SOURCE: Mirzam Group

 

TEQUESTA, FL--(Marketwire - June 24, 2009) - As the Mirzam Capital Appreciation Fund
(NASDAQ: MIRZX) approaches its second anniversary, its managers caution
that while improvements in global markets and a slowing of corporate
declines have provided an encouraging breather for investors, they believe
overly generous executive compensation continues to erode shareholder value
at many public companies. As such, the fund's investment strategy follows
a unique approach among mutual funds: it's a value fund that avoids
investing in companies that it perceives erode shareholder gains because of
excessive executive and employee stock-based compensation.

The $5.1 million asset fund invests only in companies its managers believe
have world-class financial performance and a commitment to operating in the
best interests of all shareholders.

"Most investors would be amazed at the number of well-known companies that
support and implement executive compensation plans designed to channel
financial and market gains to a handful of insiders," explains Clifford
Morris, Mirzam's founder and managing director. "Improving economic
conditions may present an opportunity for investors to participate in a
long-term market upturn after stocks have been hammered for the past two
years, but gains could be far less meaningful if they accrue to management
and insiders instead of shareholders."

Mirzam's strategy is to make long-term investments in well-run companies
that use their free cash flow to grow and increase the value of their
businesses, or distribute that cash to shareholders as dividends. Albert
Meyer, the fund's lead manager and recognized expert on corporate
governance and compensation, says there is a direct correlation between
companies having responsible executive compensation and which generate
consistent long-term value and out-perform the market. Meyer is president
of Bastiat Capital, which is sub-advisor to the Capital Appreciation Fund.

"Appropriate compensation doesn't guarantee outstanding long-term corporate
performance, however, it is virtually assured that companies with
self-serving compensation structures generally don't generate maximum
shareholder value," he explains. Meyer conducts extensive due diligence
before selecting a stock for the fund's portfolio. Once a holding is
selected, the fund's strategy is to hold a stock for years, unless
significant changes in the company's business model take place. In 2008,
the fund's portfolio turnover was 3%.

Executive stock options are the biggest red flag, says Meyer. He cites the
collapse of corporations like Lehman Brothers and Countrywide in 2008 as
examples of how executives profit even as they run their companies into the
ground. For instance, from 2003 to 2007, Meyer notes Lehman CEO Richard
Fuld cashed in $184.6 million of stock options, which Meyer believes
contributed significantly to the company's ultimate decline. He says many
other examples are less obvious, and Meyer's picks of stocks to shun read
like a laundry list of companies many view as world-class performers.

"Many of these companies generate vast amounts of income and cash flow, but
when you really dig down and analyze their accounting practices, you find
they're diluting out shareholders by issuing large amounts of stock options
to executives and employees," explains Meyer. "These cash flows are applied
to stock repurchases to mop up option dilution and should be distinguished
from conventional repurchases. It's difficult and time consuming to conduct
this investing due diligence, but that is exactly why we believe our fund
offers tremendous value to our shareholders."

Companies the Capital Appreciation Fund owns include GlaxoSmithKline,
Johnson & Johnson, Nestle, StatOil, Syngenta, Telefonica, Emerson
Electric and Southern Copper. Common to these diversified holdings are
what Mirzam considers strong performance generating significant free cash
flow, with fair yet conservative executive compensation policies, and a
focus on generating long-term value for shareholders, says Meyer.

"You don't need outlandish compensation to attract top talent," he
concluded. "In fact, it's just the opposite, and the outstanding long-term
performance of many world-class companies has proven that to be the case.
Excessive, self-serving compensation structures tend to attract executives
who are more focused on ways to build their personal wealth than on ways to
build the company's value.

"The litany of corporate debacles -- Enron, Tyco, WorldCom, Lehman
Brothers, and Countrywide to name just a few -- were all viewed by
investors as unassailable giants. These are the most obvious examples
because they collapsed. There are hundreds of perceived world-class
companies, still very much in business, that in our opinion drain away
shareholder value on a daily basis. We work very hard to ensure those
companies never have a place in our portfolio."

About the Fund

Founded in 2007, the Mirzam Capital Appreciation Fund (NASDAQ: MIRZX)
invests in equities that generate long-term growth with strong free cash
flow and trade at reasonable prices or prices that are below the companies'
intrinsic values. Find out more at the company's website:
www.MirzamFunds.com.

You should carefully consider the investment objectives, potential risks,
management fees, and charges and expenses of the Fund before investing. The
Fund's prospectus contains this and other information about the Fund, and
should be read carefully before investing. You may obtain a current copy
of the Fund's prospectus at www.MirzamFunds.com. Past performance is no
guarantee of future results. The investment return and principal value of
an investment in the Fund will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when
redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

Distributed by Unified Financial Securities, Inc., 2960 North Meridian
Street, Suite 300, Indianapolis, IN 46208. (Member FINRA)