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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM N-CSR

 

 

CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED

MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES

Investment Company Act file number: 811-22555

 

 

FlexShares Trust

(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)

 

 

50 South LaSalle Street

Chicago, Illinois 60603

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code)

 

 

Diana E. McCarthy, Esq.

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

One Logan Square, Ste. 2000

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-6996

(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

 

 

with a copy to:

Himanshu Surti

Jose Del Real, Esq.

Northern Trust Investments, Inc.

50 South LaSalle Street

Chicago, Illinois 60603

(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

 

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: 855-353-9383

Date of fiscal year end: October 31

Date of reporting period: October 31, 2020

 

 

 


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Item 1. Reports To Stockholders.

The following is a copy of the report transmitted to shareholders pursuant to Rule 30e-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (17 CFR 270.30e-1).


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FlexShares® Trust

 

Annual Report

October 31, 2020

 

 

Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of FlexShares® Trust’s shareholder reports like this one will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports from FlexShares® Trust or your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead, the reports will be made available on FlexShares® Trust’s website (www.flexshares.com) and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

 

If you have already elected to receive your shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications from FlexShares® Trust electronically at any time by contacting your financial intermediary.

 

You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. Please contact your financial intermediary to continue receiving paper copies of your shareholder reports. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds in FlexShares® Trust that you hold in your account at the financial intermediary. You must provide separate instructions to each of your financial intermediaries.

 

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Table of Contents

 

Letter to Shareholders

     2  

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance

     3  

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     3  

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     5  

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     7  

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

     9  

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

     11  

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

     13  

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

     15  

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

     17  

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

     19  

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

     21  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

     23  

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

     25  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

     27  

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

     29  

FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

     31  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

     33  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

     35  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

     37  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

     39  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

     41  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

     43  

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

     45  

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

     47  

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

     49  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

     51  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

     53  

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

     55  

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

     57  

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund

     59  

Statements of Assets and Liabilities

     62  

Statements of Operations

     70  

Statements of Changes in Net Assets

     78  

Financial Highlights

     94  

Schedules of Investments

     122  

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     122  

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     126  

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

     132  

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

     137  

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

     172  

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

     214  

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

     253  

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

     255  

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

     257  

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

     261  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

     267  

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

     281  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

     288  

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

     295  

FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

     300  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

     301  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

     306  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

     311  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

     315  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

     323  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

     330  

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

     337  

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

     338  

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

     339  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

     347  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

     362  

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

     370  

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

     387  

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund

     399  

Notes to the Financial Statements

     401  

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

     453  

Tax Information

     456  

Fund Expenses

     458  

Trustees and Officers

     462  

Approval of Advisory Agreement

     466  

Supplemental Information

     474  

For More Information

     488  

 

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Dear Shareholder:

 

 

Dear Shareholder:

 

We are pleased to have this opportunity to share our thoughts on what for most of us has probably been a year we will never forget. The FlexShares Annual Report, for the year ended October 31, 2020, details fund characteristics, performance results and investment commentaries on our family of FlexShares exchange traded funds (ETFs). We believe the benefits that FlexShares derives, including expertise in index design and portfolio management, from being a part of the broader Northern Trust Asset Management (NTAM)1 organization, which has over $1 trillion in assets under management2, are substantial. As the investment adviser for the Funds, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (NTI), has observed that the past twelve months have been a period of high volatility as markets have seen dramatic swings over the course of the year. Of course, as part of living through this memorable year, no discussion would be complete without acknowledging the impact of the novel coronavirus, Covid-19. As many of you know, the Covid-19 pandemic impacted the globe in multiple ways including the health of millions around the globe. Economies and livelihoods have been affected by shelter-in-place orders and lockdowns as governments around the world, including in the U.S., have looked for ways to suppress the spread of the virus. Consequently, the world’s bond and equity markets have been profoundly impacted as investors attempted to gauge both the short and long term impact of those measures. In addition, investors increasingly began to evaluate companies beyond their current economic viability and consider the longer-term sustainability of companies’ business models, accelerating a trend that we believe has been on the rise for more than a decade.

 

In light of this environment, we are emboldened in our view that investors now more than ever are looking for solutions that help them navigate their investment portfolios through different market environments while helping them achieve their goals. The monetary policies and stimulus injected by central banks have brought interest rates down to levels not

seen since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, creating a deeper need for strategies to help investors tackle their income requirements. As global equity markets have dramatically sold off and some have subsequently rebounded, the need for tools to help manage that volatility have been in greater focus.

 

Deciding what investment products to own has become a more frequent exercise for many advisors and investors. It has been a privilege to provide innovative and efficient strategies that seek to appropriately compensate investors for risk and deliver potentially attractive outcomes. Even as the world rapidly shifts around us, we work to be a trusted partner. I am grateful for the trust you continue to place in us and I am proud to be a part of a global investment manager whose approach to ETF construction is reflected in this broader perspective.

 

Please review our Annual Report to learn more about FlexShares ETFs, and visit our website at www.flexshares.com for additional information about our products. We look forward to continuing to serve your investment needs and thank you for choosing FlexShares ETFs to help meet your investment objectives.

 

Sincerely,

 

Darek Wojnar, CFA

Head, Funds & Managed Account Solutions,

Northern Trust Asset Management

 

The views in this letter were as of October 31, 2020 and may not necessarily reflect the same views on the date this letter is first published or any time thereafter. These views are intended to help shareholders in understanding the Funds’ investment methodology and do not constitute investment advice

 

This report is submitted for the general information of the shareholders of the Funds. It is not authorized for distribution to prospective investors unless preceded or accompanied by an effective prospectus, which includes information regarding the Funds’ risks, objectives, fees and expenses, experience of its management, and other information.

 

 

 

1 

Northern Trust Asset Management is the branding name of the asset management business of Northern Trust Corporation, a financial holding company and publicly traded company.

2 

Source: Northern Trust Corporation as of October 31, 2020.

 

2    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     Ticker:   QLV

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

     1 Year     Fund
Inception
7/15/2019
 
  

 

 

 

FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

     2.63     3.04

FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

     2.60     3.12

Northern Trust Quality Low Volatility Index

     2.78     3.36

Russell 1000® Index

     10.87     9.10

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assumes that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.23% and the net expense ratio is 0.22%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Low Volatility Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to measure the performance of companies that, in the aggregate, possess lower absolute volatility characteristics relative to the Northern Trust 1250 Index (“Parent Index”), a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index of U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that exhibit financial strength, stability and enhanced risk-return characteristics, which Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) believes can provide equity-market participation while protecting against downside risks during certain market environments. As of October 31, 2020, there were 127 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      3  


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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

companies leading U.S. investments higher overall. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

Though market volatility was high during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, we believe the low volatility factor1 approach contributed to initial performance of the Fund as volatile U.S. domestic investments declined sharply in Q1 of 2020. As U.S. domestic investments rose throughout the remainder of 2020, however, the low volatility factor was a negative driver of Fund performance for the full 12-month period. In addition, we believe that investors showed a preference for low quality factor2 companies, resulting in the high-quality factor exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. Overall, the negative performance derived from the low volatility and quality factor exposures were the primary source of the Underlying Index’s underperformance against the Russell 1000 Index by -8.09%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -15 basis points (“bps”)3, which is reflective of the management fee (-22 bps) and stock selection/futures (+7 bps).

 

1 

The low volatility factor is based on the measurement of a group of stocks that have been less volatile in their asset class over a defined time frame.

 

2 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

3 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

4    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


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FlexShares® Developed   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund Ticker:   QLVD

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

     1 Year     Fund
Inception
7/15/2019
 
  

 

 

 

FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

     -6.24     -2.83

FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

     -6.06     -2.48

Northern Trust Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index

     -6.00     -2.52

MSCI World ex-US Index

     -6.79     -3.77

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assumes that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.33% and the net expense ratio is 0.32%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to measure the performance of companies that, in the aggregate, possess lower overall absolute volatility characteristics relative to a broad universe of securities domiciled in developed market countries, excluding the U.S. (the “Parent Index”). The Parent Index is a subset of the Northern Trust Global Index, where eligible securities are limited to those securities domiciled in non-U.S. developed market countries and designated as large- and mid-capitalization companies by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”), acting in its capacity as the index provider. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that exhibit financial strength, stability and enhanced risk-return characteristics. As of October 31, 2020, there were 184 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on developed international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, developed international investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Developed international investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Developed international investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across developed markets continued

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      5  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Developed   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

to support overall investments. Developed international equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Developed international markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

Though market volatility was high during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, and a low volatility factor1 approach was beneficial to the Fund as developed international investments declined sharply in Q1, the dramatic recovery of many of those same investments led to lower volatility factor stocks actually underperforming higher volatility stocks. As a result, the low volatility factor was a negative driver of Fund performance for the 12-month period. The quality factor2 focus of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of Fund performance for the 12-month period as we believe that investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the developed international universe. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality factor exposure offset the negative performance derived from the low volatility factor exposure. Consequently, the Underlying Index outperformed the MSCI World ex-US Index by 0.79%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -24 basis points (“bps”)3, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-32 bps), stock selection/futures (+6 bps) and dividend tax differential (+22 bps).

 

1 

The low volatility factor is based on the measurement of a group of stocks that have been less volatile in their asset class over a defined time frame.

 

2 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

3 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Low Volatility Index Fund Ticker:  QLVE

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

     1 Year     Fund
Inception
7/15/2019
 
  

 

 

 

FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

     -1.21 %*      -0.79

FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

     -0.59     -0.21

Northern Trust Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index

     -1.00     -0.47

MSCI Emerging Markets Index

     8.25     5.67

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assumes that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.41% and the net expense ratio is 0.40%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in the aggregate, possess lower overall absolute volatility characteristics relative to a broad universe of securities domiciled in emerging market countries (the “Parent Index”). The Parent Index is a subset of the Northern Trust Global Index, limited to those securities domiciled in emerging markets and designated as large- and mid-capitalization companies by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”), acting in its capacity as the index provider. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that exhibit financial strength, stability and enhanced risk-return characteristics. As of October 31, 2020, there were 154 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on emerging market investments generally traded higher. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, emerging market investments moved higher as trade tensions eased between the United States and China following the announcement of the initial phase of a trade agreement. Emerging markets declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic and subsequent lockdown procedures threatened the global economy. Emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across emerging markets continued to support overall investments. Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      7  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

*

The return shown is based on net asset value calculated for shareholder transactions and may differ from the return shown in the financial highlights, which reflects adjustments made to the net asset value in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The net asset value was $23.95 as of October 31, 2020.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

on USD weakness and better than expected gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

Though market volatility was high during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, and a low volatility factor1 approach was beneficial to the Fund as emerging market investments declined sharply in Q1, the dramatic recovery of many of those same emerging market investments led to lower volatility factor stocks underperforming higher volatility stocks. As a result, the low volatility factor was a negative driver of Fund performance for the 12-month period. In addition, we believe that investors showed a preference for low quality factor2 emerging market companies, resulting in the high-quality factor exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. Overall, the negative performance derived from the low volatility and quality factor exposures was the primary source of the Underlying Index’s underperformance against the MSCI Emerging markets Index by -9.25%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -21 basis points (“bps”)3, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-40 bps), stock selection/futures (+9 bps) and dividend tax differential (+10 bps).

 

1 

The low volatility factor is based on the measurement of a group of stocks that have been less volatile in their asset class over a defined time frame.

 

2 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

3 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

8    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund Ticker:   TILT

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/16/2011
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor TILT Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    3.28     5.93     9.02     11.86

FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor TILT Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    3.33     5.93     9.03     11.86

Morningstar® U.S. Market Factor Tilt IndexSM

    3.01     5.97     9.08     12.01

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assumes that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.26% and the net expense ratio is 0.25%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® US Market Factor Tilt Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in the aggregate, possess greater exposure to size and value factors relative to the Morningstar US Market Index (the “Parent Index”), a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of U.S.-incorporated large-, mid-, small- and micro-capitalization companies. The Underlying Index seeks to achieve increased exposures to size and value factors, or a “factor tilt,” by adjusting the Parent Index’s constituent weights to achieve a slightly greater weight on companies with smaller market capitalizations or lower valuations, as determined by Morningstar, Inc. pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 2,289 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      9  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading several equity indices higher. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months ended October 31, 2020. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. In addition, the size factor3 was a negative driver of performance over the 12 months as small cap stocks underperformed large cap stocks. Overall, the negative performance derived from the value and size factor exposures was the primary source of the Underlying Index’s underperformance against the Russell 3000 Index by -7.14%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was +27 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the management fee (-25 bps), stock selection/futures (+47 bps) and securities lending (+5 bps).

 

1 

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3 

The size factor is measured by a stock’s total capitalization—found by multiplying the current share price times all the outstanding shares of stock. Large cap generally means stocks with a total capitalization of $10 billion. Mid cap is between $2 billion and $10 billion. Small cap is less than $2 billion in total capitalization.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar

  MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund Ticker:  TLTD

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/25/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -10.57     -4.04     1.98     3.69

FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -10.23     -4.21     2.12     3.70

Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt IndexSM

    -10.51     -4.06     2.01     3.79

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.40% and the net expense ratio is 0.39%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in the aggregate, possess greater exposure to size and value factors relative to the Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Index (the “Parent Index”), a float adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in developed-market countries, excluding the U.S. The Underlying Index seeks to achieve increased exposures to size and value factors, or a “factor tilt”, by adjusting the Parent Index’s constituent weights to achieve a slightly greater weight on companies with smaller market capitalizations or lower valuations, as determined by Morningstar, Inc. pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 3,206 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on developed international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, developed international investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Developed international investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Developed international investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across developed markets continued to support overall investments.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      11  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

Developed international equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Developed international markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. The size factor3 was a positive driver of performance over the 12 months as small cap stocks outperformed large cap stocks in developed international markets. Overall, the positive exposure from size was not enough, however, to offset the headwinds from the negative performance derived from the value exposure and the Underlying Index underperformed the MSCI World ex-USA IMI Index by -4.58%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -6 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-39 bps), stock selection/futures (+8 bps), securities lending (+9 bps) and dividend tax differential (+16 bps).

 

1

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3

The size factor is measured by a stock’s total capitalization—found by multiplying the current share price times all the outstanding shares of stock. Large cap generally means stocks with a total capitalization of $10 billion. Mid cap is between $2 billion and $10 billion. Small cap is less than $2 billion in total capitalization.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund Ticker:   TLTE

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/25/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -1.86     -2.95     4.31     1.69

FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -1.44     -3.34     4.29     1.61

Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt IndexSM

    -1.23     -2.40     5.00     2.37

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.60% and the net expense ratio is 0.59%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to size and value factors relative to the Morningstar Emerging Markets Index (the “Parent Index”), a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in emerging-market countries. The Underlying Index seeks to achieve increased exposures to size and value factors, or a “factor tilt,” by adjusting the Parent Index’s constituent weights to achieve a slightly greater weight on companies with smaller market capitalizations or lower valuations, as determined by Morningstar, Inc., pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 2,906 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on emerging market investments generally traded higher. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, emerging market investments moved higher as trade tensions eased between the United States and China following the announcement of the initial phase of a trade agreement. Emerging markets declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic and subsequent lockdown procedures threatened the global economy. Emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across emerging markets continued to support overall investments. Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3 on USD weakness and better than expected

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      13  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. In addition, the size factor3 was a negative driver of performance over the 12 months as small cap stocks underperformed large cap stocks. Overall, the negative performance derived from the value and size factor exposures was the primary source of the Underlying Index’s underperformance against the MSCI EM IMI Net Index by -8.87%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -63 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-59 bps), stock selection/futures (-12 bps), securities lending (+7 bps) and dividend tax differential (+1 bps).

 

1 

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3 

The size factor is measured by a stock’s total capitalization—found by multiplying the current share price times all the outstanding shares of stock. Large cap generally means stocks with a total capitalization of $10 billion. Mid cap is between $2 billion and $10 billion. Small cap is less than $2 billion in total capitalization.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®  Currency Hedged   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund Ticker:  TLDH

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
11/9/2015
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -9.71     -2.16     3.29

FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -10.11     -2.30     3.30

Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Hedged IndexSM

    -9.88     -1.90     3.38

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.84% and the net expense ratio is 0.44%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Hedged Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to (i) reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in the aggregate, possess greater exposure to size and value factors relative to the Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Index (the “Parent Index”), a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in developed-market countries, excluding the U.S., and (ii) to hedge the currency-related risk of the securities included in the Underlying Index against the U.S. dollar on a monthly basis. The Underlying Index seeks to achieve increased exposures to size and value factors, or a “factor tilt”, by adjusting the Parent Index’s constituent weights to achieve a slightly greater weight on companies with smaller market capitalizations or lower valuations, as determined by Morningstar, Inc. pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 3,206 issues in the Underlying Index. Currently, the Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing a substantial portion of its assets in the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (an “Underlying Fund”). In order to replicate the “hedging” component of the Underlying Index, the Fund enters into foreign currency forward contracts designed to offset the Fund’s exposure to the component currencies. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on developed international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, developed international

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      15  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Currency  Hedged   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Developed international investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Developed international investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across developed markets continued to support overall investments. Developed international equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Developed international markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. The size factor3 was a positive driver of performance over the 12 months as small cap stocks outperformed large cap stocks in developed international markets. Though the USD depreciated against most developed market currencies over the 12 months, the increased volatility in currencies resulted in the hedging of the underlying foreign currency exposure to be a positive driver of the Underlying Index’s performance. Overall, the positive impacts of the size factor and the currency hedge were not enough to offset the headwinds from the negative performance derived from the value exposure and the Underlying Index underperformed the MSCI World ex-USA IMI Index by -3.95%. Tracking difference

 

 

between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was +17 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee of -44 basis points, implementation of the currency hedge (+1 bps), tracking error of the Underlying Fund against its underlying index (+38 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (+22 bps).

 

 

1 

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3 

The size factor is measured by a stock’s total capitalization—found by multiplying the current share price times all the outstanding shares of stock. Large cap generally means stocks with a total capitalization of $10 billion. Mid cap is between $2 billion and $10 billion. Small cap is less than $2 billion in total capitalization.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Currency   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Hedged Morningstar® EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     Ticker:  TLEH

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
11/9/2015
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    2.88     -1.04     4.70

FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    2.92     -0.93     4.71

Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Hedged IndexSM

    2.41     0.09     5.60

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 1.24% and the net expense ratio is 0.64%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Hedged Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed (i) to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to size and value factors relative to the Morningstar Emerging Markets Index (the “Parent Index”), a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in emerging market countries and (ii) to hedge the currency-related risk of the securities included in the Underlying Index against the U.S. dollar (“USD”) on a monthly basis. The Underlying Index seeks to achieve increased exposure to size and value factors, or a “factor tilt,” by adjusting the Parent Index’s constituent weights to achieve a slightly greater weight on companies with smaller market capitalizations or lower valuations, as determined by Morningstar, Inc. pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 2,906 issues in the Underlying Index. Currently, the Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing a substantial portion of its assets in the FlexShares Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (an “Underlying Fund”). In order to replicate the “hedging” component of the Underlying Index, the Fund intends to enter into foreign currency forward contracts designed to offset the Fund’s exposure to the component currencies. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on emerging market investments generally traded higher. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, emerging market investments moved higher as trade tensions eased between the

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      17  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Currency   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Hedged Morningstar® EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

United States and China following the announcement of the initial phase of a trade agreement. Emerging markets declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic and subsequent lockdown procedures threatened the global economy. Emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across emerging markets continued to support overall investments. Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3 on USD weakness and better than expected gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. In addition, the size factor3 was a negative driver of performance over the 12 months as small cap stocks underperformed large cap stocks. Though the USD depreciated against most emerging market currencies over the 12 months, the increased volatility in currencies resulted in the hedging of the underlying foreign currency exposure to be a positive driver of the Underlying Index’s performance. Overall, the positive performance derived from the currency hedge was not enough to offset the negative performance derived from the value and size factor exposures resulting in the Underlying Index’s underperformance against the MSCI EM IMI Net Index by -5.23%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return

 

 

for the 12-month period was +47 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-64 bps), implementation of the currency hedge (+46 bps), tracking error of the of the Underlying Fund against its underlying index (+1 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the fund (+64 bps).

 

 

 

1 

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3 

The size factor is measured by a stock’s total capitalization—found by multiplying the current share price times all the outstanding shares of stock. Large cap generally means stocks with a total capitalization of $10 billion. Mid cap is between $2 billion and $10 billion. Small cap is less than $2 billion in total capitalization.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

18    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Quality Large Cap Index Fund Ticker:   QLC

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/23/2015
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    4.13     5.60     7.83     9.00

FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    4.16     5.49     7.84     9.00

Northern Trust Quality Large Cap IndexSM

    4.33     5.80     8.12     9.29

S&P 500 Index

    9.71     10.43     11.71     13.03

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.33% and the net expense ratio is 0.32%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Large Cap Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to quality, value and momentum factors relative to a universe of publicly traded U.S. large-capitalization equity securities. The universe is comprised of the 600 largest companies in the Northern Trust 1250 Index, a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of U.S. domiciled companies. As of October 31, 2020, there were 147 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading several equity indices higher. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      19  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Quality Large Cap Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

We believe that investors showed a preference for growth factor1 companies, resulting in the value factor2 exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. As a result, the value factor was a negative driver of Fund performance during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, as value investments substantially trailed growth investments. In addition, we believe that investors showed a preference for low quality factor3 companies, resulting in the high-quality factor exposure detracting from Fund performance over the 12 months. The momentum factor4 exposure of the Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance as positive momentum companies outperformed negative momentum companies over the 12 months. Overall, the positive exposure from momentum was not enough to offset the headwinds from the negative performance derived from the value and quality factor exposures, and the Underlying Index underperformed the S&P 500 Index by -5.38%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -20 basis points (“bps”)5, which is reflective of the management fee (-32 bps), stock selection/futures (+11 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (+1 bps).

 

1 

The growth factor is based on a belief that the underlying company is anticipated to grow at a rate significantly above the average for the market.

 

2 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

Momentum in a stock is described as the tendency for the stock price to continue rising if it is going up and to continue declining if it is going down.

 

5 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

20    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund Ticker:   ESG

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
7/13/2016
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    11.40     11.22     13.11

FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    11.45     11.20     13.13

STOXX® USA ESG Impact Index

    11.02     10.49     12.43

Russell 1000® Index

    10.87     10.63     12.56

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.33% and the net expense ratio is 0.32%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the STOXX® USA ESG Impact Index (“Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) characteristics relative to the STOXX® USA 900 Index, a float adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of U.S.-incorporated companies. As of October 31, 2020, there were 272 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means that the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S., economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading U.S. investments higher overall. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      21  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased. The Underlying Index had a positive total return during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020 and outperformed domestic equity markets, as defined by the Russell 1000 Index, by 0.15%. The Underlying Index’s ESG-tilted approach led to beneficial overweight to the technology, consumer discretionary, consumer staples and communications sectors, while overweight to the energy and financials sectors detracted from performance. Likewise, the ESG tilt led to underweights to the real estate, industrials and utilities sectors that were positive drivers of performance but an underweight to healthcare that detracted from performance. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was +38 basis points (“bps”)1, which is reflective of the management fee (-32 bps), stock selection/futures (+11 bps) and dividend tax differential (+59 bps).

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund Ticker:   ESGG

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
7/13/2016
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    6.03     6.85     10.43

FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    6.46     6.94     10.54

STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index

    6.11     6.90     10.43

MSCI World Index

    4.36     5.97     9.28

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.43% and the net expense ratio is 0.42%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the STOXX® Global ESG Impact IndexSM (the “Underlying Index”) The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) characteristics relative to the STOXX® Global 1800 Index, the parent index, a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of companies incorporated in the U.S. or in developed international markets. As of October 31, 2020, there were 913 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on global investments (including U.S., developed and emerging markets) generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, global investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Global investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Global investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the globe continued to support overall investments. Global equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Global markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      23  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

The Underlying Index had a positive total return during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020 and outperformed global equity markets, as defined by the MSCI World Index by 0.15%. The Underlying Index’s ESG-tilted approach led to beneficial overweight to the technology, consumer discretionary, consumer staples and communications sectors, while overweight to the energy and financials sectors detracted from performance. The ESG tilt led to underweights in the real estate, industrials, utilities and financial sectors that were positive contributors to performance, while underweights in healthcare and materials detracted from performance. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -8 basis points (“bps”)1, which is reflective of the management fee (-42 bps), stock selection/futures (-6 bps) and dividend tax differential (+40 bps).

