WisdomTree Global Hedged SmallCap Dividend Fund – HGSD (BATS)
SUMMARY PROSPECTUS – November 6, 2015
Before you invest in the Fund, as defined below, you may want to review the Fund’s prospectus and statement of additional information (“SAI”), which contain more information about the Fund and the risks of investing in the Fund. The Fund’s current prospectus and SAI are incorporated by reference into this summary prospectus. You can find the Fund’s prospectus and SAI, as well as other information about the Fund, online at www.wisdomtree.com/prospectus. You may also obtain this information at no charge by calling 1-866-909-9473 or by sending an e-mail request to getinfo@wisdomtree.com.
Investment Objective
The WisdomTree Global Hedged SmallCap Dividend Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree Global Hedged SmallCap Dividend Index (the “Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. The fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net assets.
| Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | None | |||
| Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
||||
| Management Fees |
0.43 | % | ||
| Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees |
None | |||
| Other Expenses* |
0.00 | % | ||
| Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses* |
0.43 | % | ||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses** | 0.86 | % | ||
| Fee Waivers*** |
(0.43 | )% | ||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers** | 0.43 | % |
| * | Other Expenses and Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year. |
| ** | The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses (before and after waivers) in this fee table may not correlate to the expense ratios in the Fund’s financial highlights and financial statements because the financial highlights and financial statements reflect only the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, which are fees and expenses incurred indirectly by the Fund through its investments in certain underlying investment companies. |
| *** | WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. has contractually agreed to waive a portion of its Management Fee in an amount equal to the Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses attributable to the Fund’s investments in the Underlying Fund, as defined below, through July 31, 2018, unless earlier terminated by the Board of Trustees of WisdomTree Trust for any reason at any time. |
Example
The following example is intended to help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of the shares at the end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5% a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell shares of the Fund. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
| 1 Year | 3 Years | |||
| $44 | $138 |
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 1 |
Portfolio Turnover
The Fund and the Underlying Fund, defined below, each pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate for the Fund or Underlying Fund 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 (except costs to the Underlying Fund included as part of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses), affect the Fund’s performance. Because the Fund is newly organized, portfolio turnover information is not yet available.
Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund
The Fund employs a “passive management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest in a sample of securities in the Index (including indirect investments through the WisdomTree Global SmallCap Dividend Fund (the “Underlying Fund”)) whose risk, return and other characteristics resemble the risk, return, and other characteristics of the Index as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Fund’s total assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in component securities of the Index (including indirect investments in the Underlying Fund) and investments that have economic characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics of such component securities. The Underlying Fund tracks the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree Global SmallCap Dividend Index (the “Underlying Fund Index”). The Index and the Underlying Fund Index have identical component securities and employ identical methodologies except that the Underlying Fund Index does not hedge against currency fluctuations. The Underlying Fund, which is also advised by WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc., may constitute a substantial portion of the Fund’s assets.
The Index is a fundamentally weighted index designed to provide exposure to small-capitalization companies selected from the WisdomTree Global Dividend Index (“Parent Index”), which defines the dividend-paying universe of companies in the United States, developed countries, and emerging markets throughout the world, while at the same time neutralizing exposure to fluctuations between the value of foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar. The starting universe of the Index consists of the bottom 5% of the total market capitalization of the Parent Index that have (i) a market capitalization of at least $200 million as of the Index screening date; and (ii) an average daily dollar trading volume of at least $100,000 for the three months preceding the Index screening date. The Index then selects the largest 1,000 companies after the initial market cap and liquidity screens are applied. Securities are then weighted based on dividends paid. Companies that pay a greater total dollar amount of dividends are more heavily weighted. As of October 27, 2015, the Index had a market capitalization range from $720 million to $2.96 billion, with an average market capitalization of $1.3 billion. As noted above, the Underlying Fund Index applies the same eligibility criteria and weighting scheme with respect to its component stocks.
To derive a company’s initial Index weight, (i) multiply the U.S. dollar value of the company’s annual gross dividend per share by the number of common shares outstanding for that company (the “Cash Dividend Factor”); (ii) calculate the Cash Dividend Factor for each company; (iii) add together all of the companies’ Cash Dividend Factors; and (iv) divide the company’s Cash Dividend Factor by the sum of all Cash Dividend Factors. After a company’s initial weight is determined by cash dividends, the Index will apply a regional adjustment factor. This factor adjusts the weight allocated to each region (i.e., three regions—U.S., developed and emerging market countries) of the Index so the regional weights match those of the float-adjusted market cap weighted universe of dividend and non-dividend paying companies that meet the liquidity and market capitalization criteria for the Parent Index. “Float-adjusted” market cap means that the share amounts used in calculating the market cap reflect only shares available to investors. To the extent a region’s weight in the Index needs to be increased or decreased, the weight of each component security in that region will be increased or decreased, respectively, on a pro rata basis. After the regional adjustment factor is applied, the Index will cap any one sector at 25%; however, sector weights may fluctuate above the specified cap in response to market conditions and/or the application of volume factor adjustments, as described below. As of the date of this Prospectus, non-U.S. equity securities comprise a majority of the Index, and WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc., the Fund’s investment adviser, expects that, under normal circumstances, non-U.S. equity securities will comprise at least 40% of the Fund.
