Hennessy Announces Transition to Fully Transparent ETF Structure and Name Change
- Enhanced transparency through daily holdings disclosure benefits investors
- Maintains existing investment strategy and management team, ensuring continuity
- Aligns with industry trends and investor demand for greater transparency
- Sustainability-focused strategy may limit investment opportunities
- Fund performance might lag behind non-ESG focused funds due to investment restrictions
- Reliance on sustainability data which may be incomplete or inaccurate
Insights
Hennessy's ETF structure change enhances transparency for investors while maintaining its sustainable investment approach.
Hennessy has taken a strategic step by transitioning its Hennessy Stance ESG ETF (STNC) from a semi-transparent to a fully transparent structure, while rebranding it as the Hennessy Sustainable ETF. This structural evolution represents a significant operational shift with meaningful implications for current and prospective shareholders.
The move to full transparency means the fund will now disclose its holdings daily rather than periodically—a substantial enhancement in information flow that reduces information asymmetry between fund managers and investors. This change aligns with broader industry trends, as semi-transparent ETF structures have faced adoption challenges despite initial excitement about their potential to protect active management intellectual property.
From an operational perspective, fully transparent ETFs typically benefit from tighter bid-ask spreads and potentially better tracking efficiency due to the enhanced ability of authorized participants to perform arbitrage functions with complete holdings information. This can translate to lower trading costs for investors, particularly during volatile market periods.
Importantly, Hennessy has confirmed this transition affects only the disclosure methodology, not the underlying investment approach or management team. This continuity should provide reassurance to existing shareholders who selected the fund based on its sustainable investment thesis.
The rebranding from "ESG" to "Sustainable" also reflects an ongoing evolution in terminology within responsible investing—moving away from the sometimes politically contentious ESG label toward language that may resonate more broadly while maintaining the same underlying investment philosophy.
This strategic move reflects both a broader industry trend toward greater transparency and Hennessy's longstanding commitment to prioritizing shareholders' interests – a core value since the firm's founding in 1989. By adopting a fully transparent structure, STNC will now disclose its holdings daily, providing enhanced visibility and the ability to make more informed investment decisions.
Teresa Nilsen, President and Chief Operating Officer of Hennessy Advisors, stated, "We believe many investors remain committed to aligning their capital with their values. This shift to full transparency acknowledges and supports that intent, while reflecting our ongoing approach to value-based investing and our dedication to meeting the evolving needs of shareholders."
Bill Davis, Portfolio Manager of the Hennessy Sustainable ETF, added, "We remain dedicated to embracing industry advancements that enhance transparency and align with our investors' values. Our transition to a fully transparent structure reflects this commitment, while our active, sustainability-driven approach remains unchanged."
The Hennessy Sustainable ETF will maintain its current investment strategy and management team.
About Hennessy Advisors, Inc.
Hennessy Advisors, Inc. is a publicly traded investment manager offering a broad range of domestic equity, multi-asset, and sector and specialty funds. Hennessy Advisors, Inc. is committed to providing superior service to shareholders and employing a consistent and disciplined approach to investing based on a buy-and-hold philosophy that rejects the idea of market timing.
Additional Information
Nothing in this press release shall be considered a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell a security to any person in any jurisdiction where such offer, solicitation, purchase, or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.
Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing. This and other important information can be found in the Fund's statutory and summary prospectuses, which can be obtained by calling 877-671-3199 or visiting hennessyetfs.com. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.
Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. For these and other reasons, there is no guarantee the Fund will achieve its stated objective. ETFs are subject to additional risks that do not apply to conventional mutual funds, including the risks that the market price of an ETF's shares may trade at a premium or discount to its net asset value, an active secondary trading market may not develop or be maintained, or trading may be halted by the exchange in which they trade, which may impact a fund's ability to sell its shares. Shares are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemed from the Fund. Investors may purchase or sell individual shares on an exchange on which they are listed. Market returns are based upon the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. ET, and do not represent the returns you would receive if you traded shares at other times. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns.
Sustainability investing risk is the risk that applying sustainable investment analysis to the Portfolio Managers' investment decisions regarding the Fund's portfolio may forgo certain investment opportunities otherwise available to the Fund. The Fund intends to invest in companies with measurably high sustainability ratings relative to their sector peers, and screen out particular companies that do not meet its sustainability criteria. The Fund believes that these sustainability factors are material to its assessment of the risk-return profiles of companies in which it invests. The relevance and weighting of sustainability criteria may vary significantly among issuers and third-party data providers. Sustainability is a subjective assessment and it is not uniformly defined. Sustainability data may be incomplete, delayed, inaccurate, or unavailable, which could lead to an incorrect assessment of a company's sustainability characteristics. The Fund's returns may be lower than other funds that do not seek to invest in companies based on sustainability ratings or screen out certain companies or industries. The Fund seeks to identify companies that it believes may have higher sustainability ratings, but investors may differ in their views of sustainability characteristics. As a result, the Fund may invest in companies that do not reflect the beliefs and values of any particular investor. Regulatory changes regarding the definition or use of sustainability criteria could have a material adverse effect on the Fund's ability to invest in accordance with its sustainability strategy.
The Hennessy Funds are distributed by Quasar Distributors, LLC.
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SOURCE Hennessy Advisors, Inc.
FAQ
What changes were made to the Hennessy Stance ESG ETF (STNC)?
How does the transparency change affect STNC ETF investors?
What are the main risks of investing in the Hennessy Sustainable ETF?
Will the investment strategy of STNC change after becoming fully transparent?
