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First Trust/Confluence Small Cap Value Fund (FOVAX)
Investment Objective/Strategy - The Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation by investing, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in equity securities of U.S. listed companies with small market capitalizations at the time of investment.
There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objectives will be achieved.
Fund Overview
TickerFOVAX
Fund TypeSmall-Cap Value
Investment AdvisorFirst Trust Advisors L.P.
Portfolio Manager/Sub-AdvisorConfluence Investment Management LLC
CUSIP33731W106
Share ClassClass A
Fiscal Year-End10/31
Inception Date2/24/2011
Minimum Investment Amount$2,500
Minimum Subsequent Investment Amount$50
Maximum Initial Sales Charge5.50%
Gross Expense Ratio
(10/31/2012)
23.94%
Net Expense Ratio1.60%
Pursuant to contract, First Trust has agreed to waive fees and/or pay fund expenses to prevent the net expense ratio of any class of shares of the fund from exceeding 1.35% per year, excluding 12b-1 distribution and service fees, through 5/31/2014, and to not exceed 1.70% per year from 3/01/2014 through 5/31/2023. Net expense ratio shown above includes 12b-1 distribution and service fees but does not include acquired fund fees and expenses, which, as of March 1, 2013, were 0.28% of each class of shares of the fund.
Current Fund Data (as of 6/17/2013)
Net Asset Value1$24.50
Total Net Assets$805,423.27
Outstanding Shares32,875
NAV 52-Week High/Low$24.54 / $20.05
Fund Characteristics (as of 5/31/2013)3
Median Market Cap.$1,949
Maximum Market Cap.$8,764
Minimum Market Cap.$242
Price/Earnings19.43
Price/Book2.41
Price/Cash Flow12.49
Price/Sales1.64
Top 10 Holdings (as of 1/31/2013)4
Holding Percent
West Pharmaceutical Services 3.55%
EnPro Industries, Inc. 3.42%
Techne Corporation 3.42%
Deckers Outdoor Corporation 3.41%
PennantPark Investment Corporation 3.37%
Brown & Brown, Inc. 3.33%
Patterson Companies, Inc. 3.33%
Zebra Technologies Corporation 3.33%
Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc. 3.28%
C&J Energy Services, Inc. 3.24%
NAV History (Since Inception)
Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Distribution Information
Dividend FrequencySemi-Annual
Dividend per Share Amt2$0.2667
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/2013)4
  Industry Percent
Machinery 12.72%
Insurance 10.18%
Electrical Equipment 10.00%
Capital Markets 8.22%
Health Care Equipment & Supplies 7.03%
Health Care Providers & Services 6.84%
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) 6.36%
Media 5.55%
Road & Rail 4.15%
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods 3.42%
Office Electronics 3.33%
Life Sciences Tools & Services 3.32%
Energy Equipment & Services 3.30%
Commercial Services & Supplies 3.29%
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment 3.27%
Air Freight & Logistics 3.26%
Aerospace & Defense 3.25%
Chemicals 2.51%
Month End Performance (as of 5/31/2013)
  3 Mos YTD 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year 10 Year Since
Fund
Inception5
Fund Performance *
Without Sales Charge 4.12% 9.72% 22.56% N/A N/A N/A 9.56%
With Sales Charge -1.61% 3.69% 15.82% N/A N/A N/A 6.86%
Index Performance **
Russell 2000® Value Index 7.17% 14.85% 31.31% N/A N/A N/A 10.40%
Russell 2000® Index 8.40% 16.45% 31.07% N/A N/A N/A 10.90%
Quarter End Performance (as of 3/28/2013)
  3 Mos YTD 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year 10 Year Since
Fund
Inception5
Fund Performance *
Without Sales Charge 8.68% 8.68% 15.66% N/A N/A N/A 9.86%
With Sales Charge 2.70% 2.70% 9.29% N/A N/A N/A 6.94%
Index Performance **
Russell 2000® Value Index 11.63% 11.63% 18.09% N/A N/A N/A 9.77%
Russell 2000® Index 12.39% 12.39% 16.30% N/A N/A N/A 9.94%

*Performance data quoted represents past performance. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than performance quoted. Investment returns and principal value will fluctuate and shares when sold or redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Returns are average annualized total returns, except those for periods of less than one year, which are cumulative.

**Indexes are unmanaged and an investor cannot invest directly in an index.

The gross expense ratio for this share class is 23.94%. Pursuant to contract, First Trust has agreed to waive fees and/or pay fund expenses to prevent the net expense ratio of any class of shares of the fund from exceeding 1.35% per year, excluding 12b-1 distribution and service fees, through 5/31/2014, and 1.70% per year from 3/01/2014 through 5/31/2023.