 

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

24    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund Ticker:   GUNR

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/16/2011
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -11.87     -2.38     4.52     -0.37

FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -11.46     -2.36     4.60     -0.34

Morningstar® Global Upstream Natural Resources IndexSM

    -11.39     -1.91     5.03     -0.01

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.47% and the net expense ratio is 0.46%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Morningstar® Global Upstream Natural Resources IndexSM (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index reflects the performance of a selection of equity securities that are traded in or are issued by companies domiciled in global developed or emerging markets (including the U.S.), as determined by Morningstar, Inc., the index provider, pursuant to its index methodology. The companies included in the Underlying Index have significant business operations in the ownership, management and/or production of natural resources in energy, agriculture, precious or industrial metals, timber and water resources sectors, as determined by the index provider, pursuant to its index methodology. As of October 31, 2020, there were 120 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective and a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the first half of the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, commodity and natural resources prices in many sectors were lower, driven first by concerns of slowing global growth and then driven dramatically lower as global demand crashed as economies shut down due to COVID-19 (“COVID”). Crude oil prices were down over 65% during the first half of the fiscal year1. Few sectors in commodities escaped the decline in demand and negative pricing pressures. Overall commodity prices rebounded in the second half of the fiscal year, however, as monetary and financial market support actions by global central banks and governments helped stabilize markets and demand while global economies slowly reopened during the summer of 2020. A weakening U.S. Dollar during the second half of the fiscal year helped mitigate some of the negative impact on natural resource prices for U.S. investors. The U.S. Dollar (DXY Index) had risen 1.7%

 

1 

Source: Bloomberg, USCRWTIC Index, 10/31/2019 – 4/30/2020

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      25  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Morningstar   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

through April but then retreated nearly -5% to end the fiscal year -3.4% lower2.

 

Production cutbacks by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other oil producers failed to stymie crude oil price declines. Due to the unprecedented decline in demand, the price of crude oil briefly went negative on April 20, 20203. With an absence of buyers and the inability, or unwillingness, to take delivery on expiring April futures contracts, crude oil prices fell to a negative $37 per barrel on West Texas Intermediate (“WTI”) crude. After rebounding from negative levels, WTI prices ended the fiscal year approximately -34% lower4. Natural gas prices were the sole bright spot in the energy sector, ending the fiscal year higher after years of negative price performance5, as the sector appears to have finally worked off excess supplies that had been depressing prices.

 

Overall industrial metals prices, such as nickel, zinc, copper and aluminum, were lower during the first half of the fiscal year. Prices recovered in the second half of the fiscal year as China’s economy reopened. Precious metals such as gold and silver posted strong price performance due to their use by many investors as a way to historically protect against global economic uncertainty. Additionally, precious metals’ specialized role in industrial/environmental applications drove a demand increase, especially for metals like palladium.

 

Grains were mostly higher for the fiscal year because supplies were down, as planting schedules were negatively affected by COVID and weather negatively affected multiple areas of global production. Protein prices (cattle, hogs, poultry, and fish) were negatively impacted by higher feed costs and declining demand from restaurants due to COVID-induced shutdowns. U.S. lumber prices posted strong price gains on housing demand and supply issues resulting from COVID- induced mill shutdowns and the 2020 forest fire season in North America.

 

 

For the 12-month period ended October 31, 2020, the Underlying Index outperformed the global natural resource equity markets, as defined by the S&P Global Natural Resources Index, by 329 basis points (bps)6. Due to the Underlying Index’s focus on the upstream section of the natural resource supply chain, there was limited to no exposure to underperforming downstream natural resource sectors. Detractors for the fiscal year included containers & packaging along with the metals & mining sectors. Tracking difference for the period between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index was -48 bps, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-46 bps), futures (+1 bps), foreign dividend tax differential treatment (+5 bps), securities lending (+3 bps), security selection (-6 bps), transaction costs (-3 bps) and other expenses (-2 bps).

 

 

 

 

2 

Source: Bloomberg, DXY Index (October 31, 2019 – October 31, 2020)

 

3 

Source: Bloomberg, USCRWTIC Index (April 20, 2020).

 

4 

Source: Bloomberg, DXY Index (October 31, 2019 – October 31, 2020).

 

5 

Source: Bloomberg, NYMEX Index (October 31, 2019 – October 31, 2020)

 

6 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® STOXX®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund Ticker:   NFRA

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
10/8/2013
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -6.23     2.86     4.94     5.36

FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -5.93     2.98     5.01     5.41

STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index

    -6.38     2.72     4.82     5.26

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.48% and the net expense ratio is 0.47%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, offer broad exposure to publicly traded developed- and emerging-market infrastructure companies, including U.S. companies, as defined by STOXX Ltd. (“STOXX”) pursuant to its index methodology. Infrastructure companies generally include, without limitation, entities that own or operate location-specific capital-intensive assets characterized by high barriers to entry, essential services with inelastic demand, regulated pricing, and reliable or relatively stable revenue streams As of October 31, 2020, there were 179 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on global investments (including U.S., developed and emerging markets) generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, global investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Global investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Global investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the region continued to support overall investments. Global equities continued to advance in Q3, as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit

 

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FlexShares® STOXX®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

negotiations. Global markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

The Underlying Index had a negative total return during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, but outperformed the global infrastructure market, as defined by the S&P Global Infrastructure Index, by 10.41%. The Underlying Index’s exposures to the transportation, communication, social and utilities sectors positively contributed to its performance, while exposure to the energy infrastructure sector detracted from its performance. The tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was +14 basis points (“bps”)1, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-47 bps), stock selection/futures (+9 bps), securities lending (+2 bps), dividend tax differential (+49 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (+1 bps).

 

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund Ticker:   GQRE

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
11/5/2013
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -20.29     -3.14     0.75     3.23

FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -20.40     -3.19     0.75     3.23

Northern Trust Global Quality Real Estate IndexSM

    -20.45     -3.17     0.73     3.17

FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed IndexSM

    -22.93     -2.40     0.22     1.89

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.46% and the net expense ratio is 0.45%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Global Quality Real Estate IndexSM (the “Underlying Index”) The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater exposure to quality, value and momentum factors relative to the Northern Trust Global Real Estate Index, the parent index, a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of publicly-traded equity securities of U.S. and non-U.S. real estate investment trusts and real estate operating companies. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to include companies with enhanced risk-return characteristics relative to the global publicly traded real-estate market by featuring quality, value and momentum risk premiums, which Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) believes have been historically demonstrated over a full market cycle. As of October 31, 2020, there were 131 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on global investments (including U.S., developed and emerging markets) generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, both the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, global investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Global investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Global investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the globe continued to support overall

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

investments. Global equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Global markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

The Underlying Index had a negative total return during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, but outperformed the global equity real estate markets, as defined by the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Net Index, by 2.48%. The quality1 and momentum2 factor exposures of the Underlying Index were positive drivers of performance while the value3 factor exposure was a negative driver of performance. Overall, the positive exposure to quality and momentum offset the headwinds from the negative performance derived from the value exposure. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the period was 16 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-45 bps), stock selection/futures (+25 bps), securities lending (+2 bps), dividend tax differential (+35 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (-1 bps).

 

1 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

2 

Momentum in a stock is described as the tendency for the stock price to continue rising if it is going up and to continue declining if it is going down.

 

3 

The value factor is based on a belief that stocks that are inexpensive relative to some measure of fundamental value outperform those that are pricier.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Real Assets Allocation Index Fund Ticker:   ASET

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
11/23/2015
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -12.45     -0.05     3.55

FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -12.54     -0.15     3.55

Northern Trust Real Assets Allocation IndexSM

    -12.34     0.07     3.67

MSCI ACWI Index

    4.89     5.52     8.30

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 1.04% and the net expense ratio is 0.57%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Real Assets Allocation IndexSM (the “Underlying Index”). The Fund is a fund of funds and seeks its investment objective by investing primarily in the shares of other FlexShares® ETFs (together, the “Underlying Funds”) that are eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index, rather than in securities of individual companies. The Underlying Funds themselves seek investment results corresponding to their own respective underlying indexes. The Underlying Funds invest primarily in separate sets of securities representing or providing exposures to global “real assets.” Real assets are defined by the index provider as physical or tangible assets. Examples of real assets include but are not limited to commodities, precious metals, oil, and real estate. Each Underlying Fund has its own risk profile and will contribute differently to the overall risk profile of the Fund. Each of the Underlying Funds invests in equity securities that are traded in or are issued by companies domiciled in global developed or emerging markets (including the U.S.). Certain of the Underlying Funds may invest in publicly traded units of master limited partnerships and real estate investment trusts. As of October 31, 2020, there were three Underlying Funds in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective and to manage the Fund.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on global investments (including U.S., developed and emerging markets) generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, global investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. Global investments became volatile and declined sharply

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      31  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. Global investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the globe continued to support overall investments. Global equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. Global markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

The Underlying Index had a negative total return during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020 and underperformed the global equity markets, as defined by the MSCI All Country World Index (ACWI) by 5.23%. The Underlying Index underperformed due to a greater allocation to real estate and infrastructure relative to its natural resource allocations. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the period was -11 basis points (“bps”)1, which is largely reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-57 bps) and a reimbursement amount equal to the acquired fund fees and expenses attributable to the Fund’s investments in the Underlying Fund (+46 bps).

 

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Index Fund Ticker:   QDF

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
12/14/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -2.98     4.17     7.27     10.52

FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -2.98     4.18     7.27     10.53

Northern Trust Quality Dividend IndexSM

    -2.17     4.78     7.88     11.08

Russell 1000® Index

    10.87     10.63     11.78     13.56

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.38% and the net expense ratio is 0.37%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally, before fees and expenses, to the price and yield performance of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust 1250 Index (the “Parent Index”).1 In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that in the aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is similar to that of the Parent Index. As of October 31, 2020, there were 129 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the

 

 

1 

Northern Trust 1250 Index is a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index comprised of U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      33  


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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading U.S. investments higher overall. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance, however, for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the universe of dividend-paying U.S. companies. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure was not enough to offset the negative

performance derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the Russell 1000 Index by -13.04%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

 

12-month period was -81 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the management fee (-37 bps), stock selection/futures (-45 bps), securities lending (+2 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (-1 bps).

 

 

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund Ticker:   QDEF

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
12/14/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -4.45     4.98     7.56     10.61

FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -4.43     5.00     7.57     10.62

Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive IndexSM

    -4.25     5.64     8.14     11.19

Russell 1000® Index

    10.87     10.63     11.78     13.56

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.38% and the net expense ratio is 0.37%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust 1250 Index (the “Parent Index”)1. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that in aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is lower in relation to the Parent Index. As of October 31, 2020, there were 136 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the

 

1 

Northern Trust 1250 Index is a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      35  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading U.S. investments higher overall. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the dividend-paying universe. The Underlying Index’s lower beta exposure was a negative driver of performance, as higher beta companies generally fared better than lower beta companies. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure was not enough to offset the negative performance derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks and the Underlying Index’s lower beta exposure. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the Russell 1000 Index by -15.12%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return

 

 

for the 12-month period was -20 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the management fee (-37 bps), stock selection/futures (+17 bps), securities lending (+1 bps) and performance calculation differences between the Underlying Index and the Fund (-1 bps).

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund Ticker:   QDYN

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
12/14/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    0.86     5.02     8.01     10.68

FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    0.91     5.07     8.05     10.69

Russell 1000® Index

    10.87     10.63     11.78     13.56

Northern Trust Quality Dividend Dynamic IndexSM

    1.08     5.28     8.31     11.03

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.38% and the net expense ratio is 0.37%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Dynamic Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust 1250 Index (the “Parent Index”)1. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that have enhanced risk return characteristics and that in the aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is higher in relation to the Parent Index. As of October 31, 2020, there were 155 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on U.S. investments were volatile and many declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. By the end of the fiscal year, however, prices on U.S. investments generally were trading higher. Up through Q4 of 2019, U.S. investments moved higher as trade tensions between the U.S. and China de-escalated with the announcement of the initial phase of a trade deal, halting new tariffs planned by the United States. Domestic U.S. investments were increasingly volatile overall in Q1 as the

 

1 

Northern Trust 1250 Index is a float-adjusted market-capitalization weighted index of U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      37  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

COVID pandemic spread around the globe. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank cut interest rates to near zero while enacting new quantitative easing measures, and Congress announced fiscal stimulus to dampen the effects of the shutdown on the U.S. economy and financial markets. U.S. domestic investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures eased in the U.S. with a handful of large cap technology and consumer discretionary companies leading U.S. investments higher overall. The rally in U.S. domestic investments continued into Q3 of 2020 despite a decline late in the quarter due to rising COVID cases in Europe and political uncertainty tied to the November elections in the U.S. The decline in U.S. domestic investments continued into October 2020 as domestic COVID cases increased.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the dividend-paying universe. The Underlying Index’s higher beta exposure was a positive driver of performance, as higher beta companies generally fared better than lower beta companies. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure and the Underlying Index’s higher beta exposure was not enough to offset the negative performance, however, derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the Russell 1000 Index by -9.79%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -22 basis

 

 

points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the management fee (-37 bps), stock selection/futures (+14 bps), and securities lending (+1 bps).

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

 

38    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

International Quality Dividend Index Fund Ticker:   IQDF

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
4/12/2013
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -8.94     -4.04     1.67     1.17

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -8.93     -4.13     1.84     1.18

MSCI ACWI ex USA Index

    -2.61     -0.19     4.26     3.36

Northern Trust International Quality Dividend IndexSM

    -8.64     -3.95     1.91     1.51

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.48% and the net expense ratio is 0.47%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust International Large Cap Index (the “Parent Index”)1. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies form the Parent Index that have enhanced risk return characteristics and that in the aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is similar to the Parent Index.

 

As of October 31, 2020, there were 215 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, international investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming

 

1 

The Northern Trust International Large Cap Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index of non-U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      39  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns. International investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. International and emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the developed and emerging markets continued to support overall investments. International equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. International markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3 on USD weakness and better than expected gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance, however, for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the dividend-paying universe. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure was not enough to offset the negative performance derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index by -6.03%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month

 

 

period was -30 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-47 bps), stock selection/futures (+12 bps) and securities lending (+5 bps).

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

40    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® International   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund Ticker:   IQDE

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
4/12/2013
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -8.92     -4.09     1.16     0.58

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -8.88     -4.26     1.32     0.58

Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Defensive IndexSM

    -8.60     -3.91     1.45     1.09

MSCI ACWI ex USA Index

    -2.61     -0.19     4.26     3.36

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.48% and the net expense ratio is 0.47%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Defensive Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust International Large Cap Index (the “Parent Index”)1. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that have enhanced risk return characteristics and that in the aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is lower in relation to the Parent Index. As of October 31, 2020, there were 196 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, international investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade agreement allayed investors’ concerns.

 

1 

The Northern Trust International Large Cap Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index of non-U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      41  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® International   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

International investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. International and emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the developed and emerging markets continued to support overall investments. International equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. International markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3 on USD weakness and better than expected gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance, however, for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the dividend-paying universe. The Underlying Index’s lower beta exposure was not a meaningful contributor to performance. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure was not enough to offset the negative performance derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index by -5.99%. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was

 

 

-32 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-47 bps), stock selection/futures (+10 bps), securities lending (+6 bps) and dividend tax differential (-1 bps).

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

42    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® International   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund Ticker:   IQDY

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
4/12/2013
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    -6.99     -2.82     2.99     2.55

FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    -7.03     -2.85     3.22     2.59

Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Dynamic IndexSM

    -6.56     -2.58     3.33     2.99

MSCI ACWI ex USA Index

    -2.61     -0.19     4.26     3.36

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.48% and the net expense ratio is 0.47%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index is designed to reflect the performance of a selection of companies that, in aggregate, possess greater financial strength and stability characteristics relative to the Northern Trust International Large Cap Index (the “Parent Index”)1. In addition, the Underlying Index is designed to select companies from the Parent Index that have enhanced risk return characteristics and that in the aggregate have the potential to generate income in excess of the income generated by securities in the Parent Index with a beta2 that is higher in relation to the Parent Index. As of October 31, 2020, there were 182 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

During the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, prices on international investments generally traded lower. Over the course of the 12-month period, the U.S. dollar (USD) was volatile, but ultimately weakened and positively impacted U.S. investors as returns in local currencies generally were enhanced by the falling of the USD. Through Q4 of 2019, international investments moved higher as improving economic conditions in Europe and easing geopolitical tensions stemming from the announced U.S.-China trade

 

 

1 

The Northern Trust International Large Cap Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index of non-U.S. domiciled large- and mid-capitalization companies.

 

2 

A statistical measure of the volatility, or sensitivity, of rates of return on a portfolio or security compared to a market index. The beta for an ETF measures the expected change in return of the ETF relative to the return of a designated index. By definition, the beta of the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index is 1.00. Accordingly, a fund with a 1.10 beta is expected to perform 10% better than the S&P 500 Index in rising markets and 10% worse in falling markets.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      43  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® International   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

agreement allayed investors’ concerns. International investments became volatile and declined sharply in Q1 of 2020 as the COVID-19 (“COVID”) pandemic spread and investors feared a global recession. International and emerging market investments rebounded in Q2 as lockdown measures were eased and fiscal and monetary stimulus across the developed and emerging markets continued to support overall investments. International equities continued to advance in Q3 as the strength of Asia Pacific equity markets and a weakening USD offset concerns in Europe regarding stalled Brexit negotiations. International markets fell in October 2020 as several countries reintroduced lockdown measures to control resurgent COVID infection rates.

 

Emerging market investments continued to move higher in Q3 on USD weakness and better than expected gross domestic product growth in China. Emerging market investments rose in October 2020, outperforming developed international markets, led by strength in investments tied to Chinese companies.

 

The Underlying Index’s exposure to equities that traditionally have derived some of their market value from their overall higher yield levels versus the broader market was once again perceived by investors as a negative influence, as the top dividend yielding stocks underperformed non-dividend paying stocks during the 12 months ended October 31, 2020, as higher-yielding investments substantially trailed growth investments. The quality focus factor3 of the Fund’s Underlying Index was a positive driver of performance, however, for the 12-month period as investors showed a preference for higher quality companies within the dividend-paying universe. The Underlying Index’s higher beta exposure was a positive driver of performance, as higher beta companies generally fared better than lower beta companies in the subsequent international equities markets recovery from their March lows. Overall, the positive performance derived from the quality exposure and the Underlying Index’s higher beta exposure was not enough to offset the negative performance derived from investor preference for non-dividend paying stocks. Consequently, the Underlying Index underperformed the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index by -3.95%. Tracking difference between the

 

 

Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was -43 basis points (“bps”)4, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-47 bps), stock selection/futures (-1 bps), securities lending (+6 bps) and dividend tax differential (-1 bps).

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 

The quality factor is based on a belief that there are a set of clearly defined fundamental criteria that seek to identify companies with outstanding financial characteristics.

 

4 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

44    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® iBoxx   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund Ticker:   TDTT

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/19/2011
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    5.81     3.53     2.70     1.45

FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    5.85     3.53     2.71     1.45

iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index

    6.20     3.72     2.88     1.61

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.19% and the net expense ratio is 0.18%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index reflects the performance of a selection of inflation protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury, commonly known as “TIPS,” with a targeted average modified adjusted duration,1 as defined by IHS Markit as the index provider, of approximately three years. The Underlying Index includes publicly issued TIPS that have maturity dates of at least one year but not more than ten years from an index rebalancing date. As of October 31, 2020, there were 21 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses replication to manage the Fund but may use representative sampling in certain circumstances. This means the Fund may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of actions throughout March 2020 to support the economy and markets during the COVID-induced economic slowdown. The U.S. Treasury yield curve2 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near-and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term

 

1 

The duration calculated from the real modified duration of a TIPS security, adjusted for the market’s estimated beta for a TIPS security versus a nominal Treasury security due to the actual and expected changes in inflation.

 

2 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

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FlexShares® iBoxx   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps).3

 

For the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, the Consumer Price Index4 ended the year lower at 1.2%, down from 1.8% in the fiscal year ended October 31, 2019. Inflation in the prices for food, shelter and medical services offset negative impacts from prices for energy, apparel and transportation services, which faced significant headwinds from COVID demand reduction. Energy commodities faced additional pressure from increasing supply, as the oil industry dealt with a market share war that drove prices lower.

 

During the fiscal year, real yields5 fell on lower nominal treasury yields. Short-term real yields fell more than long-term yields in conjunction with the FOMC decision to cut the Federal funds rate. 1-year real yields fell 132 bps, while the 5-, 10-, and 30-year real yields were lower by 128bps, 97bps, 77bps, respectively.6

 

 

Declining real interest rates paired with modestly higher inflation expectations during the fiscal year led to positive total return performance for both the Fund and the Underlying Index. For the 12-month period, the Underlying Index underperformed the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. TIPS 1-10 Year Index by 0.96% due to lower duration positioning of the Underlying Index against the backdrop of falling real interest rates. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index for the 12-month period was -39bps, reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-18bps), duration and curve positioning (+1bps), security and sector selection (-11bps), intra-day trading and pricing differences (-9bps), and other factors (-2bps).

 

 

 

 

3 

Source: Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference in the interest rates of the 1-month, 1-year, 2-year, 5-year, 10-year and 30-year maturities nominal Treasury rates using data available as of January 1, 2020 and October 31, 2020.

 

4 

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the raw inflation figure as released monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI calculates the cost to purchase a fixed basket of goods, as a way of determining how much inflation is occurring in the broad economy.

 

5 

A real yield is the yield to the investor that has been adjusted to remove the effects of inflation.

 

6 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference in the real yield rates of the 1-year, 5-year, 10-year and 30-year maturities using data available as of January 1, 2020 and October 31, 2020.

 

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FlexShares® iBoxx   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund Ticker:   TDTF

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/19/2011
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    8.39     5.03     3.98     2.32

FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    8.47     5.03     3.94     2.32

iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index

    8.80     5.26     4.13     2.48

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.19% and the net expense ratio is 0.18%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index reflects the performance of a selection of inflation protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury, commonly known as “TIPS,” with a targeted average modified adjusted duration,1 as defined by IHS Markit, as the index provider, of approximately five years. The Underlying Index includes publicly issued TIPS that have maturity dates of at least three years but not more than twenty years from an index rebalancing date.As of October 31, 2020, there were 26 issues in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses replication to manage the Fund but may use representative sampling in certain circumstances. This means the Fund may not hold all of the issues that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

U.S. Treasury yields were generally lower during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020 driven by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent monetary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank (“Fed”). In early March 2020, at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, the Fed lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)2 to 1.00%-1.25% and then by 100 bps to 0.00%-0.25% during an emergency meeting in mid-March.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of actions throughout March 2020 to support the economy and markets during the COVID-induced economic slowdown. The U.S.

 

1 

The duration calculated from the real modified duration of a TIPS security, adjusted for the market’s estimated beta for a TIPS security versus a nominal Treasury security due to the actual and expected changes in inflation.

 

2 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

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FlexShares® iBoxx   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

Treasury yield curve2 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near-and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps).3

 

For the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, the Consumer Price Index4 ended the year lower at 1.2%, down from 1.8% in the fiscal year ended October 31, 2019. Inflation in the prices for food, shelter and medical services offset negative impacts from prices for energy, apparel and transportation services, which faced significant headwinds from COVID demand reduction. Energy commodities faced additional pressure from increasing supply, as the oil industry dealt with a market share war that drove prices lower.

 

During the fiscal year, real yields5 fell on lower nominal treasury yields. Short-term real yields fell more than long-term yields in conjunction with the FOMC decision to cut the Federal funds rate. 1-year real yields fell 132 bps, while the 5-, 10-, and 30-year real yields were lower by 128bps, 97bps, 77bps, respectively.6

 

 

Declining real interest rates, paired with modestly higher inflation expectations during the fiscal year, led to positive total return performance for both the Fund and the Underlying Index. For the 12-month period, the Underlying Index underperformed the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. TIPS Index by 0.30% due mostly to lower duration positioning of the Underlying Index against the backdrop of falling real interest rates. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index for the 12-month period was -41bps, reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-18bps), duration and curve positioning (-3bps), security and sector selection (-7bps), intra-day trading and pricing differences (-9bps), and other factors (-4bps).

 

 

3 

Source: Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference in the interest rates of the 1-month, 1-year, 2-year, 5-year, 10-year and 30-year maturities nominal Treasury rates using data available as of January 1, 2020 and October 31, 2020.

