory, economic, and market risk.
Short Sales: The portfolio may engage in short sales, and may incur a loss if the price of a borrowed security increases before the date on which the portfolio replaces the security.
Portfolio Turnover: The portfolio's principal investment strategies may result in a consistently high portfolio turnover rate. A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when the portfolio is held in a taxable account.
Credit & Interest: Debt instruments are subject to various risks, including credit and interest rate risk. The issuer of a debt security may fail to make interest and/or principal payments. Values of debt instruments may rise or fall in response to changes in interest rates, and this risk may be enhanced with longer-term maturities.
Derivatives: Derivatives may include, among other things, futures, options, forwards and swap agreements and may be used in order to hedge portfolio risks, create leverage, or attempt to increase returns. Investments in derivatives may result in increased volatility and the portfolio may incur a loss greater than its principal investment.
Hedging: The portfolio's hedging strategy will be subject to the portfolio's investment adviser's ability to correctly assess the degree of correlation between the performance of the instruments used in the hedging strategy and the performance of the investments in the portfolio being hedged.
Market Volatility: The value of the securities in the portfolio may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies and/or general economic conditions. Local, regional, or global events such as war or military conflict, terrorism, pandemic, or recession could impact the portfolio, including hampering the ability of the portfolio's manager(s) to invest its assets as intended.
Prospectus: For additional information on risks, please see the fund's prospectus.

Related Literature

Marketing Materials

Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Fact Sheet
Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Commentary
Westchester Investment Solutions At-A-Glance
Correlations, Inflation, and Interest Rates
Virtus Alternative Funds Menu
Westchester Market Review & Outlook

Financial Materials

The Merger Fund - Virtus Event Opportunities Trust Statutory Prospectus
Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Summary Prospectus
The Merger Fund - Virtus Event Opportunities Trust SAI
The Merger Fund - Virtus Event Opportunities Trust Annual Report
The Merger Fund - Virtus Event Opportunities Trust Semiannual Report

Holdings

Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Top Positions
Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Holdings Fiscal Q1
Virtus Westchester Event-Driven Fund Holdings Fiscal Q3

Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of any Virtus Mutual Fund before investing. The prospectus and summary prospectus contains this and other information about the fund. Please contact your financial representative, call 1-800-243-4361 to obtain a current prospectus and/or summary prospectus. You should read the prospectus and/or summary prospectus carefully before you invest or send money.

Performance data quoted represents past results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than the performance shown. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so your shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

Average annual total return is the annual compound return for the indicated period. It reflects the change in share price and the reinvestment of all dividends and capital gains. NAV returns do not include the effect of any applicable sales charges. POP and w/CDSC returns include the effect of maximum applicable sales charges.

Returns for periods of less than one year are cumulative total returns.

1 Yields/Distributions: 30-day SEC Yield is a standardized yield calculated according to a formula set by the SEC, and is subject to change. 30-day SEC Yield (unsubsidized) is the 30-day SEC Yield without the effect of applicable expense waivers. Distribution Rate is calculated by (a) annualizing the latest income distribution for fixed income funds or funds less than 1 year old, or (b) summing all income distributions over the preceding 12 months for all other funds, and dividing the NAV on the last business date of the period, unless otherwise indicated. The Distribution Rate may be comprised of ordinary income, net realized capital gains and returns of capital.

2 Distribution History: Distributions are represented on a cash basis and may be reclassified at year end for tax purposes. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes. STCG: Short Term Capital Gain, LTCG: Long Term Capital Gain

3 Risk Statistics: R2 is a statistical measure that represents the percentage of a fund or security's movements that can be explained by movements in a benchmark index. Beta is a quantitative measure of the volatility of a given portfolio to the overall market. Alpha is a risk adjusted measure of an investment's excess return relative to a benchmark. A positive Alpha indicates that the investment produced a return greater than expected for the risk (as measured by Beta) taken. Standard Deviation measures variability of returns around the average return for an investment fund. Higher standard deviation suggests greater risk. Risk Statistics are calculated using 36 monthly returns.

4 Characteristics: For Equity Funds: Avg. Weighted Market Cap (bn): The sum of each security's weight within the fund (or index) multiplied by the security's market capitalization. Trailing P/E Ex-Negative Earnings: Per-share stock price divided by the latest 12-months Earnings per Share; Price/Cash Flow: Per-share stock price divided by the per-share operating cash flow; Price/Book: Per-share stock price divided by the latest 12-month per-share Book Value; 3-Year EPS Growth Rate: Average of earnings per share growth for latest 3-year period. The 3-Year EPS Growth Rate is not a forecast of the fund's performance.

4 Characteristics: For Fixed Income Funds: Effective Duration represents the interest rate sensitivity of a fixed income fund. For example, if a fund's effective duration is five years, a 1% increase in interest rates would result in a 5% decline in the fund's price. Similarly, a 1% decline in interest rates would result in a 5% gain in the fund's price.

Morningstar Disclosures:
The Morningstar Rating for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods. Ratings do not take into account the effects of sales charges and loads.

© year Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete, or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.