In addition, the Index methodology includes volume factor adjustments such that if a component security does not meet certain trading volume thresholds, the security will either be eliminated from inclusion in the Index or its weight in the Index will be reduced and reallocated pro rata among the other securities.
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 2 |
WisdomTree Investments, Inc. (“WisdomTree Investments”), as index provider, currently uses Standard & Poor’s Global Industry Classification Standards (“S&P GICS”) to define companies within a sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health care, industrials, information technology, materials, telecommunication services, and utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy sector is comprised of companies in, among others, the natural gas, oil and petroleum industries. As of the date of this Prospectus, a significant portion of the Index is comprised of companies in the consumer discretionary, financial and industrial sectors.
The Index “hedges” against fluctuations in the relative value of foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar. This Index is designed to have higher returns than an equivalent unhedged investment when foreign currencies are falling relative to the U.S. dollar. Conversely, the Index is designed to have lower returns than an equivalent unhedged investment when foreign currencies are rising relative to the U.S. dollar. The Index applies an applicable published one-month currency forward rate to the total equity exposure of each country in the Index to hedge against fluctuations in the relative value of each such foreign currency against the U.S. dollar.
Forward currency contracts or futures contracts are used to offset the Fund’s exposure to the foreign currencies represented in the Index. The amount of forward contracts and futures contracts in the Fund is based on the aggregate exposure of the Fund and Index to these foreign currencies. While this approach is designed to minimize the impact of currency fluctuations on Fund returns, it does not necessarily eliminate the Fund’s exposure to all currency fluctuations. The return of the forward currency contracts and currency futures contracts may not perfectly offset the actual fluctuations of these foreign currencies relative to the U.S. dollar.
To the extent the Index concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
You can lose money on your investment in the Fund. The Fund is subject to the risks described below (either directly or through its investments in the Underlying Fund). Some or all of these risks may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return and/or ability to meet its objectives. For more information about the risks of investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus, titled “Additional Principal Risk Information About the Fund” and “Additional Non-Principal Risk Information.”
| n | Investment Risk. As with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to investment risk. Investors in the Fund could lose money, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an investment, over short or long periods of time. |
| n | Market Risk. The trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in response to a variety of factors, such as events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose money over short or long periods of time. |
| n | Shares of the Fund May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. The trading prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market volatility or periods of steep market declines. Because securities held by the Fund trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund’s primary listing exchange is open, the Fund is likely to experience premiums and discounts greater than those of domestic ETFs. |
| n | Capital Controls and Sanctions Risk. Economic conditions, such as volatile currency exchange rates and interest rates, political events, military action and other conditions may, without prior warning, lead to foreign government intervention (including intervention by the U.S. government with respect to foreign governments, economic sectors, foreign companies and related securities and interests) and the imposition of capital controls and/or sanctions, which may also include retaliatory actions of one government against another government, such as seizure of assets. Capital controls and/or sanctions include the prohibition of, or restrictions on, the ability to own or transfer currency, securities or other |
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 3 |
| assets, which may potentially include derivative instruments related thereto. Capital controls and/or sanctions may also impact the ability of the Fund to buy, sell, transfer, receive, deliver or otherwise obtain exposure to, foreign securities or currency, negatively impact the value and/or liquidity of such instruments, adversely affect the trading market and price for shares of the Fund, and cause the Fund to decline in value. |
| n | Cash Redemption Risk. The Fund’s investment strategy will require it to redeem shares for cash or to otherwise include cash as part of its redemption proceeds. The Fund may be required to sell or unwind portfolio investments in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. This may cause the Fund to recognize a capital gain that it might not have recognized if it had made a redemption in-kind. As a result, the Fund may pay out higher annual capital gain distributions than if the in-kind redemption process was used. |
| n | Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in companies in the consumer discretionary sector. This sector consists of, for example, automobile, retail and media companies. The consumer discretionary sector of the economy can be significantly affected by, among other things, economic growth, worldwide demand and consumers’ disposable income levels and propensity to spend. |
| n | Currency Exchange Rate Risk. The Fund uses various strategies to attempt to minimize the impact of changes in the value of the non-U.S. currencies against the U.S. dollar. These strategies may not be successful. In order to minimize transaction costs, or for other reasons, the Fund’s exposure to the non-U.S. currencies may not be fully hedged at all times. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. Therefore, the value of an investment in the Fund may also go up or down quickly and unpredictably and investors may lose money. |
