WL Wilmington Trust Corp. (DE)

Wilmington Trust announced it is adding two new mutual funds, Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Large Company Fund and Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Small Company Fund, to its line-up of domestic equity funds. The introduction of Wilmington Trust�s two new fundamentally weighted mutual funds follows the company�s recent launch of three fundamentally weighted separately managed accounts for high-net-worth individuals. These separate accounts focus on large company stocks, mid-sized company stocks, and small company stocks, respectively. Combined, they have accumulated $155 million in assets under management. As with the new separately managed accounts, the new mutual funds ascribe to an emerging investment approach, often referred to as fundamentally weighted index investing. This approach, which is rapidly gaining acceptance in investor and academic circles, uses fundamental measures of a company�s size, such as net income, dividends, and free cash flow, to select securities. It stands in contrast to the market capitalization approach of conventional index investing. Fundamental weighting allows managers to take advantage of the mispricings inherent in the financial markets and helps to avoid what many observers believe is the essential flaw of conventional index investing: that market-cap weighting, by definition, causes investors to be overexposed to overvalued securities and underexposed to undervalued securities. �Fundamentally weighted portfolios represent an enhancement of market cap-weighted index investing,� said Rex Macey, CFA�, CIMA, CFP�, vice president and director of equity management for Wilmington Trust. �Conventional indexing has strengths, including low operating costs and the predictability of achieving substantially similar performance to an unmanaged index. Maintaining proper portfolio balance, however, is not one of them. Fundamentally weighted portfolios can help solve that problem.� According to research performed by Mr. Macey�s group, hypothetical portfolios built to reflect fundamental measures of company size performed better than traditional market cap-weighted benchmarks. And they did so without increased volatility. This held true for portfolios of large-, mid-, and small-sized companies. In addition, the research showed that tax-loss harvesting of an otherwise passive portfolio can help boost not only after-tax returns, but pre-tax returns, as well. It is anticipated that Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Large Company Fund will hold several hundred stocks included in the Russell 1000� Index, which represents approximately 92% of the U.S. equity market. Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Small Company Fund will hold stocks included in the Russell 2000� Index, which is constructed to provide a comprehensive and unbiased benchmark of U.S. small company stocks. By one estimate, there is approximately $3 trillion invested worldwide in portfolios that track indexes. According to another estimate, nearly 12% of all U.S. mutual fund assets are held in indexed portfolios. �We believe many investors who are comfortable with conventional indexed portfolios will find fundamentally weighted portfolios to be a sensible alternative,� Mr. Macey said. �It�s similar to index investing, but with intellect. This approach has the benefits of conventional index investing � broad diversification, relatively low portfolio turnover and cost, tax sensitivity � without the drawback of chasing overpriced stocks.� Wilmington Trust Corporation (NYSE:WL) is a financial services holding company that provides Regional Banking services throughout the Delaware Valley region, Wealth Advisory Services for high-net-worth clients in 22 countries, and Corporate Client Services for institutional clients in 81 countries. Its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Wilmington Trust Company, which was founded in 1903, is one of the largest personal trust providers in the United States and the leading retail and commercial bank in Delaware. Wilmington Trust Corporation and its affiliates have offices in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, the Cayman Islands, the Channel Islands, London, Dublin, and Frankfurt. For more information, visit www.wilmingtontrust.com. You should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the Wilmington Funds before investing. A prospectus with this and other information may be obtained by calling 800-336-9970 or by visiting www.wilmingtonfunds.com. The prospectus should be read carefully before investing. The Wilmington Funds are distributed by Professional Funds Distributor, LLC and through Wilmington Brokerage Services Company, a Wilmington Trust affiliate. Rodney Square Management Corp., a Wilmington Trust affiliate, is the funds� investment adviser. The funds are not deposits of, or other obligations of, or guaranteed by Wilmington Trust or any other bank or entity. They are not insured by the FDIC or any other governmental agency. Mutual funds involve risk, including loss of principal. Investing in smaller companies presents a greater risk of loss than investing in larger companies. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. CFA� and Chartered Financial Analyst� are trademarks owned by CFA Institute. