The Investment Advisor

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AC Funds, LLC, located at 10 Wilsey Square, Suite 200, Ridgewood, NJ 07450, is the investment advisor of the Funds and has responsibility for the management of each Fund's affairs, under the supervision of the Trust's Board of Trustees.  The investment advisor is recently formed and has no clients other than the Funds.  Under the Management Agreement, AC Funds, LLC, at its own expense and without reimbursement from the Trust, furnishes office space and all necessary office facilities, equipment and executive personnel necessary for managing the Funds.  The investment advisor also pays all operating expenses of the Funds, with the exception of Rule 12b-1 fees, acquired fund fees and expenses, brokerage fees and commissions, borrowing costs (such as interest and dividends on securities sold short, if any), taxes and extraordinary expenses.  Under the Management Agreement, the investment advisor is paid a per-Fund fee equal to an annual fee of 1.62% of each Fund's average daily net assets.  A discussion regarding the basis of the Board of Trustees' approval of the Management Agreement between the Trust and AC Funds, LLC will be available in the Funds' first issued semi-annual or annual report to shareholders.

 

The Sub-Advisor

 

Advisors Capital Management, LLC, located at 10 Wilsey Square, Suite 200, Ridgewood, NJ 07450, is the sub-advisor of the Funds and has responsibility for the management of each Fund's investment portfolio, under the supervision of the Trust's Board of Trustees and the investment advisor.  The Sub-Advisor provides advisory and financial planning services to businesses and individuals and had approximately $7.7 billion in asset under management as of December 31, 2023. 

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Portfolio Managers

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Kevin Strauss, CFA® (Advisors Capital Total Return – Equity Fund, Advisors Capital Tactical Fixed Income Fund and Advisors Capital
Active All Cap Fund)

Mr. Strauss has served as Managing Director of the Sub-Advisor since September 2019.  Mr. Strauss was the former Vice Chairman of Abner Herrman & Brock Asset Management (AHB) for seventeen years, where he managed equity and fixed income portfolios and was a member of that firm's investment committee.  Prior to AHB, Strauss spent eight years with Citigroup Global Asset Management, ending with the position of Senior Portfolio Manager in the firm's institutional and Private Client Groups.  Mr. Strauss was a past member of the Board of Directors of Bergen County NJ YJCC and Chairman of its Endowment Committee.  He is a Chartered Financial Analysts and a Chartered Investment Counselor (CIC) and is a graduate of Cornell University, M.B.A., Finance and Cornell University, B.S., Business Management.

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Paul Broughton, CFA® (Advisors Capital Total Return – Equity Fund and Advisors Capital Small/Mid Cap Fund)

Mr. Broughton has served as Portfolio Manager of the Sub-Advisor since October 2018.  Prior to joining the Sub-Advisor, he was a co-manager of the Salient Dividend Signal Strategy® portfolios.  Prior to joining Salient in 2010, he held various roles in fixed income portfolio management and trading with Pacific Capital Bancorp and American Century Investments. He began his career with State Street in fund accounting.  He is a CFA® charterholder and holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting and business administration from the University of Kansas.

 

David L. Ruff, CFA® (Advisors Capital Small/Mid Cap Fund)

Mr. Ruff has served as Portfolio Manager of the Sub-Advisor since October 2018.  Prior to joining the Sub-Advisor as a Portfolio Manager, he was a managing director and senior portfolio manager at Salient where he co-managed the Dividend Signal Strategy® portfolios.  Previously, he was chief investment officer for Berkeley Capital Management. In 2008, Forward Management acquired Berkeley, and subsequently in 2015, Salient acquired Forward. Prior to joining Berkeley in 2001, he was chief investment officer of London Pacific Advisors where he chaired the LPA Investment Policy Committee. From 1998 through 2001, David served as president and director for the Security Analysts of Sacramento.  He graduated magna cum laude from Iowa State University with a Bachelor of Science in finance, is a CFA® charterholder and currently a member of CFA Institute and the Security Analysts of San Francisco.

 

Randall T. Coleman, CFA® (Advisors Capital Small/Mid Cap Fund)

Mr. Coleman has served as Portfolio Manager of the Sub-Advisor since October 2018.  Before joining the Sub-Advisor, he was the co-manager of the Salient Dividend Signal Strategy® portfolios.  Previously, he was a portfolio manager and analyst for Berkeley Capital Management. In 2008, Forward Management acquired Berkeley, and subsequently in 2015, Salient acquired Forward.  Before joining Berkeley in 2001, Randall was a portfolio manager at London Pacific Advisors, specializing in small and mid-cap domestic equities. He has worked as a computer programmer and as a lobbyist aid in California state government.  He is a CFA® charterholder and holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Davis as well as an MBA from Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management.

 

Kevin Kelly (Advisors Capital Tactical Fixed Income Fund)

Mr. Kelly has served as Portfolio Manager of the Sub-Advisor since April 2018.  Before joining the Sub-Advisor, Mr. Kelly was a portfolio manager at Verition Fund Management in New York, NY from 2015-2018, where his duties included managing a long/short portfolio. Prior Mr. Kelly was a Vice President at Goldman Sachs and a research analyst at Oak Hill Advisors.  Mr. Kelly is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

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David Lieberman, MBA (Advisors Capital Active All Cap Fund Fund)

Mr. Lieberman is currently a Partner and Managing Director with Advisors Capital Management where he sits on the Management Committee, bringing nearly 25 years of experience in investment management, corporate finance, and corporate management.   Prior to joining Advisors Capital, Mr. Lieberman founded and sold 3 companies, including BookRags, Inc.  He served as BookRags' President and CEO for 10 years, building it into one of the largest websites in the world, ranking in the top 80 in the US with over 18 million monthly users. Mr. Lieberman's leadership and involvement in the start-up world evolved into an advisory role for a wide variety of technology, educational, and product companies. Today, he continues to advise on structuring acquisitions, bridge loans, debt-financing, and other fund-raising efforts. Most recently, he spent over 5 years on the board of Brooklyn Boulders.  Mr. Lieberman has appeared and been quoted in numerous publications and media, including CNBC, Barron's and Bloomberg. He has also authored numerous whitepapers and thought pieces for Advisors Capital. Mr. Lieberman earned his BA in Economics from Brandeis University and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Finance from the Yale School of Management

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