Investment objective & strategy
As of Sept. 26, 2025 · prospectusObjective. The investment objective of the North Square Kennedy MicroCap Fund (the Fund) is to provide capital appreciation.
Strategy. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of micro-capitalization companies. The Fund considers micro-capitalization companies to be companies with market capitalizations generally within the ranges of the Russell Microcap Index at the time of purchase. As of August 31, 2025, the market capitalization range of the Russell Microcap Index was between $14.11 million and $4.17 billion. The Funds investments in equity securities may include common and preferred stock, convertible securities, securities of real estate investment trusts (REITs) and shares of investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs) designed to track micro-cap indices. While the Fund invests primarily in equity securities of U.S. issuers, it may … Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of micro-capitalization companies. The Fund considers micro-capitalization companies to be companies with market capitalizations generally within the ranges of the Russell Microcap Index at the time of purchase. As of August 31, 2025, the market capitalization range of the Russell Microcap Index was between $14.11 million and $4.17 billion. The Funds investments in equity securities may include common and preferred stock, convertible securities, securities of real estate investment trusts (REITs) and shares of investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs) designed to track micro-cap indices. While the Fund invests primarily in equity securities of U.S. issuers, it may invest in securities of foreign issuers, including those in emerging market countries or developing countries as defined by the World Bank, International Finance Corporation or the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) emerging market indices or other comparable indices. Investments in such foreign issuers are not expected to exceed 20% of the Funds net assets. The Fund follows an investing style that favors core investments. The Funds sub-adviser, Kennedy Capital Management LLC (Kennedy Capital or the Sub-Adviser), utilizes fundamental, bottom-up research to identify companies that are able to reinvest in their businesses at attractive rates of return, and invest in those companies when prices do not, in the view of the Sub-Adviser, adequately reflect the companies potential value creation from those investments, including their anticipated growth prospects. The Sub-Adviser believes that the operating cash-flow returns of a business is the best measure of a companys performance and that the ability to reinvest cash flows into high return projects creates a powerful compounding effect, which in turn creates value for shareholders over time. The Sub-Adviser employs a research team of sector-specific analysts to perform fundamental analysis on new potential ideas for the strategy, as well as existing holdings, in order to invest across the full spectrum of opportunities. Each company under consideration for investment is initially classified by the Sub-Advisers research team as one of these investment types: (i) Steady Compounder, (ii) Material Positive Change (including growth prospects), (iii) Out of Favor, and (iv) Deep Value. Companies classified as Steady Compounder are established companies that are able to sustain evaluated levels of asset growth, have consistently high or expanding returns on invested capital and have high barriers to entry. Companies classified as Material Positive Change demonstrate structural change (e.g., management divesting an underperforming business segment) that improves asset growth and/or returns on invested capital (ROIC) or cash flow return on investment (CFROI) have a growth profile post-change and can be found anywhere along the growth life cycle. Companies classified as Out of Favor are those companies whose intrinsic business returns are undervalued and experience near term negative sentiment. Companies classified as Deep Value are those companies with a significant gap between intrinsic and market valuations and whose current levels of growth and ROIC/CFROI may be weak in comparison to their peers. This labor intensive, bottom-up approach, combined with discounted cash-flow valuation analysis, forms the basis of the Sub-Advisers investment process. The Sub-Adviser may sell all or a portion of a position of the Funds portfolio holding when in its opinion one or more of the following occurs, among other reasons: (i) there is a change in the Sub-Advisers analysis on a particular issuer; (ii) a companys stock price is at the high end of the companys historical range; (iii) the issuers fundamentals deteriorate; (iv) the Sub-Adviser identifies more attractive investment opportunities for the Fund; (v) the issuers market capitalization consistently exceeds the capitalization range of the Russell Microcap Index; or (vi) the Fund requires cash to meet redemption requests. The Fund also may invest in American, European, and Global Depositary Receipts (ADRs, EDRs, and GDRs, respectively). ADRs are receipts that represent interests in foreign securities held on deposit by U.S. banks. EDRs and GDRs have the same qualities as ADRs, except that they may be traded in several international trading markets. The Fund may also invest in initial public offerings (IPOs) of equity securities.
Top holdings
As of Feb. 28, 2026 · N-PORT| Security | Ticker | Value | % of fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| FIRST AM-TR OB-X | TMPXX | $1.09M | 3.68% |
| NORTHEAST BANK | — | $646.98K | 2.18% |
| NATURE'S SUNSHNE | — | $578.79K | 1.95% |
| ARTIVION INC | — | $541.81K | 1.82% |
| MATERION CORP | — | $534.18K | 1.80% |
| THIRD COAST BANCSHARES INC | — | $523.76K | 1.76% |
| QCR HOLDINGS INC | — | $484.83K | 1.63% |
| TRIMAS CORP | — | $470.84K | 1.58% |
| APPLIED OPTOELECTRONICS INC | — | $428.98K | 1.44% |
| LSI INDUSTRIES INC | — | $409.27K | 1.38% |
Portfolio moves
Nov 30, 2025 → Feb 28, 2026How many positions this fund opened, exited, grew, trimmed, or left unchanged between its two most recent N-PORT snapshots — net changes between point-in-time reports, not a trade log.
Similar funds
Funds whose portfolios most overlap this one, by weight| Fund | Overlap | Net exp. |
|---|---|---|
| ACUITAS US MICROCAP FUND · AFMCX | 14% | 1.50% |
| Royce Small-Cap Opportunity Fund · ROFCX, RYPNX, RYOFX, ROFIX, ROFRX | 12% | 1.12% |
| Royce Capital Fund - Micro-Cap Portfolio · RCMCX, RCMSX | 12% | 1.18% |
Advisers
| Firm | Role |
|---|---|
| Kennedy Capital Management LLC | Sub-adviser |
| North Square Investments, LLC | Adviser |
Footnotes
- Expense ratio as of September 26, 2025, from the fund's prospectus.
- Net assets and holdings count as of February 28, 2026, from the fund's N-PORT filing.
- Total return for calendar year 2025, before tax and after fund expenses. Computed by compounding the twelve monthly total returns the fund reported in its SEC N-PORT filings for 2025 (the latest prospectus does not yet chart this year).
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