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification mark CFP�, which it awards to individuals who successfully complete initial and ongoing certification requirements. Russell Investment Group owns the Russell 1000� and Russell 2000� trademarks as well as service marks and copyrights related to its indexes. Wilmington Trust announced it is adding two new mutual funds, Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Large Company Fund and Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Small Company Fund, to its line-up of domestic equity funds. The introduction of Wilmington Trust's two new fundamentally weighted mutual funds follows the company's recent launch of three fundamentally weighted separately managed accounts for high-net-worth individuals. These separate accounts focus on large company stocks, mid-sized company stocks, and small company stocks, respectively. Combined, they have accumulated $155 million in assets under management. As with the new separately managed accounts, the new mutual funds ascribe to an emerging investment approach, often referred to as fundamentally weighted index investing. This approach, which is rapidly gaining acceptance in investor and academic circles, uses fundamental measures of a company's size, such as net income, dividends, and free cash flow, to select securities. It stands in contrast to the market capitalization approach of conventional index investing. Fundamental weighting allows managers to take advantage of the mispricings inherent in the financial markets and helps to avoid what many observers believe is the essential flaw of conventional index investing: that market-cap weighting, by definition, causes investors to be overexposed to overvalued securities and underexposed to undervalued securities. "Fundamentally weighted portfolios represent an enhancement of market cap-weighted index investing," said Rex Macey, CFA(R), CIMA, CFP(R), vice president and director of equity management for Wilmington Trust. "Conventional indexing has strengths, including low operating costs and the predictability of achieving substantially similar performance to an unmanaged index. Maintaining proper portfolio balance, however, is not one of them. Fundamentally weighted portfolios can help solve that problem." According to research performed by Mr. Macey's group, hypothetical portfolios built to reflect fundamental measures of company size performed better than traditional market cap-weighted benchmarks. And they did so without increased volatility. This held true for portfolios of large-, mid-, and small-sized companies. In addition, the research showed that tax-loss harvesting of an otherwise passive portfolio can help boost not only after-tax returns, but pre-tax returns, as well. It is anticipated that Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Large Company Fund will hold several hundred stocks included in the Russell 1000(R) Index, which represents approximately 92% of the U.S. equity market. Wilmington Fundamentally Weighted Small Company Fund will hold stocks included in the Russell 2000(R) Index, which is constructed to provide a comprehensive and unbiased benchmark of U.S. small company stocks. By one estimate, there is approximately $3 trillion invested worldwide in portfolios that track indexes. According to another estimate, nearly 12% of all U.S. mutual fund assets are held in indexed portfolios. "We believe many investors who are comfortable with conventional indexed portfolios will find fundamentally weighted portfolios to be a sensible alternative," Mr. Macey said. "It's similar to index investing, but with intellect. This approach has the benefits of conventional index investing - broad diversification, relatively low portfolio turnover and cost, tax sensitivity - without the drawback of chasing overpriced stocks." Wilmington Trust Corporation (NYSE:WL) is a financial services holding company that provides Regional Banking services throughout the Delaware Valley region, Wealth Advisory Services for high-net-worth clients in 22 countries, and Corporate Client Services for institutional clients in 81 countries. Its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Wilmington Trust Company, which was founded in 1903, is one of the largest personal trust providers in the United States and the leading retail and commercial bank in Delaware. Wilmington Trust Corporation and its affiliates have offices in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, the Cayman Islands, the Channel Islands, London, Dublin, and Frankfurt. For more information, visit www.wilmingtontrust.com. You should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the Wilmington Funds before investing. A prospectus with this and other information may be obtained by calling 800-336-9970 or by visiting www.wilmingtonfunds.com. The prospectus should be read carefully before investing. The Wilmington Funds are distributed by Professional Funds Distributor, LLC and through Wilmington Brokerage Services Company, a Wilmington Trust affiliate. Rodney Square Management Corp., a Wilmington Trust affiliate, is the funds' investment adviser. The funds are not deposits of, or other obligations of, or guaranteed by Wilmington Trust or any other bank or entity. They are not insured by the FDIC or any other governmental agency. Mutual funds involve risk, including loss of principal. Investing in smaller companies presents a greater risk of loss than investing in larger companies. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. CFA(R) and Chartered Financial Analyst(R) are trademarks owned by CFA Institute. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification mark CFP(R), which it awards to individuals who successfully complete initial and ongoing certification requirements. Russell Investment Group owns the Russell 1000(R) and Russell 2000(R) trademarks as well as service marks and copyrights related to its indexes.