 

4 

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the raw inflation figure as released monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI calculates the cost to purchase a fixed basket of goods, as a way of determining how much inflation is occurring in the broad economy.

 

5 

A real yield is the yield to the investor that has been adjusted to remove the effects of inflation.

 

6 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference in the real yield rates of the 1-year, 5-year, 10-year and 30-year maturities using data available as of January 1, 2020 and October 31, 2020.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund Ticker:   MBSD

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/3/2014
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    5.19     3.56     2.64     2.54

FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    5.19     3.59     2.57     2.54

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch® Constrained Duration US Mortgage Backed Securities Index

    4.92     3.91     2.98     2.91

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.21% and the net expense ratio is 0.20%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch® Constrained Duration US Mortgage Backed Securities Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index reflects the performance of a selection of investment-grade US agency residential mortgage-backed pass-through securities (“MBS”). Pursuant to the Underlying Index’s methodology, the average effective duration1 of the portfolio of MBS represented in the Underlying Index was between 3.25 and 4.25 years. As of October 31, 2020, there were 167 securities in the Underlying Index. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

U.S. Treasury yields were lower during the fiscal year driven primarily by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent monetary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank (“Fed”). In early March at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, as the Federal and State governments implemented mitigation actions against the spread of the virus, the FOMC lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)2 to 1.00% -1.25% and then by an additional 100 bps to 0.00% -0.25% during an unscheduled meeting on March 15, 2020.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of policies

 

1 

Average effective duration provides a measure of a fund’s interest-rate sensitivity and the longer a fund’s duration, the more sensitive the fund is to shifts in interest rates. Duration also gives an indication of how a fund’s NAV will change as interest rates change. A fund with a five-year duration would be expected to lose 5% of its NAV if interest rates rose by 1 percentage point or gain 5%, if interest rates fell by 1 percentage point. Morningstar surveys fund companies for this information.

 

2 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

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FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

and programs to support the economy and markets during the COVID induced economic slowdown. The Fed implemented quantitative easing securities purchases, acquiring as of October 31, 2020, $1.99 trillion of U.S. Treasuries and $1.22 trillion of agency mortgage backed securities.3 As of October 28, 2020, the Fed’s balance sheet has grown by roughly $3.1 trillion, to $7.1 trillion, since October 30, 2019.4 The Fed provided additional support in the form of programs designed to address a dearth of market liquidity in multiple fixed income markets. The Fed announced programs to support primary dealers, the money market fund sector, the commercial paper market, the corporate bond market (both investment grade and high yield segments) and the term asset backed securities sector.

 

The U.S. Treasury yield curve5 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near- and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps).

 

Prompted by lower interest rates, refinancing activity, housing sales and mortgage applications began to surge April 2020, as average 30-year mortgage rates (Freddie Mac Index) fell from 3.78% to 2.81% during the fiscal year6. Despite the slowdown in March and April, existing home sales managed a 1.5% increase during the

 

 

fiscal year, while new home sales were robust, increasing 18.5% 7. The Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index saw robust gains in housing prices with a year-over-year increase of roughly 8.0% versus 5.4% and 6.0% in the fiscal years ended October 31, 2019 and October 31, 2018, respectively8.

 

During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, the Fund’s total returns came from positive income generated from its portfolio securities and by rising prices of portfolio securities from lower Treasury yields, while widening mortgage credit spreads negatively impacted Fund returns. For the 12-month period, the Underlying Index outperformed the market-weighted MBS market, as defined by the Bloomberg Barclays Capital U.S. MBS Index (“MBS Index”) by 1.24% due to the Underlying Index’s exposure to a selection of higher coupon, more seasoned MBS securities and a longer average portfolio duration compared to the MBS Index. Tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the 12-month period was +27 bps, reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-20 bps), trading costs and fees (-21 bps), pricing differences (+69 bps), yield curve positioning (+3 bps), sector allocation (-1 bps), security selection (-2 bps) and other factors (-1 bps).

 

 

3 

Source: BofA Securities, BofA Global Research, November 2, P2020.

 

4 

Source: S Louis Federal Reserve Bank, FRED Database.

 

5 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

6 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. Primary Mortgage Market Survey. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

7 

Source: Bloomberg. National Association of Realtors. Existing Home Sales. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

8 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index. 1 November 2017 through 31 October 2020.

 

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FlexShares® Credit-Scored   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Corporate Bond Index Fund Ticker:   SKOR

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

*

The hybrid index performance information reflects the performance of the Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond IndexSM (Previous Index) through April 30, 2020 and the Northern Trust US Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM thereafter. The Previous Index terminated as of May 1, 2020.

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
11/12/2014
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    7.20     5.45     4.58     4.27

FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    7.22     5.36     4.55     4.27

Hybrid Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond IndexSM/Northern Trust US Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM*

    7.86     5.94     5.00     4.67

Bloomberg Barclays Intermediate U.S. Corporate Index

    6.15     5.09     4.51     4.12

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.23% and the net expense ratio is 0.22%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

During the fiscal year, the Fund changed its investment objective and investment strategy. Through April 30, 2020, the Fund sought investment results that corresponded generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond IndexSM (“Previous Underlying Index”). Effective May 1, 2020, the Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust US Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM (the “New Underlying Index”). The securities included in each Underlying Index were a subset of the securities included in the Northern Trust US Investment Grade Corporate Bond IndexSM (the “Parent Index”), which is a market-capitalization weighted index comprised of US dollar-denominated investment grade corporate bonds. The Fund invested in U.S. dollar denominated bonds of non-U.S. corporations to the extent such bonds were included in the Underlying Index. The Previous Underlying Index began with the Parent Index and followed a rules-based methodology to select and calculate optimal weights for securities in the Underlying Index based on liquidity and security issuers’ fundamental factors, as determined by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) acting in its capacity as index provider (the “Index Provider”). The New Underlying Index begins with the Parent Index and then follows a rules-based methodology to select and weight securities, subject to certain constraints to optimize the Index’s exposure to a combined proprietary value score and a proprietary quality score, as determined by the Index Provider. As of October 31, 2020, there were 2,677 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

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FlexShares® Credit-Scored   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

Intermediate-term1 credit spreads2 trended lower through mid-February 20203 then widened significantly until late March 2020.4 We believe investors’ uncertainty over the COVID economic shutdowns drove average intermediate-term option adjusted spreads (“OAS”)5 to 381 bps6 in comparison to comparable maturing Treasury securities in March 2020 from 84 bps at the beginning of the fiscal year.7 By late March, once the Fed announced programs to support credit markets, average intermediate-term OAS declined through the end of the fiscal year as investors weighed potential impacts from the U.S. election and COVID developments.8

 

 

During the fiscal year, the Fund outperformed the Bloomberg Barclays Capital Intermediate U.S. Corporate Bond Index by 108 bps due to the longer average duration9 positioning and sector allocation of the Underlying Index. During the first half of the fiscal year, the longer average duration aided Fund performance as Treasury yields declined significantly. During the second half of the fiscal year, overweight allocations to financials, real estate investment trusts (“REIT”), banking, energy and consumer cyclicals added to Fund performance. The longer duration which helped during the first half of the fiscal year, however, detracted from performance during the second half of the year. Exposure to lower rated credit securities also detracted from overall performance. The tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s return for the fiscal year was -65 bps, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-22 bps), trading costs and fees (-46 bps), pricing differences (-130 bps), sector and security selection (+138 bps), yield curve positioning (-4 bps) and other factors (-1 bp).

 

 

1 

Intermediate-term bonds typically mature between 5–10 years.

 

2 

Credit spread is the difference in yield between one debt security and another debt security with the same maturity but of lesser quality.

 

3 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of Jan 2, 2020 – February 15, 2020.

 

4 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of February 15, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

5 

The option-adjusted spread (OAS) is the measurement of the spread of a fixed-income security rate or portfolio and typically the Treasury securities yield (often referred to as the risk-free rate) and that spread is added to the fixed-income security for comparison purposes.

 

6 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

7 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the rate spread of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bond rates and comparable nominal Treasury rates using data available as of November 1, 2019 – October 31, 2020.

 

8 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the Option Adjusted Spread of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of March 31, 2020 – October 31, 2020.

9 

Average duration provides a measure of a fund’s interest-rate sensitivity and the longer a fund’s duration, the more sensitive the fund is to shifts in interest rates. Duration also gives an indication of how a fund’s NAV will change as interest rates change. A fund with a five-year duration would be expected to lose 5% of its NAV if interest rates rose by 1 percentage point or gain 5%, if interest rates fell by 1 percentage point. Morningstar surveys fund companies for this information.

 

 

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FlexShares® Credit-Scored   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund Ticker:   LKOR

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

*

The hybrid index performance information reflects the performance of the Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond IndexSM (Previous Index) through April 30, 2020 and the Northern Trust US Long Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM thereafter. The Previous Index terminated as of May 1, 2020.

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
9/23/2015
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corp Bond Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    10.34     8.71     8.66     8.59

FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corp Bond Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    10.57     8.54     8.49     8.55

Hybrid Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond IndexSM/Northern Trust US Long Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM*

    11.82     9.57     9.38     9.29

Bloomberg Barclays Long U.S. Corporate Index

    8.60     8.30     8.64     8.55

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.23% and the net expense ratio is 0.22%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

During the fiscal year, the Fund changed its investment objective and investment strategy. Through April 30, 2020, the Fund sought investment results that corresponded generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond IndexSM (“Previous Underlying Index”). Effective May 1, 2020, the Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust US Long Corporate Bond Quality Value IndexSM (the “New Underlying Index”). The securities included in each Underlying Index were a subset of the securities included in the Northern Trust US Investment Grade Long Corporate Bond IndexSM (the “Parent Index”), which is a market-capitalization weighted index comprised of US dollar-denominated investment grade corporate bonds. The Fund invested in U.S. dollar denominated bonds of non-U.S. corporations to the extent such bonds were included in the Underlying Index. The Previous Underlying Index began with the Parent Index and followed a rules-based methodology to select and calculate optimal weights for securities in the Underlying Index based on liquidity and security issuers’ fundamental factors, as determined by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) acting in its capacity as index provider (the “Index Provider”). The New Underlying Index begins with the Parent Index and then follows a rules-based methodology to select and weight securities, subject to certain constraints to optimize the Index’s exposure to a combined proprietary value score and a proprietary quality score, as determined by the Index Provider. As of October 31, 2020, there were 1,341 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

In general, U.S. Treasury yields were lower during the fiscal year driven primarily by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent mone-

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      53  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

tary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve (“Fed”). In early March, at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, as the Federal and State governments implemented mitigation actions against the spread of the virus, the FOMC lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)1 to 1.00%-1.25% and then by an additional 100 bps to 0.00%-0.25% during an unscheduled meeting on March 15, 2020.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of policies and programs to support the economy and markets during the COVID induced economic slowdown. The Fed implemented quantitative easing securities purchases, acquiring as of October 31, 2020, $1.99 trillion of U.S. Treasuries and $1.22 trillion of agency mortgage backed securities.2 As of October 28, 2020, the Fed’s balance sheet has grown by roughly $3.1 trillion, to $7.1 trillion, since October 30, 2019.3 The Fed provided additional support in the form of programs designed to address a dearth of market liquidity in multiple fixed income markets. The Fed announced programs to support primary dealers, the money market fund sector, the commercial paper market, the corporate bond market (both investment grade and high yield segments) and the term asset backed securities sector.

 

The U.S. Treasury yield curve4 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near- and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps).

 

 

Long-term5 credit spreads6 trended lower through mid-February 20207 then widened significantly until late March 2020.8 We believe investors’ uncertainty over the COVID economic shutdowns drove average long-term option adjusted spreads (“OAS”)9 to 359 bps in comparison to comparable maturing Treasury securities in March 2020 from 159 bps at the beginning of the fiscal year.10 By late March, once the Fed announced programs to support credit markets, average long-term OAS declined through the end of the fiscal year as investors weighed potential impacts from the U.S. election and COVID developments.11

 

During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020, the Fund outperformed the Bloomberg Barclays Capital Long U.S. Corporate Bond Index by 320 bps. Positive return contribution for the Underlying Index came from slightly longer portfolio duration along with underweights to the utility and consumer non-cyclical sectors. Overweight to financials and communications also contributed positively to performance, as did security selection in the financials, consumer non-cyclical and technology sectors. Exposure to lower rated credit securities detracted from overall performance. The tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s return for the period was -148 bps, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-22 bps), trading costs and fees (-75 bps), pricing differences (+11 bps), sector and security selection (-55 bps), yield curve positioning (+3 bps) and other factors (-10 bps).

 

 

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

2 

Source: BofA Securities, BofA Global Research, November 2, 2020.

 

3 

Source: St Louis Federal Reserve Bank, FRED Database.

 

4 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

5 

Long-term bonds typically mature above 25 years.

 

6 

Credit spread is the difference in yield between one debt security and another debt security with the same maturity but of lesser quality.

 

7 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of Jan 2, 2020 – February 15, 2020.

 

8 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of February 15, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

9 

The option-adjusted spread (OAS) is the measurement of the spread of a fixed-income security rate or portfolio and typically the Treasury securities yield (often referred to as the risk-free rate) and that spread is added to the fixed-income security for comparison purposes.

 

10 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the rate spread of long-term investment grade corporate bond rates and comparable nominal Treasury rates using data available as of November 1, 2019 – October 31, 2020.

 

11 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the Option Adjusted Spread of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of March 31, 2020 – October 31, 2020.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® High Yield   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Value-Scored Bond Index Fund Ticker:   HYGV

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     Fund
Inception
7/17/2018
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored US Bond Index Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    3.07     4.63

FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored US Bond Index Fund (Based on Market Price)

    3.12     4.72

Northern Trust High Yield Value-Scored US Corporate Bond Index

    5.89     6.25

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch® US High Yield Index

    2.54     4.79

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.38% and the net expense ratio is 0.37%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust High Yield Value-Scored US Corporate Bond Index (the “Underlying Index”). The Underlying Index reflects the performance of a broad universe of US-dollar denominated high yield corporate bonds that seeks a higher total return than the overall high yield corporate bond market, as represented by the Northern Trust High Yield US Corporate Bond Index (the “Parent Index”).1 The securities included in the Underlying Index are a subset of the securities included in the Parent Index. The Underlying Index begins with the Parent Index and then follows a rules-based methodology to select and weight securities, subject to certain constraints, to optimize exposure to a proprietary value score, as determined by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”), acting in its capacity as index provider (“Index Provider”). As of October 31, 2020, there were 963 issues in the Underlying Index. NTI uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. NTI uses a representative sampling strategy to manage the Fund. This means the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities that are included in the Underlying Index.

 

In general, U.S. Treasury yields were lower during the fiscal year driven primarily by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent monetary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve (“Fed”). In early March, at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, as the Federal and State governments implemented mitigation actions against the spread of the virus, the FOMC lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)2 to 1.00%-1.25% and then by an additional 100 bps to 0.00%-0.25% during an unscheduled meeting on March 15, 2020.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of policies

 

1 

The Northern Trust High Yield US Corporate Bond Index is a market capitalization weighted index comprised of U.S. dollar-denominated high yield corporate bonds.

 

2 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      55  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® High Yield   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

and programs to support the economy and markets during the COVID induced economic slowdown. The Fed implemented quantitative easing securities purchases, acquiring as of October 31, 2020, $1.99 trillion of U.S. Treasuries and $1.22 trillion of agency mortgage backed securities.3 As of October 28, 2020, the Fed’s balance sheet has grown by roughly $3.1 trillion, to $7.1 trillion, since October 30, 2019.4 The Fed provided additional support in the form of programs designed to address a dearth of market liquidity in multiple fixed income markets. The Fed announced programs to support primary dealers, the money market fund sector, the commercial paper market, the corporate bond market (both investment grade and high yield segments) and the term asset backed securities sector.

 

The U.S. Treasury yield curve5 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near- and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps).

 

High Yield6 credit spreads7 trended lower during the first quarter of the fiscal year 8 then widened significantly until late March 2020.9 We believe that

 

 

investors’ uncertainty over the COVID economic shutdowns widened High Yield option adjusted spreads (“OAS”).10 Between February 18 and March 23, 2020, the option adjusted spreads (OAS) of the ICE BofA US High Yield Index widened 726 bps to 1,087 bps.11 By late March, however, once the Fed announced programs to support credit markets, investors continued their search for income for their portfolios despite increased concerns over the potential for slowing economic growth and the potential for increases in high yield credit defaults. We believe this increased demand caused average long-term OAS to decline through the end of the fiscal year as investors weighed potential impacts from the U.S. election and COVID developments.12 Market conditions became extremely stressed as trading liquidity and security pricing transparency were severely challenged. In March 2020, the Fed announced primary and secondary market programs that allowed the Fed to purchase investment grade, high yield bonds and exchange-traded funds in an effort to support and stabilize U.S. corporate credit markets.

 

For the 2020 fiscal year, the Underlying Index outperformed the ICE BofA US High Yield Index by +335 bps, due to rebalancing timing as well as sector allocation and security selection of the Underlying Index. The tracking difference between the Fund’s NAV and the Underlying Index’s total return for the period was -282 bps, which is reflective of the Fund’s management fee (-37 bps), trading costs and fees (+35 bps), pricing differences (-117 bps), yield curve positioning (+11 bps) sector allocation (+5bps) and security selection (-180 bps), and other factors (+1 bp). Pricing differences and security selection tracking error was impacted by NTI’s decision to restrict the Fund’s portfolio rebalancing in March and April 2020 due to severe market conditions.

 

 

3 

Source: BofA Securities, BofA Global Research, November 2, 2020.

 

4 

Source: St Louis Federal Reserve Bank, FRED Database.

 

5 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

6 

High Yield are fixed income securities that are rated in the middle rating of Moody’s, Fitch and S&P is Ba1/BB+/BB+ or below.

 

7 

Credit spread is the difference in yield between one debt security and another debt security with the same maturity but of lesser quality.

 

8 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of High Yield corporate bonds using data available as of Jan 2, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

9 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of High Yield corporate bonds using data available as of February 15, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

10 

The option-adjusted spread (OAS) is the measurement of the spread of a fixed-income security rate or portfolio and typically the Treasury securities yield (often referred to as the risk-free rate) and that spread is added to the fixed-income security for comparison purposes.

 

11 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the rate spread of High Yield corporate bond rates and comparable nominal Treasury rates using data available as of February 18, 2020 – March 23, 2020.

 

12 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the Option Adjusted Spread of High Yield corporate bonds using data available as of March 31, 2020 – October 31, 2020.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Ready Access Variable Income Fund Ticker:   RAVI

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     5 Year     Fund
Inception
10/9/2012
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    2.18     2.40     1.91     1.44

FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund (Based on Market Price)

    2.17     2.42     1.90     1.44

Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index

    0.79     1.58     1.13     0.71

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.26% and the net expense ratio is 0.25%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

The Fund seeks maximum current income consistent with the preservation of capital and liquidity. The Fund attempts to achieve its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its total assets in a non-diversified portfolio of fixed-income instruments, including bonds, debt securities and other similar instruments issued by U.S. and non-U.S. public and private sector entities. Such issuers include, without limitation, U.S. and non-U.S. governments and their agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, U.S. state and local governments and U.S. and non-U.S. private-sector entities, such as corporations and banks. The average effective duration1 of the Fund will vary based on the Northern Trust Company Investment Policy Committee’s forecast for interest rates and will normally not exceed one year. The dollar-weighted average portfolio maturity of the Fund is normally not expected to exceed two years.

 

In general, U.S. Treasury yields were lower during the fiscal year driven primarily by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent monetary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve (“Fed”). In early March, at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, as the Federal and State governments implemented mitigation actions against the spread of the virus, the FOMC lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)2 to 1.00% -1.25% and then by an additional 100 bps to 0.00% -0.25% during an unscheduled meeting on March 15, 2020.

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of policies

 

1 

Average effective duration provides a measure of a fund’s interest-rate sensitivity and the longer a fund’s duration, the more sensitive the fund is to shifts in interest rates. Duration also gives an indication of how a fund’s NAV will change as interest rates change. A fund with a five-year duration would be expected to lose 5% of its NAV if interest rates rose by 1 percentage point, or gain 5%, if interest rates fell by 1 percentage point. Morningstar surveys fund companies for this information.

 

2 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      57  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

and programs to support the economy and markets during the COVID induced economic slowdown. The Fed implemented quantitative easing securities purchases, acquiring as of October 31, 2020, $1.99 trillion of U.S. Treasuries and $1.22 trillion of agency mortgage backed securities.3 As of October 28, 2020, the Fed’s balance sheet has grown by roughly $3.1 trillion, to $7.1 trillion, since October 30, 2019.4 The Fed provided additional support in the form of programs designed to address a dearth of market liquidity in multiple fixed income markets. The Fed announced programs to support primary dealers, the money market fund sector, the commercial paper market, the corporate bond market (both investment grade and high yield segments) and the term asset backed securities sector.

 

The U.S. Treasury yield curve5 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near- and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps). Global Central Banks (“GCBs”) matched the Fed’s aggressive monetary policy as COVID-19 related shutdowns weighed on global consumers, businesses and markets.

 

 

The Fund’s NAV outperformed its market benchmark, the Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index, by 139 bps. Short-term Treasury yields remained relatively unchanged while the longer end of the Treasury curve moved lower on COVID concerns. The Fund’s outperformance stemmed from its continued overweight to front-end Investment Grade Credit, which continued to see strength and drops in yield throughout the fiscal year. By fiscal year end, in general credit spreads on floating rate notes and short-term fixed-rate corporate securities were virtually unchanged. This environment, along with fund’s long duration bias, detracted from performance.

 

 

3 

Source: BofA Securities, BofA Global Research, November 2, 2020.

 

4 

Source: St Louis Federal Reserve Bank, FRED Database.

 

5 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

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Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Core Select Bond Fund Ticker:   BNDC

 

 

CUMULATIVE PERFORMANCE

Through October 31, 2020

 

LOGO

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN

For the period ended October 31, 2020

 

    1 Year     3 Year     Fund
Inception
11/18/2016
 
 

 

 

 

FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund (Based on Net Asset Value)

    6.69     4.95     4.48

FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund (Based on Market Price)

    6.57     4.85     4.49

Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index

    6.19     5.07     4.68

 

All data as of 10/31/20. Total returns based on market price do not include brokerage commissions that may be payable on secondary market transactions. If brokerage commissions were included, these returns would be lower. Total returns based on market price and net asset value (“NAV”) assume that dividends and capital gain distributions have been reinvested in the Fund at market price and NAV, respectively. NAV is calculated by dividing the total value of all the securities in the fund’s portfolio plus cash, interest and receivables less any liabilities by the number of fund shares outstanding. Market price is determined by the midpoint of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market price returns may vary from NAV returns.

 

Performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. The graph and table do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption or sale of Fund shares. Unlike the Index, the Fund’s total returns are reduced by operating expenses, such as transaction costs and management fees. An investor cannot invest directly in an index.

 

Performance reflects contractual reimbursements in effect until March 1, 2021. In the absence of such reimbursements, performance would be reduced. The gross expense ratio of the Fund is 0.58% and the net expense ratio is 0.35%. The gross and net expense ratios disclosed are as reported in the Fund’s prospectus, which may differ from the gross and net expense ratios presented in the Fund’s financial reports. Current performance may be higher or lower than performance shown. Investment return and the principal value of an investment will fluctuate. Shares may be worth more or less than original cost when redeemed or sold in the market.

 

FlexShares ETFs’ performance data current to the most recent month-end is available at www.flexshares.com.

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

 

 

The Fund seeks total return and preservation of capital. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets in U.S. dollar-denominated investment-grade fixed-income securities either directly or indirectly through exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) and other registered investment companies (together with ETFs, “Underlying Funds”). The Fund primarily invests in fixed-rate securities of varying maturities, including bonds, debt securities and other similar instruments issued by U.S. public and U.S and non-U.S. private sector entities. Such issuers include, without limitation, U.S. governments and their agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, and U.S. and non-U.S. private-sector entities, such as corporations and banks. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity.

 

The Fund seeks to provide attractive risk-adjusted performance by investing in a portfolio of fixed-income securities that is designed to achieve optimal potential for total return after considering various sources of investment risk. The Fund adjusts its allocations to securities based on Northern Trust Investment Inc.’s assessment of potential changes in interest rate levels, the shape of the yield curve and credit spread relationships. The Fund also seeks to balance the potential for return and risk while emphasizing liquidity and diversification across a spectrum of U.S.

