Fund Evaluator:
Clarkston Partners Institutional (CISMX)
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Best Performing in Mid-Cap Value Over the Last Year
| 41.4% | Fidelity Value Strategies (FSLSX) |
| 39.3% | Fidelity Advisor Mid Cap Value Z (FIDFX) |
| 39.2% | Fidelity Mid Cap Value (FSMVX) |
| 38.8% | Harbor Mid Cap Value Instl (HAMVX) |
| 38.3% | Harbor Mid Cap Value Investor (HIMVX) |
Fund Details
Clarkston Partners Institutional Overview
Clarkston Partners Institutional (CISMX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Mid-Cap Value fund. Clarkston Funds launched the fund in 2015.
The investment seeks to achieve long-term capital appreciation. Under normal circumstances, the fund invests primarily in U.S.-traded equity securities of small- and medium-market capitalization companies. Its investments in equity securities may include common stock, preferred stock and convertible securities. The fund may also invest in foreign equity securities through American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs"). It invests in companies the Adviser believes to be of high quality and believes to be undervalued relative to their expected long-term free cash flows. The fund is non-diversified.
About Clarkston Partners Institutional (CISMX)
There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 10.88 years: Jeffrey Hakala (2015), Gerald Hakala (2015). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Russell 2500 TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Clarkston Partners Institutional has 29 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 59.0% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Clarkston Partners Institutional is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. Clarkston Partners Institutional has 8.7% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 89.6%. There is 8.7% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Clarkston Partners Institutional has 1.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $286 million in total assets, which is below the $642 million average for the Mid-Cap Value category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
CISMX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Clarkston Partners Institutional expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Mid-Cap Value category. Clarkston Partners Institutional has an expense ratio of 1.00%, which is 3% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Clarkston Partners Institutional has a portfolio turnover rate of 28%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 51% for the Mid-Cap Value category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Clarkston Partners Institutional returned 6.2%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Mid-Cap Value category had an average return of 1.7%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Clarkston Partners Institutional has a trailing yield of 0.40%, which is below the 0.87% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Clarkston Partners Institutional Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 9.2%, 6.3 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 9.9% over the past year (grade of F), 1.8% over the past three years (grade of F) and 1.6% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 6.7% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).
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CISMX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| CISMX Return (NAV) | 6.2% | 7.7% | 9.9% | 1.8% | 1.6% | 6.7% |
| CISMX Grade | A | B | F | F | F | F |
| +/- Category | 4.5% | 1.7% | -13.2% | -11.7% | -7.7% | -3.4% |
| Mid-Cap Value Avg | 1.7% | 6.0% | 23.1% | 13.4% | 9.4% | 10.1% |
| CISMX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.3% | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1.2% |
CISMX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| CISMX Return (NAV) | 9.2% | -8.4% | 4.5% | 6.4% | -0.1% | 7.9% | 17.4% | 23.9% | -7.2% | 12.8% | 15.5% |
| CISMX Grade | F | F | F | F | A | F | A | D | A | D | D |
| +/- Category | -6.3% | -18.2% | -7.3% | -7.5% | 8.1% | -19.5% | 13.6% | -2.4% | 6.2% | -1.3% | -1.9% |
| Mid-Cap Value Avg | 15.5% | 9.9% | 11.8% | 13.9% | -8.2% | 27.5% | 3.8% | 26.3% | -13.4% | 14.1% | 17.4% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 13.5% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.10 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.92 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | B (24% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.63 |
| R-Squared: | 37% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Value |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.4% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $298 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 286 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 28% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 2 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 10.9 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 10.9 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Hakala Jeffrey (2015), Hakala Gerald (2015) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 29 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 59.0% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 8.7% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 89.6% |
| Foreign Stock: | 8.7% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.7% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Clarkston Funds |
| Phone Number: | 844-680-6562 |
| Website: | www.clarkstonfunds.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | September 15, 2015 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $25,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.00% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.03% |
| Share Class: | Clarkston Partners Founders |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
