VANECK VECTORSä ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES ETF
Ticker: EVX®
Principal U.S. Listing Exchange: NYSE Arca, Inc.
SUMMARY PROSPECTUS
FEBRUARY 1, 2016, as revised on MAY 1, 2016
EVXSUM
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus and other information about the Fund online at http://www.vaneck.com/ library/etfs/. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 800.826.2333, or by sending an email request to info@vaneck.com. The Fund’s prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated February 1, 2016, as supplemented, are incorporated by reference into this summary prospectus.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck Vectors Environmental Services ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the NYSE Arca Environmental Services Index (the “Environmental Services Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund (“Shares”).
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Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) |
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None |
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Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
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Management Fee |
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0.50 |
% |
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Other Expenses |
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0.65 |
% |
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Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a) |
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1.15 |
% |
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Fee Waivers and Expense Reimbursement(a) |
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-0.60 |
% |
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Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement(a) |
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0.55 |
% |
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(a) |
Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) has agreed to waive fees and/or pay Fund expenses to the extent necessary to prevent the operating expenses of the Fund (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.55% of the Fund’s average daily net assets per year until at least February 1, 2017. During such time, the expense limitation is expected to continue until the Fund’s Board of Trustees acts to discontinue all or a portion of such expense limitation. |
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EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (except that the example incorporates the fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement arrangement for only the first year). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
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YEAR |
EXPENSES |
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1 |
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$ |
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56 |
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3 |
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$ |
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306 |
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5 |
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$ |
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575 |
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10 |
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$ |
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1,344 |
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PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 19% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in common stocks and American depositary receipts (“ADRs”) of companies involved in the environmental services industry. The Environmental Services Index is comprised of companies that engage in business activities that may benefit from the global increase in demand for consumer waste disposal, removal and storage of industrial by-products, and the management of associated resources and includes securities of companies that are involved in management, removal and storage of consumer waste and industrial by-products and related environmental services, including waste collection, transfer and disposal services, recycling services, soil remediation, wastewater management and environmental consulting services, and that are listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), NYSE MKT or quoted on the NASDAQ National Market. Such companies may include small- and medium-capitalization companies. As of December 31, 2015, the Environmental Services Index included 22 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of approximately $104.13 million to $23.82 billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $6.84 billion. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Environmental Services Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Environmental Services Index. The Fund will normally invest at least 80% of its assets in securities that comprise the Environmental Services Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Environmental Services Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of September 30, 2015, the Environmental Services Index was concentrated in the industrials sector (which includes as a sub-industry the environmental services industry).
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Risk of Investing in the Environmental Services Industry. Companies in the environmental services industry are engaged in a variety of activities related to environmental services and consumer and industrial waste management. These companies may be adversely affected by a decrease in demand for waste disposal, removal or storage of industrial by-products, and the management of associated resources. The Fund will be sensitive to changes in, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the environmental services industry. Competitive pressures may have a significant effect on the financial condition of such companies. These prices may fluctuate substantially over short periods of time so the Fund’s Share price may be more volatile than other types of investments. These companies must comply with various regulations and the terms of their operating permits and licenses. Failure to comply with or to renew permits and licenses or changes in government regulations can adversely impact their operations. Waste management companies are also affected by demand cycles, world events, increased outsourcing and economic conditions. In addition, these companies are subject to liability for environmental damage claims.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability and the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities.
Risk of Investing in the Industrials Sector. To the extent that the Environmental Services Index continues to be concentrated in the industrials sector, the Fund will be sensitive to changes in, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the industrials sector. Companies in the industrials sector may be adversely affected by changes in government regulation, world events and economic conditions. In addition, companies in the industrials sector may be adversely affected by environmental damages, product liability claims and exchange rates.
Risk of Investing in ADRs. ADRs are issued by U.S. banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. The Fund’s investments in ADRs may be less liquid than the
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underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in the Environmental Services Index, may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of the Environmental Services Index. In addition, investments in ADRs that are not included in the Environmental Services Index may increase tracking error.
Risk of Investing in Small- and Medium-Capitalization Companies. Small- and medium-capitalization companies may be more volatile and more likely than large-capitalization companies to have narrower product lines, fewer financial resources, less management depth and experience and less competitive strength. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. Returns on investments in securities of small- and medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of large-capitalization companies.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in the Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, especially if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions and sudden and unpredictable drops in value. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Environmental Services Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses not applicable to the Environmental Services Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Environmental Services Index. The Fund also bears the costs and risks associated with buying and selling securities while such costs and risks are not factored into the return of the Environmental Services Index. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Environmental Services Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Environmental Services Index, due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons. To the extent the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”) based on fair value prices and the value of the Environmental Services Index is based on securities’ closing prices (i.e., the value of the Environmental Services Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Environmental Services Index may be adversely affected. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Environmental Services Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Environmental Services Index.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as Authorized Participants (“APs”). To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a discount to NAV and possibly face de-listing.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca”), there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, market dislocations, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods, which could cause a material decline in the Fund’s NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on NYSE Arca may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of NYSE Arca, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on NYSE Arca is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to NYSE Arca’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of NYSE Arca necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Replication Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund of equity securities traded on an exchange, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Environmental Services Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds
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that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Premium/Discount Risk. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may sustain losses.
Non-Diversified Risk. The Fund is classified as a “non-diversified” investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). Therefore, the Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers or may invest a larger proportion of its assets in a single issuer. As a result, the gains and losses on a single investment may have a greater impact on the Fund’s NAV and may make the Fund more volatile than more diversified funds. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Environmental Services Index is comprised of securities of a very limited number of issuers.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Environmental Services Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund continues to be concentrated in the industrials sector (which includes as a sub-industry the environmental services industry), the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on that sector and sub-industry will negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year and since inception periods compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after income taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
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Best Quarter: |
25.65% |
2Q ’09 |
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Worst Quarter: |
-21.21% |
4Q ’08 |
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2015
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
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Past One Year |
Past Five |
Since Inception |
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VanEck Vectors Environmental Services ETF (return before taxes) |
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-10.34 |
% |
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3.92 |
% |
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5.43 |
% |
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VanEck Vectors Environmental Services ETF (return after taxes on distributions) |
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-10.79 |
% |
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3.58 |
% |
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5.16 |
% |
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VanEck Vectors Environmental Services ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) |
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-5.85 |
% |
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3.02 |
% |
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4.32 |
% |
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NYSE Arca Environmental Services Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
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-10.03 |
% |
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4.45 |
% |
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5.96 |
% |
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S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
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1.38 |
% |
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12.57 |
% |
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6.83 |
% |
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PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
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Name |
Title with Adviser |
Date Began Managing the Fund |
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Hao-Hung (Peter) Liao |
Portfolio Manager |
October 2006 |
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George Chao |
Portfolio Manager |
December 2007 |
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PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in a large specified number of Shares, each called a “Creation Unit,” or multiples thereof. A Creation Unit consists of 50,000 Shares.
Individual Shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares of the Fund are listed on NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca”) and because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares of the Fund may trade at a price greater than or less than NAV.
TAX INFORMATION
The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
The Adviser and its related companies may pay broker-dealers or other financial intermediaries (such as a bank) for the sale of the Fund Shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing your broker-dealer or other intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial adviser or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
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800.826.2333
vaneck.com
(05/16)