 

In general, U.S. Treasury yields were lower during the fiscal year driven primarily by the negative impact of COVID-19 (“COVID”) on the U.S. economy and subsequent monetary policy response from the U.S. Federal Reserve (“Fed”). In early March, at its regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) meeting, as the Federal and State governments implemented mitigation actions against the spread of the virus, the FOMC lowered the overnight rate by 50 basis points (bps)1 to 1.00%-1.25% and then by an additional 100 bps to 0.00%-0.25% during an unscheduled meeting on March 15, 2020.

 

1 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      59  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Core Select Bond Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

In addition to reducing the overnight rate, the Fed implemented a number of policies and programs to support the economy and markets during the COVID induced economic slowdown. The Fed implemented quantitative easing securities purchases, acquiring as of October 31, 2020, $1.99 trillion of U.S. Treasuries and $1.22 trillion of agency mortgage backed securities.2 As of October 28, 2020, the Fed’s balance sheet has grown by roughly $3.1 trillion, to $7.1 trillion, since October 30, 2019.3 The Fed provided additional support in the form of programs designed to address a dearth of market liquidity in multiple fixed income markets. The Fed announced programs to support primary dealers, the money market fund sector, the commercial paper market, the corporate bond market (both investment grade and high yield segments) and the term asset backed securities sector.

 

The U.S. Treasury yield curve4 steepened, with long-term rates rising during the first two months of the fiscal year, only to quickly reverse into calendar year 2020 as the spread of COVID from Asia to Europe and North America began to weigh on economic activity and raised levels of uncertainty for global investors. Treasury yields declined significantly beginning in February into March, as global economic activity halted and investors struggled to estimate the near- and long-term impacts of COVID. By month-end October 2020, the 1-month Treasury Bill was -146 bps lower for the fiscal year while longer-term Treasury yields were also lower: 1-Year Treasury (-138 bps), 2-Year Treasury (-137 bps), 5-Year Treasury (-113 bps), 10-Year Treasury (-82 bps) and 30-Year Treasury (-52 bps). Global Central Banks (“GCBs”) matched the Fed’s aggressive monetary policy as COVID-19 related shutdowns weighed on global consumers, businesses and markets.

 

Prompted by lower interest rates, refinancing activity housing sales and mortgage applications surged in April and beyond, as average 30-year mortgage rates (Freddie Mac Index) fell from 3.78% to 2.81% during the fiscal year5. During the fiscal year, despite the

 

 

slowdown in March and April, existing home sales managed a 1.5% increase, while new home sales were robust, increasing 18.5% 6. The Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index saw robust gains in housing prices with a year-over-year increase of roughly 8.0% versus 5.4% and 6.0% in fiscal years 2019 and 2018, respectively7.

 

Intermediate-term8 credit spreads9 trended lower through mid-February 202010 then widened significantly until late March 2020.11 We believe investors’ uncertainty over the COVID economic shutdowns drove average intermediate-term option adjusted spreads (“OAS”)12 to 381 bps13 in comparison to comparable maturing Treasury securities in March 2020 from 84 bps at the beginning of the fiscal year.14 By late March, once the Fed announced programs to support credit markets, average intermediate-term OAS declined through the end of the fiscal year as investors weighed potential impacts from the U.S. election and COVID developments.15

 

 

2 

Source: BofA Securities, BofA Global Research, November 2, 2020.

 

3 

Source: St Louis Federal Reserve Bank, FRED Database.

 

4 

A yield curve is constructed by plotting a session’s final yields for various maturities including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, 10-year, 20-year and 30-year maturities.

 

5 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. Primary Mortgage Market Survey. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

 

6 

Source: Bloomberg. National Association of Realtors. Existing Home Sales. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

7 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index. 1 November 2017 through 31 October 2020.

 

8 

Intermediate-term bonds typically mature between 5–10 years.

 

9 

Credit spread is the difference in yield between one debt security and another debt security with the same maturity but of lesser quality.

 

10 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of Jan 2, 2020 – February 15, 2020.

 

11 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of February 15, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

12 

The option-adjusted spread (OAS) is the measurement of the spread of a fixed-income security rate or portfolio and typically the Treasury securities yield (often referred to as the risk-free rate) and that spread is added to the fixed-income security for comparison purposes.

 

13 

A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument.

 

14 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the rate spread of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bond rates and comparable nominal Treasury rates using data available as of November 1, 2019 – October 31, 2020.

 

15 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the Option Adjusted Spread of intermediate-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of March 31, 2020 – October 31, 2020.

 

60    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares®   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION OF FUND PERFORMANCE

Core Select Bond Fund (cont.)

 

 

PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS (cont.)

 

 

Long-term credit spreads trended lower through mid-February 202016 then widened significantly until late March 2020.17 We believe investors’ uncertainty over the COVID economic shutdowns drove average long-term option adjusted spreads (“OAS”) to 359 bps in comparison to comparable maturing Treasury securities in March 2020 from 159 bps at the beginning of the fiscal year.18 By late March, once the Fed announced programs to support credit markets, average long-term OAS declined through the end of the fiscal year.19

 

Prompted by lower interest rates, refinancing activity, housing sales and mortgage applications began to surge April 2020, as average 30-year mortgage rates (Freddie Mac Index) fell from 3.78% to 2.81% during the fiscal year20. Despite the slowdown in March and April, existing home sales managed a 1.5% increase during the fiscal year, while new home sales were robust, increasing 18.5% 21. The Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index saw robust gains in housing prices with a year-over-year increase of roughly 8.0% versus 5.4% and 6.0% in the fiscal years ended October 31, 2019 and October 31, 2018, respectively22.

 

 

Early in the fiscal year, the Fund was generally positioned with an underweight to U.S. Treasuries and an overweight to corporate fixed income on expectations for slowing, but still positive, economic growth and corporate earnings. An overweight to mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”) was maintained and increased during the first half of the fiscal year. Both overweight were reduced as the COVID crisis gripped markets between March and May 2020. As markets stabilized during the fiscal third quarter with fiscal and monetary support policies, the overweight to corporate credit was increased based on declining yields and relative value versus Treasuries. The overweight to MBS was re-established, based on relative value measures in the fiscal fourth quarter, as the Fed continued with quantitative easing MBS purchases. Duration23 positioning was generally slightly longer versus its benchmark index during the fiscal year, providing positive contribution to performance. U.S. investment grade-corporate credit spreads widened during the March-May 2020 time period24 detracting from performance. As interest rates continued to decline, contributions from intermediate- and long-term corporate credit exposure drove relative outperformance by the Fund. The Fund outperformed its benchmark, the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index on a NAV basis during the fiscal year by 0.50%. Manager security selection and an overweight to corporate credits and MBS provided the majority of excess returns.

 

 

 

16 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of Jan 2, 2020 – February 15, 2020.

 

17 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of February 15, 2020 – March 31, 2020.

 

18 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the rate spread of long-term investment grade corporate bond rates and comparable nominal Treasury rates using data available as of November 1, 2019 – October 31, 2020.

 

19 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the Option Adjusted Spread of long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of March 31, 2020 – October 31, 2020.

 

20 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. Primary Mortgage Market Survey. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

21 

Source: Bloomberg. National Association of Realtors. Existing Home Sales. 1 November 2019 through 31 October 2020.

 

22 

Source: Bloomberg. Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Purchase Price Index. 1 November 2017 through 31 October 2020.

 

23 

Duration is how sensitive a fixed income investment is to a change in interest rates and is expressed as a number of years – the higher the number the more volatile would be the expected change.

 

24 

Bloomberg, In this analysis we are making a comparison between the difference of the credit spreads of intermediate-term and long-term investment grade corporate bonds using data available as of March 1, 2020 – May 30, 2020.

 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      61  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Trust

Statements of Assets and Liabilities October 31, 2020

 

 

     FlexShares®
US Quality
Low Volatility
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
Developed Markets ex-US
Quality Low Volatility
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Emerging  Markets
Quality Low Volatility
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Morningstar  US
Market Factor Tilt
Index Fund
 

ASSETS

         

Securities, at cost

   $ 108,842,706      $ 66,306,967     $ 9,121,930     $ 816,863,286  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                        536,941  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

                        102,633,482  
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     110,206,457        65,001,076       9,461,475       1,163,556,355  

Affiliate securities, at value

                        577,006  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

                        102,635,685  

Cash

     883,746        354,605       89,720       8,783,893  

Cash segregated at broker*

     2,285        94,447       27,235       1,143,018  

Foreign cash††

            118,869       17,628        

Restricted cash**

                  319,326        

Due from Authorized Participant

                         

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

            6,717              

Receivables:

         

Dividends and interest

     109,274        235,157       5,858       1,086,826  

Securities lending income

                        35,280  

Capital shares issued

                         

Investment adviser

     507        333       24       5,372  

Securities sold

     81,375                    234,999  

Variation margin on futures contracts

                  1,720        
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     111,283,644        65,811,204       9,922,986       1,278,058,434  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

         

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

            4,996              

Payables:

         

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

                        102,633,369  

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     1,241        745       110       101,197  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     21,144        18,596       2,716       260,477  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     1,303        829       88       14,538  

Securities purchased

     727,223                     

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                  22,436        

Due to Authorized Participant

                  319,326       4,785  

Variation margin on futures contracts

     6,045        32,284             236,639  

Capital shares redeemed

                         

Other

     3,150        6,750             21,000  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     760,106        64,200       344,676       103,272,005  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 110,523,538      $ 65,747,004     $ 9,578,310     $ 1,174,786,429  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

         

Paid-in capital

   $ 109,853,715      $ 68,603,430     $ 9,893,976     $ 904,949,119  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     669,823        (2,856,426     (315,666     269,837,310  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 110,523,538      $ 65,747,004     $ 9,578,310     $ 1,174,786,429  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     2,700,001        2,800,001       400,001       9,700,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 40.93      $ 23.48     $ 23.95     $ 121.11  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $      $     $     $ 133,116,681  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $      $ 118,290     $ 17,690     $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

62    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Morningstar  Developed
Markets ex-US Factor
Tilt Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Morningstar  Emerging
Markets Factor Tilt
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Currency  Hedged
Morningstar DM
ex-US Factor Tilt
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Currency  Hedged
Morningstar
EM Factor Tilt
Index Fund
 

ASSETS

        

Securities, at cost

   $ 506,659,780     $ 196,134,712     $     $  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                 7,296,293       3,834,940  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

     5,133,487       1,750,628              
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     489,434,922       222,760,850              

Affiliate securities, at value

                 6,119,717       3,331,202  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

     5,133,487       1,750,628              

Cash

     2,941,156       1,861,173       1,225       40,932  

Cash segregated at broker*

     1,675,567       320,760             23,614  

Foreign cash††

     2,261,606       1,001,578              

Restricted cash**

                        

Due from Authorized Participant

                        

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     80,939       28,633       24,874       12,710  

Receivables:

        

Dividends and interest

     3,655,422       206,122              

Securities lending income

     31,941       11,303              

Capital shares issued

                        

Investment adviser

     3,540       1,196       11       6  

Securities sold

     716                    

Variation margin on futures contracts

                       620  
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     505,219,296       227,942,243       6,145,827       3,409,084  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

        

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     141,140       16,417       15,404       7,969  

Payables:

        

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

     5,133,487       1,750,628              

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     67,939       34,413       685       1,477  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     175,825       115,013       343       233  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     7,164       2,914       79       43  

Securities purchased

     11,722       173,122              

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                        

Due to Authorized Participant

                        

Variation margin on futures contracts

     586,423       2,934              

Capital shares redeemed

                        

Other

     80,000                    
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     6,203,700       2,095,441       16,511       9,722  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 499,015,596     $ 225,846,802     $ 6,129,316     $ 3,399,362  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

        

Paid-in capital

   $ 635,686,899     $ 280,452,112     $ 8,289,199     $ 5,569,951  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     (136,671,303     (54,605,310     (2,159,883     (2,170,589
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 499,015,596     $ 225,846,802     $ 6,129,316     $ 3,399,362  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     9,200,001       4,700,001       250,001       125,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 54.24     $ 48.05     $ 24.52     $ 27.19  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $ 44,229,345     $ 8,317,509     $     $  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $ 2,251,493     $ 991,977     $     $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      63  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
US Quality
Large Cap
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
STOXX® US
ESG Impact
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
STOXX®
Global ESG
Impact
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
Morningstar  Global
Upstream Natural
Resources Index
Fund
 

ASSETS

           

Securities, at cost

   $ 65,852,244      $ 72,567,842      $ 93,167,922      $ 3,189,005,299  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                           

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

            41,799        204,571        115,620,849  
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     71,063,888        88,086,104        110,029,500        2,899,179,362  

Affiliate securities, at value

                           

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

            41,799        204,571        115,621,889  

Cash

     661,993        737,883        247,361        10,385,869  

Cash segregated at broker*

     66,896        148,706        224,516        3,145,835  

Foreign cash††

                   672,141        10,115,896  

Restricted cash**

                           

Due from Authorized Participant

                           

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                   3,761        466,912  

Receivables:

           

Dividends and interest

     90,932        128,342        248,008        4,293,505  

Securities lending income

     446        378        525        39,829  

Capital shares issued

                           

Investment adviser

     257        357        516        17,295  

Securities sold

                           

Variation margin on futures contracts

                           
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     71,884,412        89,143,569        111,630,899        3,043,266,392  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

           

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                   630        391,266  

Payables:

           

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

            41,799        204,571        115,620,769  

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     2,662        2,060        3,461        383,206  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     20,132        24,888        41,581        1,194,272  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     846        1,059        1,409        40,487  

Securities purchased

                           

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                           

Due to Authorized Participant

                           

Variation margin on futures contracts

     15,332        20,792        48,455        889,584  

Capital shares redeemed

                           

Other

     3,000        1,400        7,500        21,000  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     41,972        91,998        307,607        118,540,584  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 71,842,440      $ 89,051,571      $ 111,323,292      $ 2,924,725,808  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

           

Paid-in capital

   $ 70,029,939      $ 76,892,689      $ 99,629,150      $ 4,210,684,146  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     1,812,501        12,158,882        11,694,142        (1,285,958,338
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 71,842,440      $ 89,051,571      $ 111,323,292      $ 2,924,725,808  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     2,025,001        1,125,001        1,050,001        109,500,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 35.48      $ 79.16      $ 106.02      $ 26.71  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $ 4,003,994      $ 3,686,774      $ 1,303,262      $ 169,515,214  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $      $      $ 673,553      $ 10,204,617  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

64    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
STOXX®
Global Broad
Infrastructure
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Global  Quality
Real Estate
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Real Assets
Allocation
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Index Fund
 

ASSETS

        

Securities, at cost

   $ 1,763,040,875     $ 279,640,292     $ –       $ 1,138,758,079  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                 4,892,161        

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

     7,466,835       2,552,626             66,619,981  
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     1,838,425,278       261,480,423             1,260,093,412  

Affiliate securities, at value

                 4,502,232        

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

     7,466,835       2,552,626             66,621,373  

Cash

     4,744,283       1,508,969       2,097       3,454,215  

Cash segregated at broker*

     2,445,675       474,864             514,770  

Foreign cash††

     7,498,150       819,904              

Restricted cash**

     44,031                    

Due from Authorized Participant

     10,772                    

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     32,311       5,451              

Receivables:

        

Dividends and interest

     4,732,380       459,170             1,709,107  

Securities lending income

     23,726       2,505             8,205  

Capital shares issued

     4,809,645                    

Investment adviser

     9,687       1,256             5,791  

Securities sold

     648,506             878,844       113,860  

Variation margin on futures contracts

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     1,870,891,279       267,305,168       5,383,173       1,332,520,733  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

        

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     58,686       6,069              

Payables:

        

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

     7,466,835       2,552,626             66,619,988  

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     75,727       18,429       446       120,104  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     765,905       106,519       526       417,974  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     23,397       3,490       47       16,303  

Securities purchased

     4,751,101             880,425        

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

     309,149                    

Due to Authorized Participant

     44,031                    

Variation margin on futures contracts

     774,271       31,670             159,209  

Capital shares redeemed

                        

Other

     26,000       12,000             10,550  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     14,295,102       2,730,803       881,444       67,344,128  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 1,856,596,177     $ 264,574,365     $ 4,501,729     $ 1,265,176,605  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

        

Paid-in capital

   $ 1,892,757,299     $ 315,827,668     $ 5,124,553     $ 1,150,126,226  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     (36,161,122     (51,253,303     (622,824     115,050,379  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 1,856,596,177     $ 264,574,365     $ 4,501,729     $ 1,265,176,605  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     38,600,001       5,200,001       175,001       29,150,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 48.10     $ 50.88     $ 25.72     $ 43.40  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $ 92,519,364     $ 13,427,825     $     $ 78,388,967  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $ 7,396,878     $ 818,056     $     $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      65  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Defensive
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Dynamic
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
International
Quality
Dividend
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
International
Quality Dividend
Defensive Index
Fund
 

ASSETS

         

Securities, at cost

   $ 375,996,148      $ 11,940,711     $ 452,696,837     $ 58,870,836  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                         

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

     8,102,111        77,040       121,447       108,136  
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     409,511,135        13,089,045       441,232,391       58,308,553  

Affiliate securities, at value

                         

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

     8,102,111        77,040       121,447       108,136  

Cash

     1,108,931        31,131       3,919,449       239,851  

Cash segregated at broker*

     160,422        43,585       1,968,061       208,889  

Foreign cash††

                  4,622,772       411,349  

Restricted cash**

                         

Due from Authorized Participant

                         

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                  290,451       9,675  

Receivables:

         

Dividends and interest

     617,088        26,225       2,557,394       327,755  

Securities lending income

     2,439        87       5,713       1,396  

Capital shares issued

                         

Investment adviser

     1,917        45       2,597       292  

Securities sold

     2,120,991        1,679              

Variation margin on futures contracts

                         
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     421,625,034        13,268,837       454,720,275       59,615,896  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

         

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                  255,646       8,594  

Payables:

         

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

     8,102,111        77,040       121,447       108,136  

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     25,408        5,384       52,077       7,123  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     137,149        4,319       187,522       24,525  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     5,365        175       5,982       766  

Securities purchased

                         

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                         

Due to Authorized Participant

                         

Variation margin on futures contracts

     46,807              606,020       58,018  

Capital shares redeemed

     2,130,450                     

Other

     4,950        1,100       15,000       5,000  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     10,452,240        88,018       1,243,694       212,162  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 411,172,794      $ 13,180,819     $ 453,476,581     $ 59,403,734  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

         

Paid-in capital

   $ 396,558,590      $ 13,365,018     $ 655,303,562     $ 88,731,031  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     14,614,204        (184,199     (201,826,981     (29,327,297
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 411,172,794      $ 13,180,819     $ 453,476,581     $ 59,403,734  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     9,650,001        300,001       22,500,001       3,100,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 42.61      $ 43.94     $ 20.15     $ 19.16  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $ 27,769,586      $ 972,749     $ 16,663,333     $ 2,646,645  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $      $     $ 4,666,244     $ 408,552  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

66    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
International
Quality Dividend
Dynamic Index
Fund
    FlexShares®
iBoxx 3-Year
Target
Duration TIPS
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
iBoxx 5-Year
Target
Duration TIPS
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
Disciplined
Duration MBS
Index Fund
 

ASSETS

          

Securities, at cost

   $ 22,839,281     $ 1,372,986,967      $ 557,783,123      $ 97,207,814  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                          

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

     33,903                      
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     21,972,511       1,427,232,294        595,127,791        99,462,691  

Affiliate securities, at value

                          

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

     33,903                      

Cash

     95,768       797,034        838,828        9,803,172  

Cash segregated at broker*

     57,302                      

Foreign cash††

     89,959                      

Restricted cash**

                          

Due from Authorized Participant

                          

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     2,369                      

Receivables:

          

Dividends and interest

     192,043       1,881,388        911,291        281,079  

Securities lending income

     511       142        2,187         

Capital shares issued

                          

Investment adviser

     111       5,959        2,671        313  

Securities sold

           111,646,532        38,325,048        2,166,412  

Variation margin on futures contracts

                          
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     22,444,477       1,541,563,349        635,207,816        111,713,667  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

          

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

     2,177                      

Payables:

          

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

     33,903                      

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     4,021       204,354        70,059        3,460  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     9,312       218,407        90,548        16,787  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     267       17,033        7,097        1,069  

Securities purchased

           111,632,948        38,944,902        11,667,066  

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                          

Due to Authorized Participant

                          

Variation margin on futures contracts

     13,475                      

Capital shares redeemed

                          

Other

     5,000                     4,800  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     68,155       112,072,742        39,112,606        11,693,182  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 22,376,322     $ 1,429,490,607      $ 596,095,210      $ 100,020,485  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

          

Paid-in capital

   $ 38,497,548     $ 1,426,928,447      $ 567,656,433      $ 100,787,000  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     (16,121,226     2,562,160        28,438,777        (766,515
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 22,376,322     $ 1,429,490,607      $ 596,095,210      $ 100,020,485  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     1,000,001       55,554,000        21,800,001        4,150,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 22.38     $ 25.73      $ 27.34      $ 24.10  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $ 842,167     $ 1,983,669      $ 48,099,575      $  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $ 90,909     $      $      $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      67  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Credit-Scored
US
Corporate Bond
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
Credit-Scored
US Long
Corporate Bond
Index Fund
     FlexShares®
High Yield
Value-
Scored Bond
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Ready
Access
Variable
Income Fund
 

ASSETS

          

Securities, at cost

   $ 192,605,363      $ 43,999,329      $ 186,120,080     $ 464,078,756  

Affiliate securities, at cost

                          

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

                          
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     200,083,895        45,871,567        184,334,463       467,087,571  

Affiliate securities, at value

                          

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

                          

Cash

     1,228,990        807,716        2,398,536       993,685  

Cash segregated at broker*

                          

Foreign cash††

                          

Restricted cash**

                          

Due from Authorized Participant

                          

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                          

Receivables:

          

Dividends and interest

     1,625,653        469,173        3,344,248       1,835,567  

Securities lending income

                          

Capital shares issued

                          

Investment adviser

     740        171        816       1,883  

Securities sold

     7,510,288        3,557,204        14,002,202       8,932  

Variation margin on futures contracts

                          
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     210,449,566        50,705,831        204,080,265       469,927,638  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

          

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

                          

Payables:

          

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

                          

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     5,110        1,560        2,868       16,388  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     37,351        8,695        59,356       98,842  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     2,248        556        2,256       5,356  

Securities purchased

     8,003,448        4,334,109        14,389,850       602,093  

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

                          

Due to Authorized Participant

                          

Variation margin on futures contracts

                          

Capital shares redeemed

                          

Other

     4,000        500        3,000       3,675  
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     8,052,157        4,345,420        14,457,330       726,354  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 202,397,409      $ 46,360,411      $ 189,622,935     $ 469,201,284  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

          

Paid-in capital

   $ 191,673,608      $ 42,607,319      $ 195,211,607     $ 465,811,932  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     10,723,801        3,753,092        (5,588,672     3,389,352  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 202,397,409      $ 46,360,411      $ 189,622,935     $ 469,201,284  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     3,700,001        750,001        4,100,001       6,150,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 54.70      $ 61.81      $ 46.25     $ 76.29  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $      $      $     $  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $      $      $     $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

68    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Core Select
Bond Fund
 

ASSETS

  

Securities, at cost

   $ 29,545,011  

Affiliate securities, at cost

     77,182,180  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at cost

      
  

 

 

 

Securities, at value†

     30,311,162  

Affiliate securities, at value

     78,670,692  

Securities Lending Reinvestments, at value

      

Cash

     160,339  

Cash segregated at broker*

      

Foreign cash††

      

Restricted cash**

      

Due from Authorized Participant

      

Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

      

Receivables:

  

Dividends and interest

      

Securities lending income

      

Capital shares issued

      

Investment adviser

     421  

Securities sold

      

Variation margin on futures contracts

      
  

 

 

 

Total Assets

     109,142,614  
  

 

 

 

LIABILITIES

 

Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts

      

Payables:

  

Cash collateral received from securities loaned

      

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     2,090  

Investment advisory fees (Note 4)

     15,987  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     1,231  

Securities purchased

      

Deferred non-US capital gains taxes

      

Due to Authorized Participant

      

Variation margin on futures contracts

      

Capital shares redeemed

      

Other

      
  

 

 

 

Total Liabilities

     19,308  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 109,123,306  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS CONSIST OF:

 

Paid-in capital

   $ 106,534,756  

Distributable earnings (loss)

     2,588,550  
  

 

 

 

Net Assets

   $ 109,123,306  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized $ 0.0001 par value)

     4,075,001  

Net Asset Value

   $ 26.78  

† Securities on loan, at value

   $  

†† Cost of foreign cash

   $  

 

*

Includes cash pledged by the Fund to cover margin requirements for open futures contracts as of 10/31.

