Returns Chart

Key Stats

Net Expense Ratio Total Assets Under Management Weighted Average Dividend Yield Turnover Ratio (Generic)
1.84% 1.580B -- 403.0%
1 Year Fund Level Flows 1 Year Total Returns (Daily) Annualized Total Returns Since Inception (Daily) Max Drawdown (Since Inception)
19.37M 6.06% Upgrade Upgrade

Basic Info

Investment Strategy
The Fund seeks returns that are largely uncorrelated with the returns of the general stock market, and capital appreciation. The Fund primarily invests in equity securities (publicly-traded common stock and preferred stock) of companies that are involved in a significant corporate event, such as a merger or acquisition.
General
Security Type Mutual Fund
Broad Asset Class Alternative
Broad Category Alternative Strategies
Global Peer Group Alternative Event Driven
Peer Group Alternative Event Driven Funds
Global Macro Alternative Equity
US Macro Alternative Equity Funds
YCharts Categorization --
YCharts Benchmark --
Prospectus Objective Alternative Event Driven Funds
Fund Owner Firm Name First Trust
Broad Asset Class Benchmark Index
^MSACWINTR 100.0%

View Basic Info
Start Trial

Net Fund Flows Versus Peer Group

View Net Fund Flows. Upgrade now.
1M
3M
6M
YTD
1Y
3Y
5Y
10Y
 
80.00B
60.00B
40.00B
20.00B
0
-20.00B
1 Month
% Rank: 12
-187.64M Peer Group Low
48.69M Peer Group High
1 Year
% Rank: 12
19.37M
-365.23M Peer Group Low
312.54M Peer Group High
3 Months
% Rank: 12
-183.72M Peer Group Low
114.19M Peer Group High
3 Years
% Rank: 89
-4.286B Peer Group Low
273.12M Peer Group High
6 Months
% Rank: 12
-44.43M Peer Group Low
273.12M Peer Group High
5 Years
% Rank: 16
-2.226B Peer Group Low
941.02M Peer Group High
YTD
% Rank: 12
-313.83M Peer Group Low
294.73M Peer Group High
10 Years
% Rank: 10
-3.709B Peer Group Low
3.290B Peer Group High
Date Unavailable

Performance Versus Peer Group

 
20%
15%
10%
5%
0
Name
1M
3M
YTD
1Y
3Y
5Y
10Y
15Y
Total Return (NAV)
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
Peer Group Rtn. (NAV)
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
12.00%
% Rank in Peer Group (NAV)
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
View Performance Versus Peer Group
Start Trial

Annual Total Returns Versus Peers

Loading chart...
Name
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
YTD
4.11%
4.27%
4.00%
5.43%
2.50%
3.30%
5.51%
5.76%
-9.41%
26.60%
16.25%
18.54%
-18.36%
22.20%
17.49%
21.78%
7.98%
6.32%
5.15%
0.10%
1.01%
4.51%
3.54%
8.16%
6.48%
7.34%
8.74%
5.32%
2.70%
6.75%
6.06%
6.07%
-0.15%
4.76%
13.42%
1.18%
-0.63%
5.90%
2.27%
7.82%
2.33%
3.83%
5.72%
1.05%
-0.66%
6.05%
2.95%
7.45%
As of December 06, 2025.

Fundamentals

General
Distribution Yield --
Dividend Yield TTM (12-5-25) 3.58%
30-Day SEC Yield --
7-Day SEC Yield --
Number of Holdings 135
Stock
Weighted Average PE Ratio 30.92
Weighted Average Price to Sales Ratio 6.938
Weighted Average Price to Book Ratio 3.643
Weighted Median ROE -15.80%
Weighted Median ROA -0.73%
ROI (TTM) -0.58%
Return on Investment (TTM) -0.58%
Earning Yield 0.0434
LT Debt / Shareholders Equity 0.6176
Number of Equity Holdings 113
Bond
Yield to Maturity (6-30-25) --
Effective Duration --
Average Coupon --
Calculated Average Quality 0.00
Effective Maturity --
Nominal Maturity --
Number of Bond Holdings 0
As of June 30, 2025

Growth Metrics

EPS Growth (1Y) 48.44%
EPS Growth (3Y) 4.26%
EPS Growth (5Y) 12.98%
Sales Growth (1Y) 25.45%
Sales Growth (3Y) 11.49%
Sales Growth (5Y) 10.87%
Sales per Share Growth (1Y) 430.7%
Sales per Share Growth (3Y) 9.75%
Operating Cash Flow - Growth Rate (3Y) 15.74%
As of June 30, 2025

