Key features
- The objective of Optimum International Fund is to seek long-term growth of capital, and it may also seek income.
- EARNEST normally employs a fundamental, bottom-up investment process to identify stocks that it believes are likely to outperform based on their financial characteristics and the current environment.
- Acadian utilizes a quantitative investment process to build portfolios from the bottom up, using proprietary valuation models that measure approximately 20 stock factors.
| Fund identifiers |
|---|
| NASDAQ | OAIEX |
| CUSIP | 246118731 |
| Investment minimums |
|---|
| Initial investment | $1,000 |
| Subsequent Investments | $100 |
| Account features |
|---|
| Payroll Deduction | No |
| IRAs | Yes |
On Nov. 4, 2014, Class B shares of the Fund converted to Class A shares.
The performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted.
Total returns may reflect waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the manager and/or distributor for some or all of the periods shown. Performance would have been lower without such waivers and reimbursements.
Average annual total return
as of month-end (08/31/2018)
as of quarter-end (06/30/2018)
| YTD | 1 year | 3 year | 5 year | 10 year | Lifetime | Inception date |
|---|
| NAV (view definition) | -2.29% | 2.76% | 9.96% | 5.73% | 3.16% | 6.11% | 08/01/2003 |
| Max offer price | -7.90% | -3.13% | 7.81% | 4.49% | 2.55% | 5.69% | |
| MSCI ACWI ex USA (Net) | -3.53% | 3.18% | 8.08% | 5.43% | 3.44% | n/a | |
| MSCI ACWI ex USA (Gross) | -3.16% | 3.67% | 8.59% | 5.92% | 3.91% | n/a | |
| MSCI EAFE Index (Net) | -2.28% | 4.39% | 7.04% | 5.73% | 3.66% | n/a | |
| MSCI EAFE Index (Gross) | -1.87% | 4.90% | 7.57% | 6.22% | 4.14% | n/a | |
| | 1 year | 3 year | 5 year | 10 year | Lifetime | Inception date |
|---|
| NAV (view definition) | -2.63% | 7.95% | 7.46% | 6.03% | 2.34% | 6.16% | 08/01/2003 |
| Max offer price | -8.22% | 1.74% | 5.35% | 4.78% | 1.73% | 5.74% | |
| MSCI ACWI ex USA (Net) | -2.61% | 7.28% | 5.07% | 5.99% | 2.54% | n/a | |
| MSCI ACWI ex USA (Gross) | -2.39% | 7.79% | 5.56% | 6.48% | 3.01% | n/a | |
| MSCI EAFE Index (Net) | -1.24% | 6.84% | 4.90% | 6.44% | 2.84% | n/a | |
| MSCI EAFE Index (Gross) | -0.97% | 7.37% | 5.41% | 6.93% | 3.33% | n/a | |
Returns for less than one year are not annualized.
The Manager has changed the Fund's primary index from the MSCI EAFE Index to the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index in order to reflect the Fund's ability to invest in emerging market securities.
Performance at NAV assumes that no front-end sales charge applied. Performance at max offer price assumes that a front-end sales charge applied.
Class A shares have a maximum up-front sales charge of 5.75% and are subject to an annual distribution fee.
Index performance returns do not reflect any management fees, transaction costs, or expenses. Indices are unmanaged and one cannot invest directly in an index.
| Expense ratio |
|---|
| Gross | 1.36% |
| Net | 1.36% |
| Quarterly total returns @ NAV |
|---|
| Year | 1st quarter | 2nd quarter | 3rd quarter | 4th quarter | Annual return |
|---|
| 2018 | 0.07% | -2.63% | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 2017 | 9.28% | 7.44% | 6.85% | 3.68% | 30.08% |
| 2016 | 0.00% | 0.27% | 6.01% | -1.95% | 4.23% |
| 2015 | 2.10% | 0.51% | -9.30% | 3.57% | -3.59% |
| 2014 | -0.55% | 1.50% | -5.27% | -4.51% | -8.69% |
| 2013 | 3.98% | 0.62% | 7.73% | 6.96% | 20.56% |
| 2012 | 7.87% | -6.37% | 6.11% | 4.63% | 12.14% |
| 2011 | 2.85% | 2.61% | -18.45% | 4.92% | -9.71% |
| 2010 | -0.39% | -13.03% | 16.40% | 5.83% | 6.73% |
| 2009 | -14.82% | 25.00% | 18.14% | 2.17% | 28.51% |
| 2008 | -9.13% | -3.19% | -19.28% | -19.83% | -43.07% |
On Nov. 4, 2014, Class B shares of the Fund converted to Class A shares.
