Mutual Funds
Virginia Intermediate Tax-Free Fund
Fund Managers
Robert Millikan, CFA®
Michael McVicker
Overview
C
Shares
BVACX
Inception
Date
02.01.2012
Investment
Min.
$1,000
Subsequent
Investment Min.1
N/A
Max. Up Front
Sales Charge
N/A
Max. Deferred
Sales Charge
1%
1If subsequent investments are made as part of an AIP, the minimum is $25.
Philosophy & Process
The Fund seeks current income exempt from federal and Virginia income taxes consistent with preservation of capital.
In managing the Fund, the team specializes in actively building and managing a high credit quality fixed income portfolio focused on the intermediate segment of the yield curve offering. The team employs a top-down investment process that focuses on: duration management, yield curve strategy and finding the best relative value with limited amount of risk in order to maximize the risk-adjusted total return.
Buy Strategy: We buy high quality, liquid issues and seek the best relative sector and security values available. We attempt to maximize total return and current income while reducing price volatility.
Sell Strategy: We will consider selling a security we own in order to reposition the Fund along the yield curve and adjust the Fund's average maturity or duration. In addition, we might replace a security with one that offers greater potential for total return or when its credit fundamentals are deteriorating.
Investment Considerations
The funds are subject to the same risks as the underlying bonds in the portfolios such as credit, prepayment and interest rate risk. As interest rates rise, the value of bond prices will decline and an investor may lose money. The funds are non-diversified and may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a single issuer than funds that are more diversified. Furthermore, the funds invest primarily in state-specific municipal obligations of issuers and therefore will be affected by economic, political or other events affecting municipal issuers.
| Term | Class A Shares | Class C Shares | Class I Shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ticker | BVAAX | BVACX | BVATX |
| Inception Date | 05.17.1999 | 02.01.2012 | 05.17.1999 |
| Investment Min. | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Subsequent Investment Min.2 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Max. Up Front Sales Charge | 2% | N/A | N/A |
| Max. Deferred Sales Charge | N/A | 1% | N/A |
2If subsequent investments are made as part of an AIP, the minimum is $25.
Co-Portfolio Manager
Co-Portfolio Manager
Performance
| Term | QTR | YTD | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | Since Inception |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Shares with 2.00% Sales Charge | -3.05% | -1.35% | -0.60% | -2.28% | 0.56% | 1.21% | 2.90% |
| A Shares without Sales Charge | -1.06% | 0.70% | 1.47% | -1.61% | 0.96% | 1.41% | 2.98% |
| Institutional Shares | -1.00% | 0.92% | 1.72% | -1.37% | 1.23% | 1.67% | 3.16% |
| Lipper Other States Intermediate Municipal Median | -0.53% | 1.31% | 1.93% | -1.14% | 1.14% | 1.69% | N/A |
The total expense ratios for Class A, C and I Shares are 0.81%, 1.56% and 0.56%, respectively.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. The performance data quoted represents past performance and current returns may be lower or higher. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than the original cost. To obtain performance information current to the most recent month end, please visit the performance summary.
The performance of the Virginia Intermediate Tax-Free Fund reflects the deduction of fees for value-added services associated with a mutual fund, such as investment management and fund accounting fees. The inception date for Class A Shares is 05.17.1999. The inception date for Class C Shares is 02.01.2012. The inception date for Class Inst'l Shares is 05.17.1999. Performance reflects 12b-1 fees and applicable expenses. Performance for Class C Shares for periods prior to inception is based on the performance of Class A Shares of the Fund. The performance shown reflects the reinvestment of all dividend and capital gains distributions.
Characteristics
Quality Breakdown as of 06.30.2023
Credit quality ratings using Moody's rating symbols reflect the credit quality of the underlying bonds in the fund portfolio and not of the Fund itself. Moody's assigns a range of ratings from AAA being the highest quality to C being the lowest rated class of bonds. Securities not rated by Moody's may be rated by S&P, Fitch or if no agency rating is available, the Fund will assign a rating of not rated. Bond quality ratings are subject to change.
| Name | Value |
|---|---|
| 0-1 Yr. | 5.0 |
| 1-2 Yr. | 6.0 |
| 2-3 Yr. | 10.0 |
| 3-5 Yr. | 29.0 |
| 5-10 Yr. | 44.0 |
| 10+ Yrs. | 3.0 |
Current and future portfolio holdings are subject to change and risk. Based on Market Value of securities.
| Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of Holdings | 43 |
| Average Life | 5.94 Years |
| Effective Duration | 4.86 Years |
| Annual Turnover | 22% |
| Composition | Fund | Index |
|---|---|---|
| General Obligation | 48.0% | 28.8% |
| Pre-Refunded | 5.6% | 3.3% |
| Revenue | 44.3% | 67.8% |
| [Cash] | 2.1% | 0.0% |
| # | Company Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | VA Pub Sch Auth Spl Oblig Chesterfield 5.0% 15-1-30 | 3.53% |
| 2 | VA Pub Sch Auth Sch Fing 5.0% 1-840 | 3.47% |
| 3 | Loudoun Cty VA 5.0% 1-12-29 | 3.46% |
| 4 | Fairfax Cty VA 5.0% 1-10-31 | 3.44% |
| 5 | Virginia Transn Brd Fed Antic Rev 5.0% 15-9-31 | 3.32% |
| 6 | Virginia College Bldg Auth Edl Facs Rev Prog 5.0% 1-2-31 | 3.21% |
| 7 | Richmond VA 5.0% 1-3-28 | 3.11% |
| 8 | Chesapeake VA 5.0% 1-8-30 | 2.97% |
| 9 | Manassas VA 4.0% 1-7-33 | 2.97% |
| 10 | VA College Bldg Auth Edl Facs Rev 5.25% 1-2-41 | 2.85% |
Current and future portfolio holdings are subject to change and risk. Based on Market Value of securities.
Growth of $10,000 as of 06.30.2023
The Growth of $10,000 is hypothetical based upon the performance of net A Shares at NAV for the period ended 06.30.2023. It includes the reinvestment of dividends and capital gains.
Distribution
| Month | Class A Shares | Class C Shares | Class Inst'l Shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2023 | $0.0171 | $0.0116 | $0.0195 |
| July 2023 | $0.0173 | $0.0100 | $0.0196 |
| June 2023 | $0.0169 | $0.0102 | $0.0192 |
| May 2023 | $0.0174 | $0.0104 | $0.0197 |
| April 2023 | $0.0160 | $0.0091 | $0.0183 |
| March 2023 | $0.0167 | $0.0098 | $0.0191 |
| February 2023 | $0.0149 | $0.0086 | $0.0171 |
| January 2023 | $0.0162 | $0.0090 | $0.0186 |
| December 2022 | $0.0160 | $0.0088 | $0.0184 |
| November 2022 | $0.0156 | $0.0088 | $0.0178 |
| October 2022 | $0.0160 | $0.0091 | $0.0183 |
| September 2022 | $0.0147 | $0.0080 | $0.0169 |
| Share Class | Value |
|---|---|
| Class A | 2.63% |
| Class C | 1.91% |
| Class I | 2.93% |
Virginia Intermediate Tax-Free Fund
Materials
Fixed Income Funds
Insights
09.21.2023 • Andrew Richman, CTFA
Fed Reiterates-Higher for Longer
While the Federal Reserve (Fed) met expectations with a pause/skip this meeting, the real story was the upward movement in both the Fed Funds rate this year and next year. The consensus is now for one more 25 basis point hike in 2023 with the Fed funds rate median at 5.60%.
09.07.2023 • Shane Burke
An Updated Look at the FOMC and Yield Curve
An Updated Look at the FOMC and Yield Curve
09.06.2023 • Charles Wittmann, CFA®
- One of the risks in seeking higher dividend yields in non-financial companies can be the increased balance sheet leverage that correlates with higher dividend yield. - For many companies, the cost of this leverage is rising with interest rates, potentially placing pressure on cash flows to pay future dividends as interest expense may take a greater share of corporate cash flow. - We believe that owning stocks with strong balance sheets has the potential to minimize this risk as we endeavor to generate attractive above-average total returns with below-average risk for clients.
08.02.2023 • Andrew Richman, CTFA
Fitch Lowers Long-Term U.S. Debt Rating from AAA to AA+
Fitch Lowers Long-Term U.S. Debt Rating from AAA to AA+
08.01.2023 • Charles Wittmann, CFA®
The Lead - "Long-Term Dividends"
- What are the investing environment conditions that can cause dividend payers to lag on a short-term basis? - Looking back at Bloomberg data over the past twenty years, when dividend payers outperformed the Russell 1000 Value, non-earners underperformed and vice versa (56% of the time). - Over the twenty year period, dividend payer’s quarterly outperformance outweighed underperformance in contrast to non-earners. - In our quest to generate above-average returns with below-average risk for our clients, our approach is to take advantage of the long-term benefits of dividend payers that grow their dividends and seek to create value now and in the future.
07.25.2023 • Andrew DiZio, CFA®
Real Estate Returns Following Fed Rate Hike Cycles
Over the last 15 months, the Federal Reserve (Fed) has meaningfully raised the benchmark fed funds rate in an effort to tamp down inflation. The Fed paused its hiking campaign during the June meeting, but issued an outlook suggesting additional rate increases are to be expected. Regardless of whether the Fed has finished raising rates, we believe the end of the tightening cycle is near and view now as a prudent time to examine the performance of Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) stocks following historical periods of fed funds increases.
Contact
Learn more about Sterling Capital solutions and services.