 

**

Includes cash pledged by an Authorized Participant for missing deposit securities required to secure Creation Units.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      69  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Trust

Statements of Operations

For the year ended October 31, 2020

 

 

     FlexShares®
US Quality
Low Volatility
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Developed
Markets ex-US
Quality Low Volatility
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Emerging
Markets Quality
Low Volatility
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Morningstar
US Market
Factor Tilt
Index Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 939,464     $ 1,288,708     $ 203,608     $ 26,157,708  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                       20,862  

Interest income

     34                    

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

                       677,288  

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

     (616     (119,191     (27,617     (6,777

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     938,882       1,169,517       175,991       26,849,081  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     734       347       41       6,869  

Investment advisory fees

     115,759       126,343       25,235       3,284,723  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     4,301       3,295       525       106,857  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     63       49       47       15,227  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     120,857       130,034       25,848       3,413,676  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (281     (9     (7     (2,142

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (2,179     (1,733     (262     (50,314

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (63     (49     (47     (13,812
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     118,334       128,243       25,532       3,347,408  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     820,548       1,041,274       150,459       23,501,673  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                       (22,862

Transactions in investment securities

     (916,888     (1,730,412     (607,508 )(1)      (22,390,783

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                       53,071  

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     179,563             45,457       143,719,252  

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     42,801       41,774       19,751       260,410  

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

           (21,539            

Foreign currency transactions

           5,485       (14,024      
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     (694,524     (1,704,692     (556,324     121,619,088  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     1,310,900       (1,422,021     321,042 (2)      (114,749,911 )(3) 

Securities lending

                       3,297  

Futures contracts

     (6,049     (32,340     1,716       (385,862

Forward foreign currency contracts

           1,721              

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

           4,453       (127      
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     1,304,851       (1,448,187     322,631       (115,132,476
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     610,327       (3,152,879     (233,693     6,486,612  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ 1,430,875     $ (2,111,605   $ (83,234   $ 29,988,285  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Net of non-US capital gains tax of $(1,350).

(2) 

Net of deferred non-US capital gains tax of $22,436.

(3) 

Includes $(215,176) change in unrealized depreciation on investments in affiliates.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

70    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Morningstar
Developed
Markets ex-US
Factor Tilt
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Morningstar  Emerging
Markets Factor Tilt
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Currency  Hedged
Morningstar DM
ex-US Factor Tilt
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Currency  Hedged
Morningstar
EM Factor Tilt
Index Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 18,794,819     $ 8,575,650     $     $  

Income from non-cash dividends

     1,517,876                    

Dividend income received from affiliate

                 237,262       118,819  

Interest income

           651              

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

     520,945       190,208              

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

     (1,866,695     (896,248            

Foreign withholding tax on interest

           (9            
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     18,966,945       7,870,252       237,262       118,819  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     1,544       1,080       34       29  

Investment advisory fees

     2,765,569       1,701,344       31,026       25,550  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     58,376       23,778       265       77  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     9,036       3,864       80       52  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     2,834,525       1,730,066       31,405       25,708  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (1,394     (580     (12     (8

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (27,133     (11,717     (27,592     (23,253

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (9,036     (3,864     (80     (52
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     2,796,962       1,713,905       3,721       2,395  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     16,169,983       6,156,347       233,541       116,424  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                 (171,030     (24,246

Transactions in investment securities

     (21,412,586     (10,631,069 )(1)             

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                 (238,044     6,143  

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     (10,764,876     (2,553,863            

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     1,989,450       1,083,960             8,668  

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

     103,579       67,116       (135,509     77,574  

Foreign currency transactions

     574,994       (401,305     185,701       3,027  
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     (29,509,439     (12,435,161     (358,882     71,166  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

        

Investments in securities

     (110,244,628     (13,899,901     (882,986 )(2)      (53,855 )(3) 

Securities lending

                        

Futures contracts

     (906,795     4,119             (325

Forward foreign currency contracts

     (128,515     53,916       24,385       25,847  

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

     98,736       (2,849            
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     (111,181,202     (13,844,715     (858,601     (28,333
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     (140,690,641     (26,279,876     (1,217,483     42,833  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ (124,520,658   $ (20,123,529   $ (983,942   $ 159,257  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Net of non-US capital gains tax of $(3,291).

 

(2) 

Includes $(882,986) change in unrealized depreciation on investments in affiliates.

 

(3) 

Includes $(53,855) change in unrealized depreciation on investments in affiliates.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      71  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
US Quality
Large Cap
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
STOXX® US
ESG Impact
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
STOXX®
Global ESG
Impact
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Morningstar
Global Upstream
Natural Resources
Index Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 1,220,887     $ 1,431,045     $ 2,165,831     $ 144,560,825  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                        

Interest income

                        

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

     19,933       5,765       8,364       964,727  

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

                 (93,180     (7,617,342

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     1,240,820       1,436,810       2,081,015       137,908,210  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     579       551       773       21,395  

Investment advisory fees

     189,317       229,566       419,197       18,141,405  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     4,667       5,714       8,036       329,144  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     478       530       859       51,957  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     195,041       236,361       428,865       18,543,901  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (73     (85     (136     (7,936

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (2,319     (2,702     (3,909     (171,597

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (478     (530     (859     (51,957
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     192,171       233,044       423,961       18,312,411  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     1,048,649       1,203,766       1,657,054       119,595,799  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                        

Transactions in investment securities

     (579,431     (2,956,610     (1,666,396     (205,888,892 )(1) 

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                        

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     1,691,602       301,364             163,069,598  

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     56,387       45,351       103,833       3,339,709  

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

                 (12,210     168,456  

Foreign currency transactions

                 6,164       (450,125
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     1,168,558       (2,609,895     (1,568,609     (39,761,254
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     2,331,542       8,449,145       6,438,795       (778,907,196

Securities lending

                       4,048  

Futures contracts

     (15,762     (24,946     (69,171     (841,890

Forward foreign currency contracts

                 3,131       80,863  

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

                 1,633       100,576  
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     2,315,780       8,424,199       6,374,388       (779,563,599
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     3,484,338       5,814,304       4,805,779       (819,324,853
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ 4,532,987     $ 7,018,070     $ 6,462,833     $ (699,729,054
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Net of non-US capital gains tax of $(672).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

72    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
STOXX®
Global Broad
Infrastructure
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Global
Quality
Real Estate
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Real Assets
Allocation
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Index Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 53,031,367     $ 10,371,113     $     $ 46,307,004  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                 288,196        

Interest income

                        

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

     295,231       51,163             244,552  

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

     (2,985,815     (447,087            

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     50,340,783       9,975,189       288,196       46,551,556  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     10,753       1,206       49       6,662  

Investment advisory fees

     7,915,389       1,503,354       51,035       5,441,638  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     139,266       26,730       407       119,815  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     14,135       3,546       106       16,137  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     8,079,543       1,534,836       51,597       5,584,252  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (2,235     (556     (16     (2,511

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (70,766     (13,099     (41,366     (56,254

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (14,135     (3,546     (106     (16,137
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     7,992,407       1,517,635       10,109       5,509,350  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     42,348,376       8,457,554       278,087       41,042,206  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                 (239,776      

Transactions in investment securities

     (65,454,152 )(1)      (21,072,041           (7,883,567

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                 (48,630      

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     13,934,341       774,393             72,751,426  

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     (155,672     (181,950           (1,049,245

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

     126,871       50,673              

Foreign currency transactions

     176,187       (38,904            
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     (51,372,425     (20,467,829     (288,406     63,818,614  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     (113,959,125 )(2)      (76,791,827     (1,066,621 )(3)      (185,200,566

Securities lending

                       3,187  

Futures contracts

     (1,018,490     (77,069           (444,462

Forward foreign currency contracts

     (37,898     96              

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

     87,429       (627            
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     (114,928,084     (76,869,427     (1,066,621     (185,641,841
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     (166,300,509     (97,337,256     (1,355,027     (121,823,227
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ (123,952,133   $ (88,879,702   $ (1,076,940   $ (80,781,021
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Net of non-US capital gains tax of $(26,719).

 

(2) 

Net of deferred non-US capital gains tax of $309,149.

 

(3) 

Includes $(1,066,621) change in unrealized depreciation on investments in affiliates.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      73  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Defensive
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Quality
Dividend
Dynamic
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
International
Quality
Dividend
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
International
Quality Dividend
Defensive Index
Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 14,268,139     $ 949,860     $ 26,392,684     $ 3,078,131  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                        

Interest income

                        

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

     41,302       2,159       276,059       36,434  

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

     (536           (2,478,541     (324,726

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     14,308,905       952,019       24,190,202       2,789,839  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     2,297       108       2,825       355  

Investment advisory fees

     1,683,032       106,539       2,738,421       317,493  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     37,100       1,913       48,125       5,350  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     4,296       499       7,329       740  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     1,726,725       109,059       2,796,700       323,938  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (676     (77     (1,138     (114

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (17,607     (668     (24,123     (2,571

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (4,296     (499     (7,329     (740
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     1,704,146       107,815       2,764,110       320,513  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     12,604,759       844,204       21,426,092       2,469,326  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                        

Transactions in investment securities

     (19,126,276     (897,690     (48,519,003 )(1)      (6,854,147

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                        

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     29,212,604       3,185,913       452,131       721,519  

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     (215,689     (67,362     (599,470     100,137  

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

                 (142,796     (38,286

Foreign currency transactions

                 (769,335     (57,000
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     9,870,639       2,220,861       (49,578,473     (6,127,777
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     (41,966,838     (6,198,027     (35,898,443     (2,767,121

Securities lending

                        

Futures contracts

     (145,239     (9,379     (938,934     (75,267

Forward foreign currency contracts

                 107,390       2,017  

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

                 (120,182     4,791  
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     (42,112,077     (6,207,406     (36,850,169     (2,835,580
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     (32,241,438     (3,986,545     (86,428,642     (8,963,357
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ (19,636,679   $ (3,142,341   $ (65,002,550   $ (6,494,031
  

 

 

 

 

(1) Net of non-US capital gains tax of $83,703.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

74    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
International
Quality Dividend
Dynamic Index
Fund
    FlexShares®
iBoxx 3-Year
Target
Duration TIPS
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
iBoxx 5-Year
Target
Duration TIPS
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Disciplined
Duration MBS
Index Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 1,168,037     $     $     $  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                        

Interest income

           19,100,890       8,361,912       1,165,057  

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

     12,921       41,837       34,173        

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

     (103,714                  

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     1,077,244       19,142,727       8,396,085       1,165,057  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     106       7,276       2,171       364  

Investment advisory fees

     149,864       2,273,078       982,911       133,335  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     2,279       105,424       44,510       5,174  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     472       11,088       5,233       364  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     152,721       2,396,866       1,034,825       139,237  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (75     (1,682     (789     (59

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (919     (49,818     (19,410     (2,246

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (472     (11,088     (5,233     (364
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     151,255       2,334,278       1,009,393       136,568  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     925,989       16,808,449       7,386,692       1,028,489  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                        

Transactions in investment securities

     (1,529,150 )(1)      8,880,489       4,631,843       348,869  

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                        

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

     623,943       3,275,464       5,057,819        

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     62,887                    

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

     (5,735                  

Foreign currency transactions

     (30,799                  
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     (878,854     12,155,953       9,689,662       348,869  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     (3,300,138     42,400,460       25,429,146       1,683,407  

Securities lending

                        

Futures contracts

     (26,865                  

Forward foreign currency contracts

     192                    

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

     4,782                    
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     (3,322,029     42,400,460       25,429,146       1,683,407  
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     (4,200,883     54,556,413       35,118,808       2,032,276  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ (3,274,894   $ 71,364,862     $ 42,505,500     $ 3,060,765  
  

 

 

 

 

(1) Net of non-US capital gains tax of $1,297.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      75  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Credit-
Scored US
Corporate Bond
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Credit-Scored
US Long
Corporate Bond
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
High Yield
Value-
Scored Bond
Index Fund
    FlexShares®
Ready
Access Variable
Income Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $     $     $     $  

Income from non-cash dividends

                        

Dividend income received from affiliate

                        

Interest income

     3,866,894       1,184,123       11,397,746       5,898,726  

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

                        

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

                        

Foreign withholding tax on interest

                        
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     3,866,894       1,184,123       11,397,746       5,898,726  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     854       321       857       2,050  

Investment advisory fees

     316,596       74,385       589,281       885,427  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     11,736       2,575       12,873       29,369  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     946       184       954       2,605  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     330,132       77,465       603,965       919,451  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (151     (27     (171     (406

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (5,459     (1,221     (6,023     (13,977

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (946     (184     (954     (2,605
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     323,576       76,033       596,817       902,463  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     3,543,318       1,108,090       10,800,929       4,996,263  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

                        

Transactions in investment securities

     2,972,745       1,951,533       (4,005,108     169,631  

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

                        

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

                        

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

                        

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

                        

Foreign currency transactions

                        
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     2,972,745       1,951,533       (4,005,108     169,631  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     3,098,927       168,819       (1,237,194     1,872,649  

Securities lending

                        

Futures contracts

                        

Forward foreign currency contracts

                        

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

                        
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     3,098,927       168,819       (1,237,194     1,872,649  
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     6,071,672       2,120,352       (5,242,302     2,042,280  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ 9,614,990     $ 3,228,442     $ 5,558,627     $ 7,038,543  
  

 

 

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

76    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Operations (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®
Core Select
Bond Fund
 

INVESTMENT INCOME

 

Dividend income

   $ 532,088  

Income from non-cash dividends

      

Dividend income received from affiliate

     771,503  

Interest income

     1,221  

Securities lending income (net of fees) (Note 2)

      

Foreign withholding tax on dividends

      

Foreign withholding tax on interest

      
  

 

 

 

Total Investment Income

     1,304,812  
  

 

 

 

EXPENSES

 

Deferred compensation (Note 7)

     824  

Investment advisory fees

     215,216  

Trustee fees (Note 7)

     5,132  

Other expenses (Note 4)

     243  
  

 

 

 

Total Gross Expenses Before Fees Reimbursed

     221,415  
  

 

 

 

Less:

 

Deferred compensation reimbursed (Note 7)

     (39

Investment advisory fees reimbursed (Note 4)

     (100,569

Other expenses reimbursed (Note 4)

     (243
  

 

 

 

Total Net Expenses

     120,564  
  

 

 

 

Net Investment Income (Loss)

     1,184,248  
  

 

 

 

NET REALIZED GAIN (LOSS) FROM:

 

Transactions in investment securities of affiliated issuers

     (56,715

Transactions in investment securities

     684,460  

In-kind redemptions on investments in affiliated securities

      

In-kind redemptions on investments in securities

      

Expiration or closing of futures contracts

     142,652  

Settlement of forward foreign currency contracts

      

Foreign currency transactions

      
  

 

 

 

Net Realized Gain (Loss)

     770,397  
  

 

 

 

NET CHANGE IN UNREALIZED APPRECIATION (DEPRECIATION) ON:

 

Investments in securities

     1,207,113 (1) 

Securities lending

      

Futures contracts

     (3,412

Forward foreign currency contracts

      

Translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies

      
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

     1,203,701  
  

 

 

 

Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss)

     1,974,098  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

   $ 3,158,346  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Includes $1,195,299 change in unrealized appreciation on investments in affiliates.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      77  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Trust

Statements of Changes in Net Assets

 

 

     FlexShares®  US Quality Low
Volatility Index Fund
    FlexShares®  Developed Markets
ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    July 15,
2019*
through
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    July 15,
2019*
through
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 820,548     $ 21,918     $ 1,041,274     $ 32,836  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (694,524     (528     (1,704,692     (14,447

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     1,304,851       52,851       (1,448,187     119,248  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     1,430,875       74,241       (2,111,605     137,637  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (643,733     (12,079     (864,658     (17,800

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (643,733     (12,079     (864,658     (17,800
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     107,381,424       2,004,366       63,603,016        

Cost of shares redeemed

     (3,711,596                  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     103,669,828       2,004,366       63,603,016        
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     104,456,970       2,066,528       60,626,753       119,837  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 6,066,568     $ 4,000,040 (2)    $ 5,120,251     $ 5,000,414 (2),(3) 
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 110,523,538     $ 6,066,568     $ 65,747,004     $ 5,120,251  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     150,001       100,001 (2)      200,001       200,001 (2) 

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     2,650,000       50,000       2,600,000        

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (100,000                  
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     2,700,001       150,001       2,800,001       200,001  
  

 

 

 

 

*  

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(1) 

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

(2) 

Amount includes the initial subscription.

 

(3) 

Includes amounts paid in capital from the Authorized Participant in addition to the order’s original cash component. This amount is made to offset taxes, commissions, and price differences from the net asset value (“NAV”) that would otherwise impact the fund on these order trades.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

78    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares®  Emerging Markets
Quality Low Volatility Index Fund
    FlexShares® Morningstar US
Market Factor Tilt Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
   

July 15,

2019*
through
October 31,
2019

    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 150,459     $ 46,101     $ 23,501,673     $ 24,246,782  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (556,324     (38,951     121,619,088       26,681,219  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     322,631       (3,887     (115,132,476     90,783,007  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (83,234     3,263       29,988,285       141,711,008  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (168,979     (21,259     (23,509,426     (23,379,823

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (168,979     (21,259     (23,509,426     (23,379,823
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     7,242,230             28,195,556       75,936,865  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (2,400,617           (306,024,565     (135,796,153
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     4,841,613             (277,829,009     (59,859,288
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     4,589,400       (17,996     (271,350,150     58,471,897  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 4,988,910     $ 5,006,906 (2),(3)    $ 1,446,136,579     $ 1,387,664,682  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 9,578,310     $ 4,988,910     $ 1,174,786,429     $ 1,446,136,579  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     200,001       200,001 (2)      12,100,001       12,600,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     300,000             300,000       700,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (100,000           (2,700,000     (1,200,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     400,001       200,001       9,700,001       12,100,001  
  

 

 

 

 

*  

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(1) 

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

(2) 

Amount includes the initial subscription.

 

(3) 

Includes amounts paid in capital from the Authorized Participant in addition to the order’s original cash component. This amount is made to offset taxes, commissions, and price differences from the NAV that would otherwise impact the fund on these order trades.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      79  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Morningstar
Developed Markets ex-US
Factor Tilt Index Fund
    FlexShares® Morningstar
Emerging Markets Factor Tilt
Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 16,169,983     $ 29,737,840     $ 6,156,347     $ 14,776,759  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (29,509,439     (9,812,648     (12,435,161     (32,646,959

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (111,181,202     52,240,524       (13,844,715     47,428,255  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (124,520,658     72,165,716       (20,123,529     29,558,055  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (23,632,565     (29,033,991     (8,202,693     (13,630,561

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (23,632,565     (29,033,991     (8,202,693     (13,630,561
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

           96,879,059             64,094,605  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (317,973,662     (142,964,021     (159,241,139     (155,343,981
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (317,973,662     (46,084,962     (159,241,139     (91,249,376
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (466,126,885     (2,953,237     (187,567,361     (75,321,882
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 965,142,481     $ 968,095,718     $ 413,414,163     $ 488,736,045  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 499,015,596     $ 965,142,481     $ 225,846,802     $ 413,414,163  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     15,400,001       16,200,001       8,200,001       10,200,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

           1,600,000             1,200,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (6,200,000     (2,400,000     (3,500,000     (3,200,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     9,200,001       15,400,001       4,700,001       8,200,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

80    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Currency
Hedged Morningstar DM
ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund
    FlexShares® Currency
Hedged Morningstar EM
Factor Tilt Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 233,541     $ 246,297     $ 116,424     $ 152,212  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (358,882     163,159       71,166       (13,524

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (858,601     349,642       (28,333     257,933  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (983,942     759,098       159,257       396,621  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (282,942     (247,071     (116,751     (152,761

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (282,942     (247,071     (116,751     (152,761
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

           663,704             641,441  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (1,069,971     (642,632     (2,085,874      
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (1,069,971     21,072       (2,085,874     641,441  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (2,336,855     533,099       (2,043,368     885,301  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 8,466,171     $ 7,933,072     $ 5,442,730     $ 4,557,429  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 6,129,316     $ 8,466,171     $ 3,399,362     $ 5,442,730  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     300,001       300,001       200,001       175,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

           25,000             25,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (50,000     (25,000     (75,000      
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     250,001       300,001       125,001       200,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      81  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® US Quality
Large Cap Index Fund
    FlexShares® STOXX® US
ESG Impact Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 1,048,649     $ 1,264,749     $ 1,203,766     $ 768,820  

Net realized gain (loss)

     1,168,558       1,892,186       (2,609,895     440,710  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     2,315,780       137,256       8,424,199       4,833,562  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     4,532,987       3,294,191       7,018,070       6,043,092  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (976,050     (1,241,265     (1,145,374     (688,327

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (976,050     (1,241,265     (1,145,374     (688,327
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     27,538,152       25,305,729       28,636,289       25,211,577  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (10,423,258     (38,046,783     (1,481,524     (3,488,613
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     17,114,894       (12,741,054     27,154,765       21,722,964  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     20,671,831       (10,688,128     33,027,461       27,077,729  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 51,170,609     $ 61,858,737     $ 56,024,110     $ 28,946,381  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 71,842,440     $ 51,170,609     $ 89,051,571     $ 56,024,110  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     1,475,001       1,850,001       775,001       450,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     850,000       775,000       375,000       375,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (300,000     (1,150,000     (25,000     (50,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     2,025,001       1,475,001       1,125,001       775,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

82    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

 

     FlexShares® STOXX®
Global ESG Impact Index
Fund
    FlexShares® Morningstar
Global Upstream Natural
Resources Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 1,657,054     $ 1,690,280     $ 119,595,799     $ 185,800,926  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (1,568,609     (1,069,111     (39,761,254     (121,979,135

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     6,374,388       9,380,772       (779,563,599     97,960,307  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     6,462,833       10,001,941       (699,729,054     161,782,098  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (1,663,474     (1,626,069     (122,625,164     (190,017,355

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (1,663,474     (1,626,069     (122,625,164     (190,017,355
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     14,933,528       19,292,286       8,825,295       336,876,123  

Cost of shares redeemed

           (9,361,860     (1,771,946,391     (234,222,804
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     14,933,528       9,930,426       (1,763,121,096     102,653,319  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     19,732,887       18,306,298       (2,585,475,314     74,418,062  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 91,590,405     $ 73,284,107     $ 5,510,201,122     $ 5,435,783,060  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 111,323,292     $ 91,590,405     $ 2,924,725,808     $ 5,510,201,122  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     900,001       800,001       175,500,001       172,500,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     150,000       200,000       250,000       10,700,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

           (100,000     (66,250,000     (7,700,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     1,050,001       900,001       109,500,001       175,500,001  
  

 

 

 
(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      83  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® STOXX® Global
Broad Infrastructure Index Fund
    FlexShares® Global Quality
Real Estate Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 42,348,376     $ 28,533,152     $ 8,457,554     $ 9,162,306  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (51,372,425     (15,162,565     (20,467,829     (3,993,200

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (114,928,084     162,508,711       (76,869,427     49,485,461  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (123,952,133     175,879,298       (88,879,702     54,654,567  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (40,390,855     (26,640,580     (14,558,175     (9,305,846

Tax return of capital

                 (168,159      
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (40,390,855     (26,640,580     (14,726,334     (9,305,846
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     660,871,183       554,428,651       85,130,549       55,583,944  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (116,962,142           (93,214,545      
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     543,909,041       554,428,651       (8,083,996     55,583,944  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     379,566,053       703,667,369       (111,690,032     100,932,665  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 1,477,030,124     $ 773,362,755     $ 376,264,397     $ 275,331,732  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 1,856,596,177     $ 1,477,030,124     $ 264,574,365     $ 376,264,397  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     28,100,001       17,150,001       5,650,001       4,750,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     13,400,000       10,950,000       1,450,000       900,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (2,900,000           (1,900,000      
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     38,600,001       28,100,001       5,200,001       5,650,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

84    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Real Assets
Allocation Index Fund
    FlexShares® Quality Dividend
Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 278,087     $ 304,460     $ 41,042,206     $ 47,844,240  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (288,406     372,297       63,818,614       60,035,237  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (1,066,621     1,224,066       (185,641,841     29,374,282  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (1,076,940     1,900,823       (80,781,021     137,253,759  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (278,767     (306,154     (51,028,755     (67,157,435