| n | Derivatives Risk. The Fund invests in derivatives. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive their performance from an underlying reference asset, such as a commodity, index, interest rate or inflation rate. The return on a derivative instrument may not correlate with the return of its underlying reference asset. Derivatives are subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this Prospectus, such as market risk and issuer-specific risk. Derivatives can be volatile and may be less liquid than other securities. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning and you may lose money. In addition to the other risks associated with the use of derivatives described elsewhere in this Prospectus, there are risks associated with the Fund’s use of forward currency contracts and futures contracts. With respect to forward currency contracts, these risks include but are not limited to the risk that the counterparty will default on its obligations. With respect to futures contracts, these risks include but are not limited to: (1) the success of the adviser’s and sub-adviser’s ability to predict movements in the prices of individual currencies or securities, fluctuations in markets and movements in interest rates; (2) an imperfect or no correlation between the changes in market value of the currencies or securities and the prices of futures contracts; and (3) no guarantee that an active market will exist for the contracts at any particular time. |
| n | Emerging Markets Risk. The Fund may invest in companies organized in emerging market nations. Investments in securities and instruments traded in developing or emerging markets, or that provide exposure to such securities or markets, can involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in U.S. securities and instruments or investments in more developed international markets. Such conditions may impact the ability of the Fund to buy, sell or otherwise transfer securities, adversely affect the trading market and price for Fund shares and cause the Fund to decline in value. |
| n | Financial Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the financial sector, and therefore the performance of the Fund could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. This sector can be significantly affected by changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, the availability and cost of capital, and fallout from the housing and sub-prime mortgage crisis. |
| n | Foreign Securities Risk. The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in non-U.S. securities and instruments, or in securities that provide exposure to such instruments. Investments in non-U.S. securities and instruments involve certain risks that may not be present with investments in U.S. securities. For example, investments in non-U.S. securities may be subject to risk of loss due to foreign currency fluctuations or to political or economic instability. Investments in non-U.S. securities also may be subject to withholding or other taxes and may be subject to additional trading, settlement, custodial, and operational risks. These and other factors can make investments in the Fund more volatile and potentially less liquid than other types of investments and may be heightened in connection with investments in developing or emerging market countries. |
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 4 |
| n | Geographic Investment Risk. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in the securities of companies of a single country or region, it is more likely to be impacted by events or conditions affecting that country or region. |
| n | Geopolitical Risk. Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns, war or threats of war and aggression, terrorism, economic uncertainty, natural and environmental disasters and/or systemic market dislocations that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on world economies and markets generally, each of which may negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
| n | Hedging Risk. Derivatives used by the Fund to offset its exposure to foreign currencies represented in the Index may not perform as intended. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. |
| n | Industrial Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in companies in the industrial sector. The industrial sector can be significantly affected by, among other things, worldwide economy growth, supply and demand for specific products and services, rapid technological developments, and government regulation. |
| n | Investment in the Underlying Fund Risk. The Fund’s investment performance and risks may be directly related to the investment performance and risks of the Underlying Fund. |
| n | Investment Style Risk. The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general decline in the market segments relating to the Index. |
| n | Issuer-Specific Risk. Issuer-specific events, including changes in the financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value of the Fund. |
| n | Non-Correlation Risk. As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and the Index may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. |
| n | Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified fund. |
| n | Small-Capitalization Investing. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of small-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund may be more volatile than funds that invest in larger, more established companies. The securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than larger capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. Small-capitalization companies may be particularly sensitive to changes in interest rates, government regulation, borrowing costs and earnings. |
Fund Performance
The Fund is new and therefore does not have a performance history.
Management
Investment Adviser and Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. serves as investment adviser to the Fund. Mellon Capital Management Corporation serves as sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
Karen Q. Wong, CFA, a Managing Director, Head of Equity Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since inception.
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 5 |
Richard A. Brown, CFA, a Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, Equity Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since inception.
Thomas J. Durante, CFA, a Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, Equity Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since inception.
Buying and Selling Fund Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such as BATS Exchange, Inc., and trade at market prices. Most investors will buy and sell shares of the Fund through brokers. Because Fund shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount).
The Fund issues and redeems shares at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. Currently, Creation Units generally consist of 100,000 shares, though this may change from time to time. Creation Units are not expected to consist of less than 50,000 shares. The Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities closely approximating the holdings of the Fund and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains.
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) (an “Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more information.
| WisdomTree Prospectus | 6 |
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| WIS-HGSD-SUM-1115 |