Investment manager
Delaware Management Company
Sub-advisors
EARNEST Partners, LLC
Paul E. Viera
Chief Executive Officer and Partner
Start date on the Fund: October 2013
Paul E. Viera is chief executive officer and partner of EARNEST and has primary responsibility for the day-to-day management of EARNEST’s share of the Fund. Prior to founding EARNEST in 1998, he was a partner and senior member of the investment team at Invesco from 1991 to 1998. Prior to Invesco, Mr. Viera was a vice president with Bankers Trust between 1985 and 1991. Mr. Viera has held his Fund responsibilities since October 2013.
Acadian Asset Management, LLC
John R. Chisholm, CFA
Co-Chief Executive Officer and Co-Chief Investment Officer
Start date on the Fund: January 2015
John R. Chisholm is Acadian's Co-Chief Executive Officer, as well as Co-Chief Investment Officer. He served as Acadian's sole CIO from 1998 to 2017, where he oversaw Acadian's investment process and investment team, and directed Acadian's portfolio management and research. Prior to co-founding Acadian in 1987, served as systems engineer at Draper Laboratories and as an analyst for the international asset management department at the State Street Bank and Trust Company (now SSgA). He earned a a master's degree in business and finance from the Sloan Business School at MIT and a bachelor's degree in engineering from MIT. Chisholm is a CFA charterholder and member of the CFA Society Boston.
Brendan O. Bradley, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President and Co-Chief Investment Officer
Start date on the Fund: January 2015
Brendan O. Bradley joined the company in September 2004 as a senior member of the research and portfolio management team. In 2010, he was appointed director of managed volatility strategies, and in 2013 became director, portfolio management, overseeing portfolio management policy. Earlier this year, he was named Deputy Chief Investment Officer. Prior to Acadian, Bradley was a vice president at Upstream Technologies, where he designed and implemented investment management systems and strategies. His professional background also includes work as a research analyst and consultant at Samuelson Portfolio Strategies. He earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Boston College and a Ph.D. in applied mathematics from Boston University.
On Nov. 4, 2014, Class B shares of the Fund converted to Class A shares.
You may qualify for sales-charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $75,000 in Optimum Funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary, in the Fund's Prospectus under the section entitled "About your account," and in the Fund's statement of additional information (SAI) under the section entitled "Purchasing Shares."
The table below describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund.
| Shareholder fees |
|---|
| Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases as a percentage of offering price | 5.75% |
| Maximum contingent deferred sales charge (load) as a percentage of original purchase price or redemption price, whichever is lower | none |
| Annual fund operating expenses |
|---|
| Management fees | 0.74% |
| Distribution and service (12b-1) fees | 0.25% |
| Other expenses | 0.37% |
| Total annual fund operating expenses | 1.36% |
| Fee waivers and expense reimbursements | none |
| Total annual fund operating expenses after fee waivers | 1.36% |
On Nov. 4, 2014, Class B shares of the Fund converted to Class A shares.
The chart below lists the percentage of the Fund's total assets under management that each sub-advisor manages on behalf of the Fund. The percentages include securities, cash, and any other assets managed by each sub-advisor in its sleeve of the Fund. These percentage allocations should be updated some time after 30 days following a given month end.
| Date |
Acadian |
Delaware Management Company |
EARNEST Partners LLC |
Total |
| 09/30/2017 |
52.65% |
0.46% |
46.89% |
100% |
| 10/31/2017 |
52.64% |
0.47% |
46.90% |
100% |
| 11/30/2017 |
52.79% |
0.39% |
46.82% |
100% |
| 12/31/2017 |
52.82% |
0.39% |
46.79% |
100% |
| 01/31/2018 |
52.49%
|
0.41%
|
47.10%
|
100%
|
| 02/28/2018 |
53.10%
|
0.37%
|
46.52%
|
100%
|
| 03/29/2018 |
53.17% |
0.38% |
46.45% |
100% |
| 04/30/2018 |
53.41% |
0.44% |
46.15% |
100% |
| 05/31/2018 |
54.00% |
0.48% |
45.52% |
100% |
| 06/30/2018 |
53.49% |
0.53% |
45.98% |
100% |
| 07/31/2018 |
53.24% |
0.51% |
46.25% |
100% |
| 08/31/2018 |
56.92% |
0.01% |
43.07% |
100% |
Total may not equal 100% due to rounding.
On Nov. 4, 2014, Class B shares of the Fund converted to Class A shares.
Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.
International investments entail risks not ordinarily associated with US investments including fluctuation in currency values, differences in accounting principles, or economic or political instability in other nations.
Investing in emerging markets can be riskier than investing in established foreign markets due to increased volatility and lower trading volume.
The Fund may invest in derivatives, which may involve additional expenses and are subject to risk, including the risk that an underlying security or securities index moves in the opposite direction from what the portfolio manager anticipated. A derivatives transaction depends upon the counterparties’ ability to fulfill their contractual obligations.
All third-party marks cited are the property of their respective owners.