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (278,767     (306,154     (51,028,755     (67,157,435
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

           2,204,805       147,107,228       114,588,613  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (5,503,899     (6,325,152     (457,464,822     (236,448,686
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (5,503,899     (4,120,347     (310,357,594     (121,860,073
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (6,859,606     (2,525,678     (442,167,370     (51,763,749
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 11,361,335     $ 13,887,013     $ 1,707,343,975     $ 1,759,107,724  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 4,501,729     $ 11,361,335     $ 1,265,176,605     $ 1,707,343,975  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     375,001       525,001       36,850,001       39,500,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

           75,000       3,250,000       2,700,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (200,000     (225,000     (10,950,000     (5,350,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     175,001       375,001       29,150,001       36,850,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      85  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Quality
Dividend Defensive Index
Fund
    FlexShares® Quality
Dividend Dynamic Index
Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 12,604,759     $ 10,383,032     $ 844,204     $ 1,436,326  

Net realized gain (loss)

     9,870,639       2,570,078       2,220,861       2,578,750  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (42,112,077     28,119,545       (6,207,406     2,720,385  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (19,636,679     41,072,655       (3,142,341     6,735,461  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (16,131,191     (22,292,740     (962,948     (1,341,578

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (16,131,191     (22,292,740     (962,948     (1,341,578
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     120,783,417       112,091,834             15,702,806  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (124,805,477           (35,021,933     (13,094,067
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (4,022,060     112,091,834       (35,021,933     2,608,739  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (39,789,930     130,871,749       (39,127,222     8,002,622  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 450,962,724     $ 320,090,975     $ 52,308,041     $ 44,305,419  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 411,172,794     $ 450,962,724     $ 13,180,819     $ 52,308,041  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     9,750,001       7,200,001       1,150,001       1,050,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     2,800,000       2,550,000             400,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (2,900,000           (850,000     (300,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     9,650,001       9,750,001       300,001       1,150,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

86    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® International
Quality Dividend Index Fund
    FlexShares® International
Quality Dividend Defensive
Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 21,426,092     $ 38,093,068     $ 2,469,326     $ 4,333,281  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (49,578,473     (66,570,980     (6,127,777     (5,826,629

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (36,850,169     79,278,653       (2,835,580     8,174,047  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (65,002,550     50,800,741       (6,494,031     6,680,699  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (22,159,155     (38,665,442     (2,523,077     (4,343,474

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (22,159,155     (38,665,442     (2,523,077     (4,343,474
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     9,495,567       167,508,000       3,677,673       20,897,031  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (243,541,907     (170,125,412     (13,975,686     (32,218,082
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (234,046,340     (2,617,412     (10,298,013     (11,321,051
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (321,208,045     9,517,887       (19,315,121     (8,983,826
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 774,684,626     $ 765,166,739     $ 78,718,855     $ 87,702,681  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 453,476,581     $ 774,684,626     $ 59,403,734     $ 78,718,855  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     33,600,001       34,200,001       3,600,001       4,100,001  

Shares issued

                        

Shares issued in-kind

     400,000       7,200,000       200,000       1,000,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (11,500,000     (7,800,000     (700,000     (1,500,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     22,500,001       33,600,001       3,100,001       3,600,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      87  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® International
Quality Dividend Dynamic
Index Fund
    FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year
Target Duration TIPS Index
Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 925,989     $ 1,951,820     $ 16,808,449     $ 24,889,422  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (878,854     (5,849,376     12,155,953       (7,527,589

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (3,322,029     7,149,801       42,400,460       50,089,357  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     (3,274,894     3,252,245       71,364,862       67,451,190  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (952,482     (2,113,234     (12,627,726     (25,965,622

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (952,482     (2,113,234     (12,627,726     (25,965,622
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     10,025,244       11,826,312       343,216,451       54,204,646  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (30,812,569     (29,055,029     (151,185,194     (558,578,038
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     (20,787,325     (17,228,717     192,031,257       (504,373,392
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     (25,014,701     (16,089,706     250,768,393       (462,887,824
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 47,391,023     $ 63,480,729     $ 1,178,722,214     $ 1,641,610,038  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 22,376,322     $ 47,391,023     $ 1,429,490,607     $ 1,178,722,214  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     1,900,001       2,700,001       47,954,000       68,954,000  

Shares issued

                 350,000        

Shares issued in-kind

     400,000       500,000       13,350,000       2,250,000  

Shares redeemed

                        

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (1,300,000     (1,300,000     (6,100,000     (23,250,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     1,000,001       1,900,001       55,554,000       47,954,000  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

88    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year
Target Duration TIPS Index
Fund
    FlexShares® Disciplined
Duration MBS Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 7,386,692     $ 11,199,560     $ 1,028,489     $ 1,397,033  

Net realized gain (loss)

     9,689,662       (4,759,734     348,869       (91,883

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     25,429,146       43,952,592       1,683,407       2,642,747  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     42,505,500       50,392,418       3,060,765       3,947,897  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (5,908,902     (11,908,603     (1,754,929     (1,969,840

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (5,908,902     (11,908,603     (1,754,929     (1,969,840
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     119,287,446       66,398,177       66,955,234       11,597,196  

Cost of shares redeemed

     (116,973,562     (451,724,487     (3,570,206     (49,873,216
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     2,313,884       (385,326,310     63,385,028       (38,276,020
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     38,910,482       (346,842,495     64,690,864       (36,297,963
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 557,184,728     $ 904,027,223     $ 35,329,621     $ 71,627,584  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 596,095,210     $ 557,184,728     $ 100,020,485     $ 35,329,621  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     21,850,001       37,750,001       1,500,001       3,150,001  

Shares issued

                 2,800,000       500,000  

Shares issued in-kind

     4,450,000       2,700,000              

Shares redeemed

                 (150,000     (2,150,000

Shares redeemed in-kind

     (4,500,000     (18,600,000            
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     21,800,001       21,850,001       4,150,001       1,500,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      89  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Credit-Scored
US Corporate Bond Index
Fund
    FlexShares® Credit-Scored
US Long Corporate Bond
Index Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 3,543,318     $ 2,939,612     $ 1,108,090     $ 951,493  

Net realized gain (loss)

     2,972,745       1,212,835       1,951,533       885,293  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     3,098,927       6,097,066       168,819       3,495,491  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     9,614,990       10,249,513       3,228,442       5,332,277  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (3,976,789     (2,860,050     (1,038,434     (997,024

Tax return of capital

                        
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (3,976,789     (2,860,050     (1,038,434     (997,024
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     99,484,140       46,878,290       26,818,282        

Cost of shares redeemed

           (17,728,455           (13,407,104
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     99,484,140       29,149,835       26,818,282       (13,407,104
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     105,122,341       36,539,298       29,008,290       (9,071,851
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 97,275,068     $ 60,735,770     $ 17,352,121     $ 26,423,972  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 202,397,409     $ 97,275,068     $ 46,360,411     $ 17,352,121  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     1,850,001       1,250,001       300,001       550,001  

Shares issued

     1,850,000       950,000       450,000        

Shares issued in-kind

                        

Shares redeemed

           (350,000           (200,000

Shares redeemed in-kind

                       (50,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     3,700,001       1,850,001       750,001       300,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

90    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® High Yield
Value-Scored Bond Index
Fund
    FlexShares® Ready Access
Variable Income Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
    Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 10,800,929     $ 2,526,915     $ 4,996,263     $ 6,748,271  

Net realized gain (loss)

     (4,005,108     (702,418     169,631       (15,793

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     (1,237,194     996,832       1,872,649       1,260,684  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     5,558,627       2,821,329       7,038,543       7,993,162  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (9,992,636     (3,203,781     (5,325,015     (6,639,458

Tax return of capital

           (826,269            
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (9,992,636     (4,030,050     (5,325,015     (6,639,458
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     93,576,705       86,540,196       218,827,724       139,613,701  

Cost of shares redeemed

           (33,696,222     (26,436,867     (77,220,187
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     93,576,705       52,843,974       192,390,857       62,393,514  
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     89,142,696       51,635,253       194,104,385       63,747,218  
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 100,480,239     $ 48,844,986     $ 275,096,899     $ 211,349,681  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 189,622,935     $ 100,480,239     $ 469,201,284     $ 275,096,899  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     2,100,001       1,000,001       3,625,001       2,800,001  

Shares issued

     2,000,000       1,800,000       2,875,000       1,850,000  

Shares issued in-kind

                        

Shares redeemed

                 (350,000     (325,000

Shares redeemed in-kind

           (700,000           (700,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     4,100,001       2,100,001       6,150,001       3,625,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      91  


Table of Contents

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (cont.)

 

 

     FlexShares® Core Select
Bond Fund
 
     Year Ended
October 31,
2020
    Year Ended
October 31,
2019
 

OPERATIONS

 

Net investment income (loss)

   $ 1,184,248     $ 993,328  

Net realized gain (loss)

     770,397       604,900  

Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)

     1,203,701       1,964,341  
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

     3,158,346       3,562,569  
  

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

 

Distributable earnings

     (1,218,108     (998,241

Tax return of capital

            
  

 

 

 

Total distributions

     (1,218,108     (998,241
  

 

 

 

CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS(1)

 

Proceeds from shares issued

     80,884,377       14,123,739  

Cost of shares redeemed

           (28,972,275
  

 

 

 

Net Increase (Decrease) from Capital Transactions

     80,884,377       (14,848,536
  

 

 

 

Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

     82,824,615       (12,284,208
  

 

 

 

NET ASSETS

 

Beginning of Period

   $ 26,298,691     $ 38,582,899  
  

 

 

 

End of Period

   $ 109,123,306     $ 26,298,691  
  

 

 

 

SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning of period

     1,025,001       1,625,001  

Shares issued

            

Shares issued in-kind

     3,050,000       575,000  

Shares redeemed

            

Shares redeemed in-kind

           (1,175,000
  

 

 

 

Shares Outstanding, End of Period

     4,075,001       1,025,001  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)  

Capital transactions may include transaction fees associated with creation and redemption transactions which occurred during the period. See Note 9 to the Financial Statements.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

92    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


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FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      93  


Table of Contents

 

FlexShares® Trust

Financial Highlights

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 40.44     $ 0.64 (a)    $ 0.38     $ 1.02     $ (0.53   $     $     $ (0.53

For the period 07/15/19* through 10/31/19

    40.00       0.17 (a)      0.35       0.52       (0.08                 (0.08

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    25.60       0.64 (a)      (2.22     (1.58     (0.54                 (0.54

For the period 07/15/19* through 10/31/19

    25.00       0.16 (a)      0.53       0.69       (0.09                 (0.09

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    24.94       0.56 (a)      (0.91     (0.35     (0.64                 (0.64

For the period 07/15/19* through 10/31/19

    25.00       0.23 (a)      (0.18     0.05       (0.11                 (0.11

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    119.52       2.10 (a)      1.60       3.70       (2.11                 (2.11

Year ended October 31, 2019

    110.13       1.95 (a)      9.33       11.28       (1.89                 (1.89

Year ended October 31, 2018

    107.50       2.02 (a)      2.59       4.61       (1.98                 (1.98

Year ended October 31, 2017

    88.32       1.74 (a)      19.13       20.87       (1.69                 (1.69

Year ended October 31, 2016

    87.02       1.65 (a)      2.33       3.98       (2.68                 (2.68

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

94    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

  

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 40.93       2.63     2.60     0.23     0.22     1.55     1.56     47   $ 110,524  
 
    
40.44

 
    1.30       1.43       0.23       0.22       1.45       1.45       9       6,067  
               
  23.48       (6.24     (6.06     0.33       0.32       2.63       2.64       62       65,747  
 
    
25.60

 
    2.76       3.04       0.32       0.32       2.21       2.21       14       5,120  
               
  23.95       (1.41     (0.59     0.41       0.40       2.38       2.39       81       9,578  
 
    
24.94

 
    0.19       0.31       0.40       0.40       3.18       3.18       12       4,989  
               
  121.11       3.28       3.33       0.26       0.25       1.78       1.79       26       1,174,786  
  119.52       10.41       10.41       0.26       0.25       1.72       1.72       28       1,446,137  
  110.13       4.22       4.19       0.25       0.25       1.77       1.77       15       1,387,665  
  107.50       23.77       23.72       0.26       0.25       1.73       1.74       22       1,150,199  
  88.32       4.70       4.77       0.28       0.27       1.92       1.93       26       830,253  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      95  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 62.67     $ 1.31 (a)    $ (7.88   $ (6.57   $ (1.86   $     $     $ (1.86

Year ended October 31, 2019

    59.76       1.85 (a)      2.89       4.74       (1.83                 (1.83

Year ended October 31, 2018

    67.51       1.78 (a)      (7.39     (5.61     (2.14                 (2.14

Year ended October 31, 2017

    55.62       1.58 (a)      11.91 (k)      13.49       (1.60                 (1.60

Year ended October 31, 2016

    58.18       1.59 (a)      (1.55     0.04       (2.60                 (2.60

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    50.42       1.02 (a)      (1.97     (0.95     (1.42                 (1.42

Year ended October 31, 2019

    47.92       1.49 (a)      2.46       3.95       (1.45                 (1.45

Year ended October 31, 2018

    57.38       1.46 (a)      (9.34     (7.88     (1.58                 (1.58

Year ended October 31, 2017

    47.52       1.28 (a)      9.80       11.08       (1.22                 (1.22

Year ended October 31, 2016

    45.02       0.97 (a)      3.10       4.07       (1.57                 (1.57

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

96    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 54.24       (10.57 )%      (10.23 )%      0.40     0.39     2.28     2.28     21   $ 499,016  
  62.67       8.13       8.16       0.40       0.39       3.09       3.09       25       965,142  
  59.76       (8.61     (9.48     0.39       0.39       2.65       2.65       34       968,096  
  67.51       24.58 (k)      25.38       0.40       0.39       2.57       2.57       22       985,608  
  55.62       0.20       0.80       0.43       0.42       2.91       2.92       35       622,898  
  48.05       (1.86     (1.44     0.60       0.59       2.13       2.14       41       225,847  
  50.42       8.29       8.08       0.60       0.59       2.92       2.93       45       413,414  
  47.92       (14.05     (15.22     0.59       0.59       2.56       2.56       49       488,736  
  57.38       23.56       23.47       0.60       0.59       2.44       2.44       34       568,071  
  47.52       9.41       10.65       0.66       0.65       2.23       2.23       34       299,351  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      97  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 28.22     $ 0.87 (a)    $ (3.54   $ (2.67   $ (1.03   $     $     $ (1.03

Year ended October 31, 2019

    26.44       0.81 (a)      1.78       2.59       (0.81                 (0.81

Year ended October 31, 2018

    29.14       0.93 (a)      (2.53     (1.60     (0.78           (0.32     (1.10

Year ended October 31, 2017

    23.97       0.59 (a)      5.27       5.86       (0.69                 (0.69

For the period 11/09/15* through 10/31/16

    25.00       1.04 (a)      (0.96     0.08       (0.98           (0.13     (1.11

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    27.21       0.78 (a)      (0.02 )(g)      0.76       (0.78                 (0.78

Year ended October 31, 2019

    26.04       0.78 (a)      1.17       1.95       (0.78                 (0.78

Year ended October 31, 2018

    30.58       0.63 (a)      (4.35     (3.72     (0.79           (0.03     (0.82

Year ended October 31, 2017

    25.82       0.63 (a)      4.77       5.40       (0.64                 (0.64

For the period 11/09/15* through 10/31/16

    25.00       0.59 (a)      1.10       1.69       (0.87                 (0.87

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

98    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 24.52       (9.71 )%      (10.11 )%      0.45 %(i)      0.05 %(i)      2.92     3.32     11   $ 6,129  
  28.22       10.02       10.61       0.45 (i)      0.05 (i)      2.62       3.02       4       8,466  
  26.44       (5.73     (6.19     0.46 (i)      0.05 (i)      2.84       3.25       9       7,933  
  29.14       24.75       24.84       0.46 (i)      0.05 (i)      1.78       2.18       6       18,941  
 
    
23.97

 
    0.59       0.97       0.55 (i)      0.05 (i)      4.12       4.62       11       3,595  
  27.19       2.88       2.92       0.64 (i)      0.06 (i)      2.33       2.92       3       3,399  
  27.21       7.52       7.89       0.65 (i)      0.06 (i)      2.23       2.82       5       5,443  
  26.04       (12.40     (12.44     0.65 (i)      0.05 (i)      1.45       2.05       6       4,557  
  30.58       21.16       20.75       0.65 (i)      0.05 (i)      1.67       2.27       4       41,285  
 
    
25.82

 
    7.04       7.12       0.72 (i)      0.05 (i)      1.81       2.47       4       33,567  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      99  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 34.69     $ 0.62 (a)    $ 0.76     $ 1.38     $ (0.59   $     $     $ (0.59

Year ended October 31, 2019

    33.44       0.68 (a)      1.29       1.97       (0.72                 (0.72

Year ended October 31, 2018

    31.83       0.54 (a)      1.58       2.12       (0.51                 (0.51

Year ended October 31, 2017

    26.15       0.49 (a)      5.65       6.14       (0.46                 (0.46

Year ended October 31, 2016

    26.62       0.50 (a)      (0.47     0.03       (0.50                 (0.50

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    72.29       1.27 (a)      6.81       8.08       (1.21                 (1.21

Year ended October 31, 2019

    64.33       1.21 (a)      7.83       9.04       (1.08                 (1.08

Year ended October 31, 2018

    60.49       1.09 (a)      3.84       4.93       (1.09                 (1.09

Year ended October 31, 2017

    49.96       1.05 (a)      10.45       11.50       (0.97                 (0.97

For the period 07/13/16* through 10/31/16

    50.00       0.27 (a)      (0.15     0.12       (0.16                 (0.16

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

100    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 35.48       4.13     4.16     0.33     0.32     1.77     1.77     48   $ 71,842  
  34.69       6.04       6.01       0.33       0.32       2.04       2.05       69       51,171  
  33.44       6.63       6.30       0.33       0.32       1.56       1.57       94       61,859  
  31.83       23.65       24.08       0.34       0.32       1.65       1.67       64       27,055  
  26.15       0.12       0.12       0.38       0.32       1.87       1.93       59       6,538  
  79.16       11.40       11.45       0.33       0.32       1.67       1.68       66       89,052  
  72.29       14.21       14.26       0.33       0.32       1.78       1.79       75       56,024  
  64.33       8.13       7.97       0.33       0.32       1.66       1.67       110       28,946  
  60.49       23.19       23.30       0.35       0.32       1.82       1.85       67       13,610  
 
    
49.96

 
    0.24       0.28       0.37       0.32       1.75       1.80       20       4,996  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      101  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 101.77     $ 1.72 (a)    $ 4.26     $ 5.98     $ (1.73   $     $     $ (1.73

Year ended October 31, 2019

    91.61       2.05 (a)      10.12       12.17       (2.01                 (2.01

Year ended October 31, 2018

    91.97       1.95 (a)      (0.61     1.34       (1.70                 (1.70

Year ended October 31, 2017

    75.52       1.56 (a)      16.67 (k)      18.23       (1.78                 (1.78

For the period 07/13/16* through 10/31/16

    75.00       0.41 (a)      0.34       0.75       (0.23                 (0.23

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    31.40       0.89 (a)      (4.65     (3.76     (0.93                 (0.93

Year ended October 31, 2019

    31.51       1.08 (a)      (0.09     0.99       (1.10                 (1.10

Year ended October 31, 2018

    31.59       0.91 (a)      (0.13     0.78       (0.86                 (0.86

Year ended October 31, 2017

    27.40       0.70 (a)      4.13 (k)      4.83       (0.64                 (0.64

Year ended October 31, 2016

    25.52       0.55 (a)      2.73       3.28       (1.40                 (1.40

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

102    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 106.02       6.03     6.46     0.43     0.42     1.66     1.66     58   $ 111,323  
  101.77       13.49       12.96       0.43       0.42       2.15       2.16       66       91,590  
  91.61       1.38       1.71       0.43       0.42       2.03       2.04       78       73,284  
  91.97       24.37 (k)      24.55       0.45       0.42       1.81       1.83       64       32,189  
 
    
75.52

 
    1.00       1.03       0.45       0.42       1.74       1.77       22       7,552  
  26.71       (11.87     (11.46     0.47       0.46       3.03       3.04       29       2,924,726  
  31.40       3.16       3.06       0.47       0.46       3.40       3.41       24       5,510,201  
  31.51       2.33       2.01       0.46       0.46       2.72       2.72       30       5,435,783  
  31.59       17.81 (k)      17.97       0.47       0.46       2.36       2.36       18       4,760,397  
  27.40       13.84       14.05       0.49       0.48       2.20       2.20       18       2,822,012  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      103  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 52.56     $ 1.25 (a)    $ (4.53   $ (3.28   $ (1.18   $     $     $ (1.18

Year ended October 31, 2019

    45.09       1.35 (a)      7.34       8.69       (1.22                 (1.22

Year ended October 31, 2018

    47.85       1.36 (a)      (2.71     (1.35     (1.41                 (1.41

Year ended October 31, 2017

    43.49       1.37 (a)      4.40       5.77       (1.41                 (1.41

Year ended October 31, 2016

    43.30       1.34 (a)      (0.02 )(g)      1.32       (1.13                 (1.13

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    66.60       1.43 (a)      (14.62     (13.19     (2.50           (0.03     (2.53

Year ended October 31, 2019

    57.96       1.76 (a)      8.68       10.44       (1.80                 (1.80

Year ended October 31, 2018

    62.02       1.80 (a)      (3.99     (2.19     (1.87                 (1.87

Year ended October 31, 2017

    57.12       0.99 (a)      5.54       6.53       (1.63                 (1.63

Year ended October 31, 2016

    57.47       1.90 (a)      (0.58     1.32       (1.67                 (1.67

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

104    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 48.10       (6.23 )%      (5.93 )%      0.48     0.47     2.51     2.52     13   $ 1,856,596  
  52.56       19.52       19.99       0.48       0.47       2.73       2.74       12       1,477,030  
  45.09       (2.90     (3.25     0.47       0.47       2.88       2.89       13       773,363  
  47.85       13.44       13.23       0.48       0.47       2.97       2.98       12       875,628  
  43.49       3.09       3.26       0.48       0.47       3.09       3.10       14       669,676  
  50.88       (20.29     (20.40     0.46       0.45       2.53       2.54       56       264,574  
  66.60       18.37       18.65       0.46       0.45       2.80       2.81       53       376,264  
  57.96       (3.69     (3.95     0.46       0.45       2.92       2.92       61       275,332  
  62.02       11.71       11.71       0.46       0.45       1.67       1.67       64       244,970  
  57.12       2.28       2.44       0.46       0.45       3.26       3.27       57       197,049  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      105  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 30.30     $ 0.86 (a)    $ (4.58   $ (3.72   $ (0.86   $     $     $ (0.86

Year ended October 31, 2019

    26.45       0.76 (a)      3.85       4.61       (0.76                 (0.76

Year ended October 31, 2018

    28.08       0.80 (a)      (1.64     (0.84     (0.79     0.00 (h)            (0.79

Year ended October 31, 2017

    25.63       0.66 (a)      2.54       3.20       (0.75                 (0.75

For the period 11/23/15* through 10/31/16

    25.00       0.86 (a)      0.51 (g)      1.37       (0.74                 (0.74

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    46.33       1.24 (a)      (2.67     (1.43     (1.25     (0.25           (1.50

Year ended October 31, 2019

    44.53       1.24 (a)      2.29       3.53       (1.19     (0.54           (1.73

Year ended October 31, 2018

    42.57       1.20 (a)      1.98       3.18       (1.22                 (1.22

Year ended October 31, 2017

    37.11       1.23 (a)      5.43       6.66       (1.20                 (1.20

Year ended October 31, 2016

    35.99       1.23 (a)      1.03       2.26       (1.14                 (1.14

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

106    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 25.72       (12.45 )%      (12.54 )%      0.58 %(i)      0.11 %(i)      2.65     3.11     14   $ 4,502  
  30.30       17.69       17.72       0.58 (i)      0.11 (i)      2.22       2.69       4       11,361  
  26.45       (3.09     (3.32     0.59 (i)      0.11 (i)      2.39       2.87       5       13,887  
  28.08       12.73       13.05       0.65 (i)      0.11 (i)      1.88       2.42       11       6,318  
 
