Investment objective & strategy
As of July 25, 2025 · prospectusObjective. The Touchstone Sands Capital Emerging Markets Growth Fund (the Fund) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Strategy. The Fund invests, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities issued by companies in emerging or frontier market countries. The Funds 80% policy is a non-fundamental investment policy that can be changed by the Fund upon 60 days prior written notice to shareholders. The Fund invests primarily in a portfolio of equity securities such as common stock, preferred stock, and depositary receipts. Emerging or frontier market companies are companies of any size that are economically tied to emerging or frontier markets. The Fund will generally consider qualifying investments to be in companies that are organized under the laws of, or maintain their principal place of business in, … The Fund invests, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities issued by companies in emerging or frontier market countries. The Funds 80% policy is a non-fundamental investment policy that can be changed by the Fund upon 60 days prior written notice to shareholders. The Fund invests primarily in a portfolio of equity securities such as common stock, preferred stock, and depositary receipts. Emerging or frontier market companies are companies of any size that are economically tied to emerging or frontier markets. The Fund will generally consider qualifying investments to be in companies that are organized under the laws of, or maintain their principal place of business in, an emerging or frontier market country; have securities that are principally traded in such countries; or derive at least 50% of revenues or profits from, or have at least 50% of their assets in, such countries. The Fund generally invests in a portfolio of 30 to 50 issuers selected on the basis of bottom-up research undertaken by the sub-adviser, Sands Capital Management, LLC (Sands Capital). The Fund classifies emerging markets as those countries not included in the MSCI World Index, a developed market index. As of June 30, 2025, the countries in the MSCI World Index included: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States . The country composition of the MSCI World Index can change over time. Frontier markets are those emerging market countries that have the smallest, least mature economies and least developed capital markets. The Fund classifies frontier markets as those countries included in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. As of June 30, 2025, the countries in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index included: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Estonia, Guinea-Bissau, Iceland, Ivory Coast, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, Mauritius, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Romania, Senegal, Serbia, Slovenia, Sri Lanka, Togo, Tunisia and Vietnam. Sands Capital uses a bottom-up approach to investment selection, as opposed to sector or regional allocations that focuses on a companys long-term business fundamentals. Therefore, the Fund may overweight certain geographies or sectors and may underweight other geographies or sectors. Sands Capital looks for companies that have: sustainable above-average earnings growth; a leadership position in a promising business space; significant competitive advantages, such as profitability, superior quality, or distribution relative to competitors, or strong brand and consumer loyalty; a clear mission in an understandable business model; financial strength; and a rational valuation in relation to competitors, the market, and business prospects. As an integral part of the evaluation of a company, Sands Capital considers corporate governance, social, and environmental factors (collectively, ESG) when it believes such factors may be material to the long-term shareowner value creation potential of the company. Sands Capital utilizes proprietary ESG-related research to enhance its evaluation of portfolio businesses. The relevance and materiality of ESG factors vary and are highly dependent on the region, country, industry, and company. Sands Capitals analysis of these factors is integrated into the investment decision making process to the extent it believes they may affect a companys value creation potential. Sands Capital generally intends for the Funds investments to be held for an average term of three to five years, although the Fund may hold any investment for any length of time. Sands Capital generally considers selling a security when it no longer meets the investment criteria outlined above, for risk management purposes, or if a more attractive investment opportunity presents itself. The Fund is non-diversified and may invest a significant percentage of its assets in the securities of a single company.
Top holdings
As of March 31, 2026 · N-PORT| Security | Ticker | Value | % of fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| TSMC | TSMWF | $177.03M | 8.88% |
| SAMSUNG ELECTRON | — | $167.40M | 8.40% |
| TAIWAN SEMIC MFG CO LTD SP ADR | — | $109.21M | 5.48% |
| TENCENT | — | $100.21M | 5.03% |
| SK Hynix Inc. KRW5000 | HXSCF | $90.59M | 4.55% |
| MERCADOLIBRE INC | — | $82.73M | 4.15% |
| NU Holdings Ltd/Cayman Islands | — | $71.68M | 3.60% |
| AIA | — | $66.90M | 3.36% |
| P-Note Contemp Amp | 300750 | $56.97M | 2.86% |
| DREY-GVT CSH-I | MISXX | $56.54M | 2.84% |
Portfolio moves
Dec 31, 2025 → Mar 31, 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. |
|---|---|---|
| Touchstone ETF Trust-Touchstone Sands Capital Emerging Markets ex-China Growth ETF · TEMX | 73% | 0.79% |
| Polar Capital Emerging Market Stars Fund · POLEX | 48% | 1.00% |
| Polar Capital Emerging Markets Ex-China Stars Fund · POLCX | 41% | 1.00% |
Advisers
| Firm | Role |
|---|---|
| Sands Capital Management, LLC | Sub-adviser |
| Touchstone Advisors, Inc. | Adviser |
Footnotes
- Expense ratio as of July 25, 2025, from the fund's prospectus.
- Net assets and holdings count as of March 31, 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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