Fund Evaluator:
IMS Strategic Income (IMSIX)
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Best Performing in Tactical Allocation Over the Last Year
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Fund Details
IMS Strategic Income Overview
IMS Strategic Income (IMSIX) is an actively managed Allocation Tactical Allocation fund. IMS launched the fund in 2002.
The investment seeks current income, and a secondary objective is capital appreciation. In pursuing its investment objectives, the fund generally invests in corporate bonds, government bonds, dividend-paying common stocks, preferred and convertible preferred stocks, income trusts (including business trusts, oil royalty trusts and real estate investment trusts), money market instruments and cash equivalents. Under normal circumstances, it will invest at least 80% of its assets in dividend paying or other income producing securities.
About IMS Strategic Income (IMSIX)
There are 1 members of the management team with an average tenure of 23.75 years: Carl Marker (2002). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. IMS Strategic Income has 31 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 49.5% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
IMS Strategic Income is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. IMS Strategic Income has 14.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 23.2%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 70.1% (56.1% domestic bond, 14.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). IMS Strategic Income has 6.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $14 million in total assets, which is below the $222 million average for the Tactical Allocation 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.
IMSIX 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 IMS Strategic Income expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Tactical Allocation category. IMS Strategic Income has an expense ratio of 2.02%, which is 15% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. 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. IMS Strategic Income has a portfolio turnover rate of 266%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 196% for the Tactical Allocation category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, IMS Strategic Income returned -1.0%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Tactical Allocation category had an average return of -0.9%. 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.
IMS Strategic Income has a trailing yield of 7.69%, which is above the 2.86% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly 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.
IMS Strategic Income Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 1.5%, 6.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 4.6% over the past year (grade of F), 5.5% over the past three years (grade of F) and 0.1% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 1.5% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).
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IMSIX 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 |
|
| IMSIX Return (NAV) | -1.0% | 0.0% | 4.6% | 5.5% | 0.1% | 1.5% |
| IMSIX Grade | D | D | F | F | F | F |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | -1.5% | -11.6% | -5.1% | -5.2% | -4.8% |
| Tactical Allocation Avg | -0.9% | 1.5% | 16.2% | 10.6% | 5.3% | 6.3% |
| IMSIX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 3.0% | 2.5% | 2.3% | 2.0% |
IMSIX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| IMSIX Return (NAV) | 1.5% | 8.3% | 0.4% | 11.2% | -16.9% | 11.8% | 4.0% | 16.0% | -9.3% | -5.4% | -2.2% |
| IMSIX Grade | F | D | F | C | D | C | D | B | F | F | F |
| +/- Category | -6.8% | -4.4% | -8.5% | 0.5% | -3.8% | -0.8% | -6.2% | 2.4% | -3.1% | -18.6% | -7.9% |
| Tactical Allocation Avg | 8.4% | 12.7% | 8.9% | 10.8% | -13.1% | 12.7% | 10.2% | 13.5% | -6.2% | 13.2% | 5.6% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 9.1% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.74 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.89 - Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | C (44% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.86 |
| R-Squared: | 78% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Mid-Cap Value |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 7.7% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $14 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 14 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 267% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 1 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 23.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 23.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Marker Carl (2002) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 3/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 31 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 49.5% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 14.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 23.2% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 56.1% |
| Foreign Bond: | 14.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 6.7% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | IMS |
| Phone Number: | 877-244-6235 |
| Website: |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | November 5, 2002 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $5,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.50% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 2.02% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.76% |
| Share Class: | IMS Strategic Income |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 100 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