    
25.63

 
    5.56       5.60       0.72 (i)      0.11 (i)      3.03       3.64       11       1,282  
  43.40       (2.98     (2.98     0.38       0.37       2.79       2.79       75       1,265,177  
  46.33       8.45       8.52       0.38       0.37       2.80       2.81       95       1,707,344  
  44.53       7.42       7.40       0.37       0.37       2.64       2.64       76       1,759,108  
  42.57       18.10       18.03       0.38       0.37       3.00       3.00       89       1,815,665  
  37.11       6.41       6.43       0.38       0.37       3.38       3.38       85       1,438,149  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      107  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 46.25     $ 1.21 (a)    $ (3.28   $ (2.07   $ (1.21   $ (0.36   $     $ (1.57

Year ended October 31, 2019

    44.46       1.22 (a)      3.35       4.57       (1.14     (1.64           (2.78

Year ended October 31, 2018

    42.04       1.21 (a)      2.45       3.66       (1.24                 (1.24

Year ended October 31, 2017

    36.82       1.18 (a)      5.18       6.36       (1.14                 (1.14

Year ended October 31, 2016

    35.81       1.11 (a)      0.99       2.10       (1.09                 (1.09

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    45.49       1.33 (a)      (1.21     0.12       (1.67                 (1.67

Year ended October 31, 2019

    42.20       1.21 (a)      3.26       4.47       (1.18                 (1.18

Year ended October 31, 2018

    41.84       1.15 (a)      0.40       1.55       (1.19                 (1.19

Year ended October 31, 2017

    35.32       1.19 (a)      6.45       7.64       (1.12                 (1.12

Year ended October 31, 2016

    35.14       1.11 (a)      0.31 (g)      1.42       (1.24                 (1.24

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

108    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 42.61       (4.45 )%      (4.43 )%      0.38     0.37     2.77     2.77     76   $ 411,173  
  46.25       11.40       11.40       0.38       0.37       2.76       2.76       91       450,963  
  44.46       8.69       8.74       0.38       0.37       2.70       2.71       94       320,091  
  42.04       17.44       17.41       0.38       0.37       2.94       2.95       74       313,167  
  36.82       5.96       5.96       0.38       0.37       3.09       3.10       72       252,223  
  43.94       0.86       0.91       0.38       0.37       2.93       2.94       77       13,181  
  45.49       10.86       10.89       0.38       0.37       2.81       2.82       77       52,308  
  42.20       3.59       3.67       0.38       0.37       2.61       2.62       77       44,305  
  41.84       21.81       21.59       0.38       0.37       2.99       3.00       63       58,571  
  35.32       4.16       4.43       0.38       0.37       3.23       3.25       69       52,979  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      109  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 23.06     $ 0.79 (a)    $ (2.86   $ (2.07   $ (0.84   $     $     $ (0.84

Year ended October 31, 2019

    22.37       1.13 (a)      0.70       1.83       (1.14                 (1.14

Year ended October 31, 2018

    26.27       1.22 (a)      (3.86     (2.64     (1.26                 (1.26

Year ended October 31, 2017

    22.45       1.06 (a)      3.69       4.75       (0.93                 (0.93

Year ended October 31, 2016

    23.03       0.92 (a)      (0.68     0.24       (0.82                 (0.82

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    21.87       0.74 (a)      (2.70     (1.96     (0.75                 (0.75

Year ended October 31, 2019

    21.39       1.09 (a)      0.51       1.60       (1.12                 (1.12

Year ended October 31, 2018

    25.06       1.14 (a)      (3.54     (2.40     (1.27                 (1.27

Year ended October 31, 2017

    22.16       0.99 (a)      2.81       3.80       (0.90                 (0.90

Year ended October 31, 2016

    22.54       0.83 (a)      (0.35     0.48       (0.86                 (0.86

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

110    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 20.15       (8.94 )%      (8.93 )%      0.48     0.47     3.68     3.68     74   $ 453,477  
  23.06       8.41       9.09       0.48       0.47       4.98       4.98       71       774,685  
  22.37       (10.48     (11.30     0.47       0.47       4.77       4.78       71       765,167  
  26.27       21.50       21.80       0.48       0.47       4.27       4.28       69       979,701  
  22.45       1.16       2.05       0.48       0.47       4.17       4.18       68       496,050  
  19.16       (8.92     (8.88     0.48       0.47       3.65       3.66       75       59,404  
  21.87       7.66       8.12       0.48       0.47       5.02       5.03       63       78,719  
  21.39       (10.03     (10.91     0.48       0.47       4.68       4.68       69       87,703  
  25.06       17.45       17.69       0.48       0.47       4.18       4.19       72       95,217  
  22.16       2.24       3.39       0.48       0.47       3.78       3.79       73       77,561  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      111  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 24.94     $ 0.70 (a)    $ (2.45   $ (1.75   $ (0.81   $     $     $ (0.81

Year ended October 31, 2019

    23.51       1.05 (a)      1.52       2.57       (1.14                 (1.14

Year ended October 31, 2018

    27.82       1.32 (a)      (4.34     (3.02     (1.29                 (1.29

Year ended October 31, 2017

    23.47       1.11 (a)      4.08       5.19       (0.84                 (0.84

Year ended October 31, 2016

    23.82       0.83 (a)      (0.13     0.70       (0.98           (0.07     (1.05

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    24.58       0.33 (a)      1.09       1.42       (0.27                 (0.27

Year ended October 31, 2019

    23.81       0.46 (a)      0.79       1.25       (0.48                 (0.48

Year ended October 31, 2018

    24.60       0.68 (a)      (0.78     (0.10     (0.69                 (0.69

Year ended October 31, 2017

    24.82       0.37 (a)      (0.27     0.10       (0.32                 (0.32

Year ended October 31, 2016

    24.38       0.15 (a)      0.47       0.62       (0.16           (0.02     (0.18

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

112    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 22.38       (6.99 )%      (7.03 )%      0.48     0.47     2.90     2.91     85   $ 22,376  
  24.94       11.30       12.23       0.48       0.47       4.36       4.37       88       47,391  
  23.51       (11.34     (12.11     0.48       0.47       4.83       4.83       75       63,481  
  27.82       22.37       22.91       0.48       0.47       4.19       4.20       76       91,796  
  23.47       3.17       3.96       0.49       0.47       3.70       3.72       75       18,777  
  25.73       5.81       5.85       0.19       0.18       1.33       1.33       71       1,429,491  
  24.58       5.30       5.35       0.19       0.18       1.89       1.89       52       1,178,722  
  23.81       (0.41     (0.49     0.18       0.18       2.79       2.80       85       1,641,610  
  24.60       0.42       0.46       0.21       0.20       1.49       1.50       134       2,113,130  
  24.82       2.55       2.55       0.21       0.20       0.62       0.63       105       1,841,902  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      113  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 25.50     $ 0.36 (a)    $ 1.76     $ 2.12     $ (0.28   $     $     $ (0.28

Year ended October 31, 2019

    23.95       0.44 (a)      1.59       2.03       (0.48                 (0.48

Year ended October 31, 2018

    25.06       0.71 (a)      (1.08     (0.37     (0.74                 (0.74

Year ended October 31, 2017

    25.45       0.47 (a)      (0.45     0.02       (0.41                 (0.41

Year ended October 31, 2016

    24.56       0.30 (a)      0.88       1.18       (0.27           (0.02     (0.29

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    23.55       0.37 (a)      0.85       1.22       (0.67                 (0.67

Year ended October 31, 2019

    22.74       0.61 (a)      1.03       1.64       (0.83                 (0.83

Year ended October 31, 2018

    23.86       0.49 (a)      (0.88     (0.39     (0.73                 (0.73

Year ended October 31, 2017

    24.74       0.39 (a)      (0.50     (0.11     (0.77                 (0.77

Year ended October 31, 2016

    24.87       0.45 (a)      0.29       0.74       (0.87                 (0.87

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

114    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 27.34       8.39     8.47     0.19     0.18     1.35     1.35     66   $ 596,095  
  25.50       8.53       8.45       0.19       0.18       1.77       1.78       41       557,185  
  23.95       (1.51     (1.51     0.18       0.18       2.88       2.88       65       904,027  
  25.06       0.08       0.08       0.21       0.20       1.86       1.87       87       819,372  
  25.45       4.81       4.64       0.21       0.20       1.18       1.19       72       651,605  
  24.10       5.19       5.19       0.21       0.20       1.54       1.54       175       100,020  
  23.55       7.36       7.07       0.21       0.20       2.64       2.65       61       35,330  
  22.74       (1.65     (1.31     0.21       0.20       2.09       2.10       160       71,628  
  23.86       (0.44     (0.53     0.21       0.20       1.61       1.62       61       38,183  
  24.74       3.02       2.69       0.21       (j)      1.62       1.83 (j)      89       42,063  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      115  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 52.58     $ 1.32 (a)    $ 2.39     $ 3.71     $ (1.37   $ (0.22   $     $ (1.59

Year ended October 31, 2019

    48.59       1.63 (a)      3.94       5.57       (1.58                 (1.58

Year ended October 31, 2018

    50.98       1.40 (a)      (2.43     (1.03     (1.36                 (1.36

Year ended October 31, 2017

    51.49       1.26 (a)      (0.34     0.92       (1.23     (0.20           (1.43

Year ended October 31, 2016

    50.32       1.21 (a)      1.13       2.34       (1.17                 (1.17

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    57.84       1.99 (a)      3.90       5.89       (1.92                 (1.92

Year ended October 31, 2019

    48.04       2.11 (a)      9.89       12.00       (2.20                 (2.20

Year ended October 31, 2018

    53.88       2.07 (a)      (5.87     (3.80     (2.04                 (2.04

Year ended October 31, 2017

    53.83       2.06 (a)      0.74       2.80       (2.07     (0.68           (2.75

Year ended October 31, 2016

    50.29       2.14 (a)      3.56       5.70       (2.16                 (2.16

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

116    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 54.70       7.20     7.22     0.23     0.22     2.46     2.46     62   $ 202,397  
  52.58       11.66       11.56       0.23       0.22       3.20       3.21       65       97,275  
  48.59       (2.05     (2.23     0.23       0.22       2.83       2.84       76       60,736  
  50.98       1.85       1.99       0.23       0.22       2.48       2.49       65       50,982  
  51.49       4.71       4.70       0.24       0.22       2.34       2.36       59       36,041  
  61.81       10.34       10.57       0.23       0.22       3.27       3.28       74       46,360  
  57.84       25.57       25.51       0.23       0.22       4.06       4.07       44       17,352  
  48.04       (7.24     (7.86     0.23       0.22       4.05       4.06       93       26,424  
  53.88       5.58       4.25       0.24       0.22       3.92       3.94       91       18,858  
  53.83       11.60       12.75       0.25       0.22       4.01       4.04       80       13,457  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      117  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 47.85     $ 3.12 (a)    $ (1.77   $ 1.35     $ (2.95   $     $     $ (2.95

Year ended October 31, 2019

    48.84       2.67 (a)      0.78       3.45       (3.57           (0.87     (4.44

For the period 07/17/18* through 10/31/18

    50.00       1.68 (a)      (1.60     0.08       (1.24                 (1.24

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

    75.89       1.07 (a)      0.57       1.64       (1.23     (0.01           (1.24

Year ended October 31, 2019

    75.48       1.98 (a)      0.41       2.39       (1.98                 (1.98

Year ended October 31, 2018

    75.61       1.58 (a)      (0.24     1.34       (1.47                 (1.47

Year ended October 31, 2017

    75.56       0.89 (a)      0.00 (h)      0.89       (0.84                 (0.84

Year ended October 31, 2016

    75.36       0.65 (a)      0.23       0.88       (0.63     (0.05           (0.68

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

118    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 46.25       3.07     3.12     0.38     0.37     6.78     6.78     95   $ 189,623  
  47.85       7.48       7.64       0.38       0.37       5.56       5.57       44       100,480  
 
    
48.84

 
    0.13       0.13       0.38       0.37       11.56       11.57       18       48,845  
  76.29       2.18       2.17       0.26       0.25       1.41       1.41       79       469,201  
  75.89       3.21       3.18       0.26       0.25       2.61       2.62       73       275,097  
  75.48       1.80       1.91       0.26       0.25       2.09       2.10       131       211,350  
  75.61       1.18       1.06       0.26       0.25       1.17       1.18       71       162,557  
  75.56       1.19       1.18       0.26       0.25       0.86       0.87       59       109,564  

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      119  


Table of Contents

 

 

Financial Highlights (cont.)

 

 

          PER SHARE  
          Investment Operations     Distributions  
    Net asset
value,
beginning of
period
    Net
Investment
Income
    Net Realized
and
Unrealized
Gain (Loss)
    Total from
Operations
    Net
Investment
Income
    From Net
Realized
Gains
    Tax return of
capital
    Total  

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund

               

Year ended October 31, 2020

  $ 25.66     $ 0.51 (a)    $ 1.19     $ 1.70     $ (0.58   $     $     $ (0.58

Year ended October 31, 2019

    23.74       0.73 (a)      1.93       2.66       (0.74                 (0.74

Year ended October 31, 2018

    25.08       0.63 (a)      (1.31     (0.68     (0.66                 (0.66

For the period 11/18/16* through 10/31/17

    25.00       0.55 (a)      0.15       0.70       (0.62                 (0.62

 

*

Commencement of investment operations.

 

(a)

Net investment income per share is based on average shares outstanding.

 

(b)

Not annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(c)

Annualized for periods less than one year.

 

(d)

Net asset value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at adjusted net asset value.

 

(e)

Market value total return is calculated assuming an initial investment made at the market value at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions at net asset value during the period and redemption on the last day of the period at market value. Market value is determined by the mid point of the bid/ask spread at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time from the primary listing exchange. Market value returns may vary from net asset value returns.

 

(f)

In-kind transactions are not included in portfolio turnover calculations.

 

(g)

The amount shown for a share outstanding throughout the period is directionally inconsistent with aggregate net realized and unrealized gain (loss) for the period as presented in the financial statements.

 

(h)

Per share amount is less than $0.005.

 

(i)

The Fund indirectly bears its proportionate share of fees and expenses incurred by the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund is invested. This ratio does not include these indirect fees and expenses.

 

(j)

The Expenses net of reimbursements and Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement ratios include a voluntary reimbursement of advisory fees made by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Absent this additional reimbursement, Expenses net of reimbursements would have increased by 0.20% and the Net investment Income (Loss) net of reimbursement would have decreased by 0.20%.

 

(k)

Northern Trust Investments, Inc. reimbursed the Funds for losses incurred related to an error. The impact was an increase of $0.02 to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share and an increase of 0.06% to the total return of the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund. For the FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, the impact to the net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments per share amount is less than $0.005 and the total returns are less than 0.005%. Had these reimbursements not been made, the total returns would have been lower.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

120    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

    RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA  
      Total Return(b)     Ratios to Average Net Assets(c)     Supplemental Data  
Net Asset
Value,
end of
period
    Net  Asset
Value
(d)
    Market Value
(Unaudited)
(e)
    Expenses     Expenses net of
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income before
reimbursements
    Net investment
Income net of
reimbursements
    Portfolio
Turnover
Rate
(b)(f)
    Net assets, end
of period
(thousands)
 
               
$ 26.78       6.69     6.57     0.36 %(i)      0.20 %(i)      1.76     1.93     91   $ 109,123  
  25.66       11.38       11.41       0.36 (i)      0.19 (i)      2.80       2.97       135       26,299  
  23.74       (2.73     (2.92     0.36 (i)      0.16 (i)      2.41       2.61       53       38,583  
 
    
25.08

 
    2.86       3.19       0.43 (i)      0.16 (i)      2.08       2.35       99       3,762  

 

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      121  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.7%       
Aerospace & Defense – 1.6%       

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    4,428     $ 1,550,376  

Northrop Grumman Corp.

    432       125,202  

Teledyne Technologies, Inc.*

    162       50,082  
              1,725,660  
Air Freight & Logistics – 1.6%       

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.

    9,612       849,989  

Expeditors International of Washington, Inc.

    10,476       925,764  
              1,775,753  
Banks – 0.9%       

Commerce Bancshares, Inc.

    10,098       628,601  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    3,186       312,355  
              940,956  
Beverages – 3.3%       

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    42,390       2,037,263  

PepsiCo, Inc.

    12,258       1,633,869  
              3,671,132  
Biotechnology – 1.7%       

Amgen, Inc.

    1,620       351,443  

Biogen, Inc.*

    2,052       517,247  

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    1,944       1,056,681  
              1,925,371  
Capital Markets – 1.8%       

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.

    7,560       713,664  

Nasdaq, Inc.

    5,670       686,013  

S&P Global, Inc.

    1,728       557,678  
              1,957,355  
Chemicals – 0.6%       

Ecolab, Inc.

    3,888       713,798  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 1.3%  

Cintas Corp.

    270       84,929  

Republic Services, Inc.

    7,344       647,520  

Tetra Tech, Inc.

    6,264       632,100  

Waste Management, Inc.

    270       29,136  
              1,393,685  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Consumer Finance – 0.5%       

Credit Acceptance Corp.*

    1,890     $ 563,447  
Distributors – 0.9%  

Pool Corp.

    2,808       982,323  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.3%  

Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., Class B*

    1,566       316,175  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 6.3%  

AT&T, Inc.

    67,554       1,825,309  

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.

    13,014       726,181  

Liberty Global plc, Class C*

    10,422       194,475  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    73,278       4,176,113  
              6,922,078  
Electric Utilities – 4.8%  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

    7,614       684,727  

Duke Energy Corp.

    378       34,818  

Eversource Energy

    7,992       697,462  

IDACORP, Inc.

    7,776       682,188  

NextEra Energy, Inc.

    17,280       1,265,069  

Pinnacle West Capital Corp.

    8,586       700,360  

Portland General Electric Co.

    13,230       519,939  

Xcel Energy, Inc.

    10,152       710,944  
              5,295,507  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.6%  

Dolby Laboratories, Inc., Class A

    8,694       652,746  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 5.2%  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    4,374       608,555  

Camden Property Trust

    5,562       513,039  

Crown Castle International Corp.

    3,456       539,827  

Equinix, Inc.

    281       205,478  

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc.

    12,582       744,729  

Essex Property Trust, Inc.

    3,078       629,728  

Extra Space Storage, Inc.

    648       75,136  

Federal Realty Investment Trust

    4,050       278,559  

Life Storage, Inc.

    3,996       456,143  

National Retail Properties, Inc.

    4,806       153,840  

Public Storage

    4,536       1,039,061  

Realty Income Corp.

    8,532       493,662  
              5,737,757  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

122    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Food & Staples Retailing – 4.0%       

Casey’s General Stores, Inc.

    3,402     $ 573,475  

Costco Wholesale Corp.

    1,458       521,410  

Kroger Co. (The)

    1,512       48,701  

Sysco Corp.

    11,664       645,136  

Walmart, Inc.

    18,900       2,622,375  
              4,411,097  
Food Products – 2.1%       

Hershey Co. (The)

    6,264       861,049  

Hormel Foods Corp.

    12,204       594,213  

J M Smucker Co. (The)

    1,404       157,529  

Kellogg Co.

    2,268       142,634  

McCormick & Co., Inc. (Non-Voting)

    3,294       594,600  
              2,350,025  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.7%  

Stryker Corp.

    3,996       807,232  
Health Care Providers & Services – 1.5%  

Chemed Corp.

    1,296       619,903  

Encompass Health Corp.

    7,830       480,057  

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

    4,158       507,858  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    216       65,910  
              1,673,728  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.7%  

Domino’s Pizza, Inc.

    1,944       735,454  
Household Durables – 0.7%  

Helen of Troy Ltd.*

    4,050       767,880  
Household Products – 1.4%  

Clorox Co. (The)

    3,942       816,980  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    270       37,017  

WD-40 Co.

    2,916       709,696  
              1,563,693  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.0%  

Honeywell International, Inc.

    6,588       1,086,691  
Insurance – 4.8%  

Alleghany Corp.

    771       421,683  

Allstate Corp. (The)

    8,586       762,007  

American Financial Group, Inc.

    5,778       433,003  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Insurance – (continued)  

Arthur J Gallagher & Co.

    2,700     $ 280,017  

Chubb Ltd.

    5,400       701,514  

Fidelity National Financial, Inc.

    3,348       104,759  

First American Financial Corp.

    5,940       264,865  

Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (The)

    6,804       650,871  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    432       39,701  

Travelers Cos., Inc. (The)

    7,722       932,123  

W R Berkley Corp.

    11,934       717,472  
              5,308,015  
Interactive Media & Services – 2.4%  

Alphabet, Inc., Class A*

    441       712,705  

Alphabet, Inc., Class C*

    502       813,747  

Facebook, Inc., Class A*

    4,104       1,079,803  
              2,606,255  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 3.7%  

Amazon.com, Inc.*

    1,150       3,491,573  

Chewy, Inc., Class A*

    9,234       568,814  
              4,060,387  
IT Services – 9.7%  

Accenture plc, Class A

    7,830       1,698,405  

Automatic Data Processing, Inc.

    1,998       315,604  

Genpact Ltd.

    21,276       731,256  

Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.

    2,592       384,264  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    14,094       4,068,092  

Visa, Inc., Class A

    17,550       3,189,011  

Wix.com Ltd.*

    1,566       387,303  
              10,773,935  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 1.5%  

ICON plc*

    4,698       847,049  

QIAGEN NV*

    17,388       824,887  
              1,671,936  
Media – 1.6%  

Cable One, Inc.

    324       561,122  

Charter Communications, Inc., Class A*

    2,085       1,258,965  
              1,820,087  
Metals & Mining – 1.4%  

Newmont Corp.

    15,930       1,001,041  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      123  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Royal Gold, Inc.

    4,482     $ 532,507  
              1,533,548  
Multiline Retail – 1.2%  

Target Corp.

    8,856       1,348,060  
Multi-Utilities – 2.0%  

CMS Energy Corp.

    6,912       437,737  

Consolidated Edison, Inc.

    7,236       567,954  

NorthWestern Corp.

    3,780       197,051  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    10,584       1,064,221  
              2,266,963  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 0.7%  

Chevron Corp.

    10,260       713,070  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    2,268       73,982  
              787,052  
Pharmaceuticals – 9.7%  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    15,228       1,986,645  

Johnson & Johnson

    36,234       4,968,044  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    44,712       3,362,790  

Pfizer, Inc.

    2,052       72,805  

Zoetis, Inc.

    1,890       299,659  
              10,689,943  
Professional Services – 0.7%  

Verisk Analytics, Inc.

    4,104       730,389  
Road & Rail – 0.8%  

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.

    4,752       904,638  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 0.3%  

NXP Semiconductors NV

    2,106       284,563  
Software – 7.6%  

Adobe, Inc.*

    216       96,574  

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.*

    7,182       815,588  

Globant SA*

    3,510       633,941  

Intuit, Inc.

    1,188       373,840  

J2 Global, Inc.*

    9,504       645,131  

Microsoft Corp.

    20,844       4,220,285  

Tyler Technologies, Inc.*

    972       373,617  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Software – (continued)  

Zoom Video Communications, Inc., Class A*

    2,646     $ 1,219,568  
              8,378,544  
Specialty Retail – 2.3%  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    5,346       1,425,832  

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc.*

    1,836       801,598  

Ross Stores, Inc.

    3,996       340,339  
              2,567,769  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 5.2%  

Apple, Inc.

    52,920       5,760,871  
Water Utilities – 0.6%  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    4,644       698,968  
TOTAL COMMON STOCKS
(Cost $108,797,719)
            110,161,466  
    Principal
Amount
       
SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS – 0.0%(a)  
U.S. TREASURY OBLIGATIONS – 0.0%(a)  

U.S. Treasury Bills 0.12%, 1/28/2021(b) (c)
(Cost $44,987)

    45,000       44,991  
Total Investments – 99.7%
(Cost $108,842,706)

 

    110,206,457  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.3%

 

    317,081  
Net Assets – 100.0%

 

  $ 110,523,538  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(b) 

All or a portion of the security pledged as collateral for Futures Contracts.

 

(c) 

The rate shown was the current yield as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

124    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 5,589,912  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (4,238,019

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 1,351,893  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 108,848,515  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

     Number of
Contracts
    

Expiration

Date

     Trading
Currency
     Notional
Amount
     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

  

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

     2        12/18/2020        USD      $ 326,470      $ (6,049

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      125  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.9%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.2%  

Thales SA

    2,016     $ 131,225  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.4%  

SG Holdings Co. Ltd.

    11,200       269,447  
Auto Components – 0.1%  

Bridgestone Corp.