The Russell 2000® Value Index measures the performance of the small-cap segment of the U.S. equity universe. It includes those Russell 2000 companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values. The Russell 2000 Value Index is constructed to provide a comprehensive and unbiased barometer for the small-cap value segment.

The Russell 2000® Index measures the performance of the small-cap segment of the U.S. equity universe. The Russell 2000® Index is a subset of the Russell 3000® Index representing approximately 2,000 of the smallest securities based on a combination of their market cap and current index membership.

Footnotes
1 The NAV represents the fund's net assets (assets less liabilities) divided by the fund's shares outstanding.
2 Most recent distribution paid or declared through today's date. Subject to change in the future.
3 All market capitalization numbers are in USD$ Millions.
4 Market value information used in calculating the percentages is based upon trade date plus one recording of transactions, which can differ from regulatory financial reports (Forms N-CSR and N-Q) that are based on trade date recording of security transactions. Holdings are subject to change.
5 Inception Date is 2/24/2011

You should consider the fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before investing. You can download a prospectus or contact First Trust Portfolios, L.P. at 1-800-621-1675 to request a prospectus, which contains this and other information about the fund. Read it carefully before you invest.

The Fund is subject to the following risks:

Market Risk. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by the Fund or shares of the Fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in stock prices. Overall stock values could decline generally or could underperform other investments. Companies with smaller market capitalizations are generally subject to additional market risk. Small Cap Risk. The Fund invests in small capitalization companies. Such companies may be more vulnerable to adverse general market or economic developments, and their securities may be less liquid and may experience greater price volatility than larger, more established companies as a result of several factors, including limited trading volumes, products or financial resources, management inexperience and dependence on a few key people, and less publicly available information. Accordingly, such companies are generally subject to greater market risk than larger, more established companies. The market movements of equity securities issued by issuers with smaller capitalizations may be more abrupt or erratic than the market movements of equity securities of larger, more established companies or the stock market in general. Historically, smaller capitalization companies have sometimes gone through extended periods when they did not perform as well as larger companies. In addition, equity securities of smaller capitalization companies may be less liquid than those of larger companies. Value Investing Risk. The Fund focuses its investments on securities that the Sub-Advisor believes are undervalued or inexpensive relative to other investments. These types of securities may present risks in addition to the general risks associated with investing in them. These securities generally are selected on the basis of an issuer's business and economic fundamentals or the securities' current and projected credit profiles, relative to current market price. Such securities are subject to the risk of misestimating certain fundamental factors. Disciplined adherence to a "value" investment mandate during periods in which that style is "out of favor" can result in significant underperformance relative to overall market indices and other managed investment vehicles that pursue growth style investments and/or flexible style mandates. Real Estate Investment Risk. The Fund invests in companies in the real estate industry, including REITs. Therefore, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with investing in real estate, which may include, but are not limited to, fluctuations in the value of underlying properties; defaults by borrowers or tenants; market saturation; changes in general and local economic conditions; decreases in market rates for rents; increases in competition, property taxes, capital expenditures or operating expenses; and other economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting companies in the real estate industry. REITs are subject to risks related to their structure and focus, which include, but are not limited to, dependency upon management skills, limited diversification, the risks of locating and managing financing for projects, heavy cash flow dependency, possible default by borrowers, the costs and potential losses of self-liquidation of one or more holdings, the risk of a possible lack of mortgage funds and associated interest rate risks, overbuilding, property vacancies, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, losses due to environmental damages, changes in neighborhood values and appeal to purchases, the possibility of failing to maintain exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"), and, in many cases, relatively small market capitalization, which may result in less market liquidity and greater price volatility. Fund shareholders indirectly pay REIT fees and expenses. BDC Risk. The Fund may invest in BDCs which may carry risks similar to those of a private equity or venture capital fund. BDCs are not redeemable at the option of the shareholder and they may trade in the market at a discount to their net asset value. The BDCs included in the Fund may employ the use of leverage in their portfolio through borrowings or the issuance of preferred stock. While leverage often serves to increase the yield of a BDC, this leverage also subjects a BDC to increased risks, including the likelihood of increased volatility and the possibility that a BDC's common share income will fall if the dividend rate of the preferred shares or the interest rate on any borrowings rise.

Not FDIC Insured • Not Bank Guaranteed • May Lose Value
 
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