Fund Details

Key Dates
Inception Date 3/31/2000
Last Annual Report Date 9/30/2024
Last Prospectus Date 1/31/2025
Share Classes
VARAX A
VARCX C
Attributes
Index Fund --
Inverse Fund No
Leveraged Fund --
Fund of Funds No
Currency Hedged Fund --
Synthetic Replication Fund No

Asset Allocation

As of June 30, 2025.
Type % Net
Cash 6.61%
Stock 79.84%
Bond 5.09%
Convertible 0.00%
Preferred 0.00%
Other 8.45%
View Asset Allocation
Start Trial

Top 10 Holdings

Name % Weight Price % Change
Morgan Stanley Inst Liq Govt Port Institutional 11.71% 1.00 0.00%
Dun & Bradstreet Holdings Inc ORD
5.43% -- --
SpringWorks Therapeutics Inc ORD
5.06% -- --
Skechers USA Inc ORD
5.00% -- --
Kellanova 4.06% 83.14 -0.01%
Enstar Group Ltd ORD
3.58% -- --
UMB Money Market II Special Fund
3.40% -- --
Blueprint Medicines Corp 3.28% 129.46 0.00%
Other Assets less Liabilities
3.18% -- --
Azek Company Inc ORD
3.06% -- --

Fees & Availability

Fees
Actual 12B-1 Fee --
Actual Management Fee 1.25%
Administration Fee 1.51M%
Maximum Front Load --
Maximum Deferred Load --
Maximum Redemption Fee 1.00%
General Availability
Available for Insurance Product No
Available for RRSP No
Purchase Details
Open to New Investors Yes
Minimum Initial Investment 500000.0 None
Minimum Subsequent Investment 0.00 None

Basic Info

Investment Strategy
The Fund seeks returns that are largely uncorrelated with the returns of the general stock market, and capital appreciation. The Fund primarily invests in equity securities (publicly-traded common stock and preferred stock) of companies that are involved in a significant corporate event, such as a merger or acquisition.
General
Security Type Mutual Fund
Broad Asset Class Alternative
Broad Category Alternative Strategies
Global Peer Group Alternative Event Driven
Peer Group Alternative Event Driven Funds
Global Macro Alternative Equity
US Macro Alternative Equity Funds
YCharts Categorization --
YCharts Benchmark --
Prospectus Objective Alternative Event Driven Funds
Fund Owner Firm Name First Trust
Broad Asset Class Benchmark Index
^MSACWINTR 100.0%

View Basic Info
Start Trial

Fundamentals

General
Distribution Yield --
Dividend Yield TTM (12-5-25) 3.58%
30-Day SEC Yield --
7-Day SEC Yield --
Number of Holdings 135
Stock
Weighted Average PE Ratio 30.92
Weighted Average Price to Sales Ratio 6.938
Weighted Average Price to Book Ratio 3.643
Weighted Median ROE -15.80%
Weighted Median ROA -0.73%
ROI (TTM) -0.58%
Return on Investment (TTM) -0.58%
Earning Yield 0.0434
LT Debt / Shareholders Equity 0.6176
Number of Equity Holdings 113
Bond
Yield to Maturity (6-30-25) --
Effective Duration --
Average Coupon --
Calculated Average Quality 0.00
Effective Maturity --
Nominal Maturity --
Number of Bond Holdings 0
As of June 30, 2025

Growth Metrics

EPS Growth (1Y) 48.44%
EPS Growth (3Y) 4.26%
EPS Growth (5Y) 12.98%
Sales Growth (1Y) 25.45%
Sales Growth (3Y) 11.49%
Sales Growth (5Y) 10.87%
Sales per Share Growth (1Y) 430.7%
Sales per Share Growth (3Y) 9.75%
Operating Cash Flow - Growth Rate (3Y) 15.74%
As of June 30, 2025

Fund Details

Key Dates
Inception Date 3/31/2000
Last Annual Report Date 9/30/2024
Last Prospectus Date 1/31/2025
Share Classes
VARAX A
VARCX C
Attributes
Index Fund --
Inverse Fund No
Leveraged Fund --
Fund of Funds No
Currency Hedged Fund --
Synthetic Replication Fund No

Top Portfolio Holders

Name % Weight
Portfolio A 5.00%
Portfolio B 3.50%
Portfolio C 2.25%
View Top Portfolio Holders
Start Trial

Excel Add-In Codes

Name: =YCI("M:VARBX", "name")
Broad Asset Class: =YCI("M:VARBX", "broad_asset_class")
Broad Category: =YCI("M:VARBX", "broad_category_group")
Prospectus Objective: =YCI("M:VARBX", "prospectus_objective")
To find the codes for any of our securities and financial metrics, see our Complete Excel Reference.
View Excel Add-In Codes
Start Trial