    2,800       90,798  
Automobiles – 0.3%  

Toyota Motor Corp.

    2,800       182,212  
Banks – 7.9%  

Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM

    86,296       409,112  

Bank of Nova Scotia (The)

    16,744       695,077  

BNP Paribas SA*

    420       14,606  

BOC Hong Kong Holdings Ltd.

    196,000       543,402  

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

    24,388       1,182,069  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.

    36,400       559,505  

Royal Bank of Canada

    13,888       970,343  

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Class A*

    2,688       23,041  

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc.

    16,800       462,988  

Swedbank AB, Class A*

    2,632       41,249  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

    6,440       283,904  
              5,185,296  
Beverages – 1.0%  

Carlsberg A/S, Class B

    588       74,426  

Diageo plc

    11,312       365,514  

Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd.

    5,600       192,845  

Thai Beverage PCL

    117,600       49,951  
              682,736  
Biotechnology – 0.1%  

BeiGene Ltd.*

    2,800       62,139  
Capital Markets – 0.8%  

Deutsche Boerse AG

    3,612       531,610  
Chemicals – 3.2%  

Air Liquide SA

    6,496       949,642  

Akzo Nobel NV

    3,388       326,376  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Givaudan SA (Registered)

    140     $ 570,662  

Symrise AG

    2,128       262,381  
              2,109,061  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 1.7%  

Brambles Ltd.

    53,116       357,714  

Secom Co. Ltd.

    6,300       530,022  

Securitas AB, Class B*

    13,776       194,928  
              1,082,664  
Communications Equipment – 0.2%  

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Class B

    13,664       152,403  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.0%(a)  

Sofina SA

    84       21,820  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 5.8%  

BCE, Inc.

    12,768       512,693  

Deutsche Telekom AG (Registered)

    37,856       576,342  

Elisa OYJ

    9,352       460,149  

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization SA

    17,528       233,168  

HKT Trust & HKT Ltd.

    364,000       470,322  

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp.

    22,400       470,541  

Proximus SADP

    11,480       223,254  

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd.

    176,400       262,242  

Spark New Zealand Ltd.

    8,904       26,422  

Swisscom AG (Registered)

    1,036       527,071  

Telia Co. AB

    7,112       27,262  
              3,789,466  
Electric Utilities – 4.5%  

Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.

    22,400       251,020  

CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd.

    98,000       461,260  

CLP Holdings Ltd.

    56,000       514,878  

Emera, Inc.

    4,312       171,885  

Fortis, Inc.

    6,468       255,305  

Hydro One Ltd.(b)

    10,052       219,457  

Iberdrola SA

    71,820       847,053  

Power Assets Holdings Ltd.

    42,000       215,826  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

126    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electric Utilities – (continued)  

Red Electrica Corp. SA

    2,464     $ 43,411  
              2,980,095  
Electrical Equipment – 0.7%  

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

    2,716       463,612  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.2%  

Hamamatsu Photonics KK

    2,800       140,348  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.6%  

Derwent London plc

    3,864       132,798  

Japan Real Estate Investment Corp.

    28       137,134  

Nippon Building Fund, Inc.

    28       141,419  
              411,351  
Food & Staples Retailing – 6.6%  

Etablissements Franz Colruyt NV

    8,624       510,521  

ICA Gruppen AB

    11,004       520,830  

Kesko OYJ, Class B

    11,172       287,082  

Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV

    21,728       597,060  

Loblaw Cos. Ltd.

    4,732       235,367  

Metro, Inc.

    6,496       302,791  

Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd.

    14,000       425,732  

Tesco plc

    177,324       471,170  

Tsuruha Holdings, Inc.

    2,800       391,582  

Woolworths Group Ltd.

    22,848       612,277  
              4,354,412  
Food Products – 5.5%  

MEIJI Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,800       202,487  

Nestle SA (Registered)

    27,580       3,102,393  

Tate & Lyle plc

    11,368       87,487  

Yamazaki Baking Co. Ltd.

    14,000       229,807  
              3,622,174  
Gas Utilities – 2.3%  

Enagas SA

    5,488       118,457  

Osaka Gas Co. Ltd.

    14,000       265,429  

Toho Gas Co. Ltd.

    11,200       577,463  

Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd.

    25,200       570,218  
              1,531,567  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 3.2%  

Asahi Intecc Co. Ltd.

    8,400     $ 259,939  

Carl Zeiss Meditec AG

    140       18,085  

Coloplast A/S, Class B

    3,864       563,931  

ConvaTec Group plc(b)

    44,156       103,168  

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd.

    2,688       62,178  

Hoya Corp.

    5,600       632,103  

Siemens Healthineers AG(b)

    4,480       192,329  

Sysmex Corp.

    2,800       262,483  
              2,094,216  
Health Care Providers & Services – 0.5%  

Medipal Holdings Corp.

    2,800       49,872  

Sonic Healthcare Ltd.

    10,920       267,019  
              316,891  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.8%  

Accor SA*

    9,688       246,692  

Compass Group plc

    19,740       269,276  

McDonald’s Holdings Co. Japan Ltd.

    11,200       530,323  

Sodexo SA

    1,848       118,611  
              1,164,902  
Household Durables – 1.0%  

Bellway plc

    3,892       117,506  

Berkeley Group Holdings plc

    2,268       118,972  

SEB SA

    1,456       236,765  

Sekisui House Ltd.

    11,200       184,970  
              658,213  
Household Products – 0.4%  

Lion Corp.

    11,200       228,950  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.3%
 

Uniper SE

    6,720       200,861  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.0%  

Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.

    14,000       621,460  
Insurance – 5.6%  

Admiral Group plc

    12,348       439,064  

Ageas SA

    10,584       425,959  

AIA Group Ltd.

    39,200       369,261  

Assicurazioni Generali SpA

    20,608       276,300  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

    130,676       445,220  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      127  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

Gjensidige Forsikring ASA

    12,712     $ 241,105  

Great-West Lifeco, Inc.

    8,428       171,613  

Hannover Rueck SE

    1,568       227,763  

Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG in Muenchen (Registered)

    2,464       576,334  

RSA Insurance Group plc

    29,932       163,942  

Sampo OYJ, Class A

    6,216       234,599  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

    336       111,444  
              3,682,604  
IT Services – 2.8%  

CGI, Inc.*

    3,332       206,590  

Edenred

    9,156       427,041  

Fujitsu Ltd.

    1,200       140,329  

Itochu Techno-Solutions Corp.

    5,600       190,434  

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

    5,600       165,793  

NTT Data Corp.

    16,800       188,827  

Obic Co. Ltd.

    2,800       496,844  
              1,815,858  
Leisure Products – 0.6%  

Bandai Namco Holdings, Inc.

    5,600       416,545  
Machinery – 1.8%  

Alstom SA*

    5,124       229,675  

Kone OYJ, Class B

    7,784       619,652  

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

    14,000       299,245  

Schindler Holding AG (Registered)

    112       28,765  
              1,177,337  
Marine – 0.7%  

Kuehne + Nagel International AG (Registered)

    2,268       453,080  
Metals & Mining – 3.4%  

Barrick Gold Corp.

    32,172       859,464  

Franco-Nevada Corp.

    3,506       477,485  

Kinross Gold Corp.

    33,208       264,000  

Polymetal International plc

    10,808       229,116  

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.

    7,980       365,919  
              2,195,984  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Multiline Retail – 0.8%  

Wesfarmers Ltd.

    16,100     $ 519,634  
Multi-Utilities – 0.0%(a)  

Canadian Utilities Ltd., Class A

    588       13,733  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 1.3%  

BP plc

    62,300       158,369  

Neste OYJ

    12,152       632,457  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A

    4,592       57,320  
              848,146  
Personal Products – 0.9%  

Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    5,600       544,787  

Unilever plc

    868       49,427  
              594,214  
Pharmaceuticals – 12.8%  

AstraZeneca plc

    3,304       331,769  

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    14,000       538,492  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

    68,768       1,148,630  

Novartis AG (Registered)

    5,432       423,691  

Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B

    24,500       1,573,739  

Ono Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    5,600       159,204  

Roche Holding AG

    9,576       3,079,511  

Roche Holding AG – BR

    112       36,073  

Sanofi

    3,192       287,677  

Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    30,800       547,117  

UCB SA

    2,604       256,918  
              8,382,821  
Professional Services – 1.8%  

RELX plc

    29,512       582,879  

Wolters Kluwer NV

    7,560       612,740  
              1,195,619  
Real Estate Management & Development – 2.6%  

Deutsche Wohnen SE

    2,828       142,737  

ESR Cayman Ltd.* (b)

    5,600       16,862  

Hang Lung Properties Ltd.

    224,000       543,619  

PSP Swiss Property AG (Registered)

    3,864       467,533  

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

    42,000       536,993  
              1,707,744  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

128    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Road & Rail – 2.5%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.

    28,672     $ 75,909  

Central Japan Railway Co.

    2,800       337,077  

Hankyu Hanshin Holdings, Inc.

    2,800       85,173  

Keio Corp.

    2,800       162,043  

Kintetsu Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    5,600       222,843  

MTR Corp. Ltd.

    56,000       276,937  

Nagoya Railroad Co. Ltd.

    8,400       223,057  

West Japan Railway Co.

    5,600       238,913  
              1,621,952  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 0.3%  

ASML Holding NV

    560       203,523  
Software – 1.8%  

Dassault Systemes SE

    1,372       234,212  

Nice Ltd.*

    1,344       307,890  

Open Text Corp.

    5,152       189,141  

Oracle Corp. Japan

    2,800       280,161  

SAP SE

    1,624       173,073  
              1,184,477  
Specialty Retail – 0.9%  

ABC-Mart, Inc.

    8,400       426,669  

Yamada Holdings Co. Ltd.

    36,400       176,882  
              603,551  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 0.8%  

Canon, Inc.

    14,000       241,123  

FUJIFILM Holdings Corp.

    5,600       284,875  
              525,998  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 1.2%  

Hermes International

    756       703,621  

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

    196       91,849  
              795,470  
Tobacco – 0.9%  

Japan Tobacco, Inc.

    30,800       580,409  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.9%  

ITOCHU Corp.

    25,200       602,640  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.3%  

Aena SME SA* (b)

    476     $ 64,097  

Aeroports de Paris

    1,148       112,195  

Auckland International Airport Ltd.

    4,088       18,912  
              195,204  
Water Utilities – 0.8%  

Severn Trent plc

    6,496       204,104  

United Utilities Group plc

    30,492       340,405  
              544,509  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 3.1%  

KDDI Corp.

    30,800       822,738  

NTT DOCOMO, Inc.

    22,400       832,875  

Rogers Communications, Inc., Class B

    364       14,775  

Softbank Corp.

    33,600       389,707  
              2,060,095  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $66,306,967)

 

    65,001,076  
Total Investments – 98.9%
(Cost $66,306,967)

 

    65,001,076  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.1%

 

    745,928  
Net Assets – 100.0%

 

  $ 65,747,004  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

OYJ – Public Limited Company

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 3,130,809  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (4,493,907

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (1,363,098

Federal income tax cost

  $ 66,336,488  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      129  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional
Amount
    Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

MSCI EAFE E-Mini Index

    6       12/18/2020       USD     $ 535,170     $ (29,407

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty  

In Exchange For

    Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

CAD

    16,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     11,936       12/16/2020     $ 66  

GBP

    17,000       Citibank NA   USD     21,944       12/16/2020       44  

JPY

    2,060,000       BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC   USD     19,582       12/16/2020       136  

JPY

    1,249,000       Morgan Stanley   USD     11,780       12/16/2020       175  

USD

    48,855       BNP Paribas SA   AUD     67,000       12/16/2020       1,793  

USD

    18,241       Morgan Stanley   AUD     25,000       12/16/2020       681  

USD

    82,776       Morgan Stanley   CHF     75,000       12/16/2020       834  

USD

    36,635       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   DKK     229,000       12/16/2020       767  

USD

    19,923       BNP Paribas SA   EUR     17,000       12/16/2020       100  

USD

    97,390       Citibank NA   EUR     82,000       12/16/2020       1,771  

USD

    18,561         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   SEK     162,000       12/16/2020       350  

Total unrealized appreciation

                          $ 6,717  

AUD

    41,000       Morgan Stanley   USD     29,392       12/16/2020     $ (593

AUD

    13,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     9,501       12/16/2020       (369

EUR

    70,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     83,170       12/16/2020       (1,544

GBP

    15,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     19,449       12/16/2020       (48

JPY

    2,623,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     25,169       12/16/2020       (62

USD

    96,049       Morgan Stanley   GBP     75,000       12/16/2020       (958

USD

    131,624         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   JPY     13,900,000       12/16/2020       (1,422

Total unrealized depreciation

                          $ (4,996

Net unrealized appreciation

                          $ 1,721  

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

DKK – Danish Krone

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

JPY – Japanese Yen

SEK – Swedish Krona

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

130    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    4.6

Belgium

    2.2  

Canada

    9.4  

Denmark

    4.1  

Finland

    3.4  

France

    5.8  

Germany

    4.4  

Greece

    0.4  

Hong Kong

    6.9  

Israel

    1.1  

Italy

    0.4  

Japan

    26.3  

Netherlands

    2.6  

New Zealand

    0.2  

Norway

    0.4  

Singapore

    1.4  

Spain

    1.6  

Sweden

    1.5  

Switzerland

    13.4  

United Kingdom

    8.8  

Other1

    1.1  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      131  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.8%  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.6%  

ZTO Express Cayman, Inc., ADR

    2,088     $ 60,510  
Automobiles – 0.3%  

Hero MotoCorp Ltd.

    672       25,388  
Banks – 12.0%  

Attijariwafa Bank*

    1,176       48,142  

Banco BBVA Peru SA

    7,606       4,335  

Bank Central Asia Tbk. PT

    12,800       25,338  

Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    232,000       73,296  

Bank of Communications Co. Ltd., Class H

    100,000       49,131  

Banque Centrale Populaire

    1,824       47,409  

BDO Unibank, Inc.

    16,960       31,152  

Chang Hwa Commercial Bank Ltd.

    82,160       48,974  

China Construction Bank Corp., Class H

    136,000       93,825  

China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd., Class H

    1,000       5,197  

Commercial International Bank Egypt SAE

    11,608       45,138  

E.Sun Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    52,709       44,779  

First Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    85,710       60,080  

Hong Leong Bank Bhd.

    11,600       41,319  

Hua Nan Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    92,361       55,539  

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    128,000       71,965  

ING Bank Slaski SA*

    1,348       34,893  

Itau Unibanco Holding SA (Preference)

    2,000       8,144  

Krung Thai Bank PCL

    26,600       7,382  

Krung Thai Bank PCL, NVDR

    26,600       7,382  

Malayan Banking Bhd.

    31,200       52,563  

Mega Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    85,000       81,869  

Postal Savings Bank of China Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    100,000       49,002  

Public Bank Bhd.

    15,600       56,618  

Sberbank of Russia PJSC

    8,680       21,952  

SinoPac Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    68,000       25,438  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Taiwan Cooperative Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    81,890     $ 54,968  
              1,145,830  
Beverages – 0.5%  

Emperador, Inc.

    236,000       48,858  
Biotechnology – 1.0%  

Celltrion, Inc.*

    40       8,495  

China Biologic Products Holdings, Inc.*

    708       82,277  
              90,772  
Capital Markets – 0.9%  

B3 SA – Brasil Bolsa Balcao

    800       7,083  

Macquarie Korea Infrastructure Fund

    8,156       79,066  
              86,149  
Chemicals – 3.2%  

Acron PJSC

    896       71,714  

Asian Paints Ltd.

    3,348       99,910  

Nan Ya Plastics Corp.

    25,000       51,305  

Pidilite Industries Ltd.

    3,820       80,949  
              303,878  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.6%  

S-1 Corp.

    856       61,558  
Construction & Engineering – 0.0%(b)  

Impulsora del Desarrollo y el Empleo en America Latina SAB de CV

    1,600       2,858  
Construction Materials – 1.6%  

LafargeHolcim Maroc SA

    484       77,053  

Ssangyong Cement Industrial Co. Ltd.

    15,260       74,639  
              151,692  
Consumer Finance – 0.5%  

SBI Cards & Payment Services Ltd.

    4,704       50,764  
Diversified Consumer Services – 1.4%  

China East Education Holdings Ltd.(a)

    32,000       61,484  

GSX Techedu, Inc., ADR*

    944       62,701  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

132    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Consumer Services – (continued)  

New Oriental Education & Technology Group, Inc., ADR*

    56     $ 8,981  
              133,166  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 4.4%  

China Telecom Corp. Ltd., Class H

    136,000       42,791  

China Tower Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)

    320,000       49,930  

Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd.

    30,000       112,224  

KT Corp.

    2,672       52,041  

Maroc Telecom

    5,152       78,951  

O2 Czech Republic A/S*

    7,492       70,215  

Telefonica Brasil SA (Preference)

    2,000       14,756  
              420,908  
Electric Utilities – 0.3%  

Transmissora Alianca de Energia Eletrica SA

    5,600       27,340  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.9%  

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd.

    12,000       32,513  

WPG Holdings Ltd.

    37,000       50,190  
              82,703  
Entertainment – 0.3%  

NetEase, Inc., ADR

    360       31,244  
Food & Staples Retailing – 2.7%  

Berli Jucker PCL, NVDR

    41,200       38,005  

BIM Birlesik Magazalar A/S

    5,560       44,305  

Clicks Group Ltd.

    284       4,124  

President Chain Store Corp.

    6,000       54,119  

Puregold Price Club, Inc.

    47,040       40,091  

Sun Art Retail Group Ltd.

    38,000       41,063  

Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB de CV

    16,800       40,465  
              262,172  
Food Products – 4.5%  

Alicorp SAA

    18,828       36,465  

Dali Foods Group Co. Ltd.(a)

    68,000       42,090  

Indofood CBP Sukses Makmur Tbk. PT

    70,800       46,716  

Nestle Malaysia Bhd.

    2,200       73,810  

Orion Corp.

    580       55,459  

PPB Group Bhd.

    11,200       50,676  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – (continued)  

Standard Foods Corp.

    2,000     $ 4,272  

Uni-President China Holdings Ltd.

    72,000       62,206  

Uni-President Enterprises Corp.

    28,000       60,007  
              431,701  
Gas Utilities – 2.0%  

China Resources Gas Group Ltd.

    12,000       51,993  

ENN Energy Holdings Ltd.

    5,200       65,680  

Petronas Gas Bhd.

    19,200       72,734  
              190,407  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.8%  

Hartalega Holdings Bhd.

    10,800       46,787  

Top Glove Corp. Bhd.

    14,400       29,701  
              76,488  
Health Care Providers & Services – 2.8%  

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd.

    1,468       41,984  

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services PCL, NVDR

    105,000       58,956  

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services PCL, Class F

    17,400       9,770  

Bumrungrad Hospital PCL, NVDR

    20,000       58,394  

Celltrion Healthcare Co. Ltd.*

    660       49,266  

IHH Healthcare Bhd.

    13,200       15,789  

Sinopharm Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    16,400       37,474  
              271,633  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.7%  

Jubilant Foodworks Ltd.

    704       20,660  

Kangwon Land, Inc.

    2,072       38,529  

Yum China Holdings, Inc.

    92       4,897  
              64,086  
Household Durables – 0.6%  

Coway Co. Ltd.*

    1,012       61,896  
Household Products – 0.1%  

Hindustan Unilever Ltd.

    324       9,056  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.6%
 

Electricity Generating PCL

    2,400       12,782  

Electricity Generating PCL, NVDR

    1,000       5,326  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      133  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – (continued)
 

Electricity Generating PCL – Foreign

    600     $ 3,196  

Ratch Group PCL, NVDR

    16,000       23,871  

Unipro PJSC

    236,000       7,675  
              52,850  
Insurance – 1.6%  

Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China Ltd., Class H

    7,500       76,936  

Sinar Mas Multiartha Tbk. PT*

    70,800       77,577  
              154,513  
Interactive Media & Services – 6.8%  

Tencent Holdings Ltd.

    8,600       655,409  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 12.5%  

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., ADR*

    3,060       932,352  

JD.com, Inc., ADR*

    1,016       82,824  

Meituan, Class B* (a)

    3,200       118,924  

Naspers Ltd., Class N*

    272       52,920  

Pinduoduo, Inc., ADR*

    132       11,877  

Prosus NV*

    20       1,999  
              1,200,896  
IT Services – 5.8%  

HCL Technologies Ltd.

    9,328       105,977  

Infosys Ltd.

    3,416       48,888  

Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd.(a)

    2,324       91,524  

Mphasis Ltd.

    112       2,084  

Samsung SDS Co. Ltd.

    136       20,196  

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.

    4,484       161,241  

Tech Mahindra Ltd.

    3,516       38,587  

Wipro Ltd.

    19,332       88,876  
              557,373  
Metals & Mining – 0.4%  

MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC

    28       6,644  

Vale SA

    3,200       33,604  
              40,248  
Multiline Retail – 0.6%  

Lojas Renner SA*

    5,200       33,774  

Robinson PCL* (c)

    600       375  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Multiline Retail – (continued)  

Woolworths Holdings Ltd.

    9,308     $ 20,010  
              54,159  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 3.3%  

China Coal Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    132,000       32,171  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    46,000       79,486  

CNOOC Ltd.

    9,000       8,170  

Formosa Petrochemical Corp.

    5,000       13,740  

LUKOIL PJSC

    440       22,391  

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Preference)

    800       2,628  

Petronas Dagangan Bhd.

    10,400       43,152  

Petronet LNG Ltd.

    21,568       67,215  

Surgutneftegas PJSC (Preference)

    103,200       47,070  
              316,023  
Personal Products – 0.1%  

Hengan International Group Co. Ltd.

    500       3,465  

Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Ltd.

    8       1,101  
              4,566  
Pharmaceuticals – 1.0%  

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.

    76       5,014  

Hypera SA*

    4,610       22,306  

Lupin Ltd.

    1,360       16,686  

Yuhan Corp.

    948       49,710  
              93,716  
Road & Rail – 0.9%  

CJ Logistics Corp.*

    396       55,664  

GMexico Transportes SAB de CV(a)

    22,400       26,424  
              82,088  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 6.6%  

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    42,000       634,328  
Specialty Retail – 1.4%  

Home Product Center PCL

    2,800       1,258  

Home Product Center PCL, NVDR

    153,200       68,815  

Zhongsheng Group Holdings Ltd.

    8,500       60,394  
              130,467  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

134    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 5.1%  

Chicony Electronics Co. Ltd.

    24,000     $ 72,243  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

    7,752       386,678  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Preference)

    736       32,496  
              491,417  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.1%  

Alpargatas SA (Preference)

    400       2,811  

Page Industries Ltd.

    8       2,167  
              4,978  
Tobacco – 0.6%  

KT&G Corp.

    868       61,962  
Transportation Infrastructure – 2.3%  

Airports of Thailand PCL, NVDR

    32,000       53,132  

Jiangsu Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

    44,000       43,973  

Promotora y Operadora de Infraestructura SAB de CV

    2,880       18,809  

Shenzhen Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

    48,000       42,709  

Shenzhen International Holdings Ltd.

    26,149       40,598  

Westports Holdings Bhd.

    21,200       19,899  
              219,120  
Water Utilities – 0.5%  

Guangdong Investment Ltd.

    32,000       47,372  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 5.9%  

Advanced Info Service PCL, NVDR

    13,600       75,271  

America Movil SAB de CV, Series L

    24,400       14,804  

China Mobile Ltd.

    24,000       145,921  

Far EasTone Telecommunications Co. Ltd.

    37,000       77,613  

Intouch Holdings PCL, NVDR

    42,400       72,781  

Maxis Bhd.

    30,400       35,119  

PLDT, Inc.

    1,680       46,096  

Taiwan Mobile Co. Ltd.

    22,000       75,145  

Vodacom Group Ltd.

    3,472       26,182  
              568,932  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $9,121,929)

 

    9,461,474  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – 0.0%(b)  
Food Products – 0.0%(b)              

Britannia Industries Ltd. 8.00%,
8/28/2022
(Cost $1)

    INR 78     $ 1  
Total Investments – 98.8%
(Cost $9,121,930)

 

    9,461,475  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.2%

 

    116,835  
Net Assets – 100.0%

 

    9,578,310  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a)

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(b) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(c) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $375, which represents approximately 0.00% of net assets of the Fund.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ADR – American Depositary Receipt

INR – Indian Rupee

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

 

Preference A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 911,252  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (661,954

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 249,298  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 9,213,893  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      135  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional
Amount
    Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    2       12/18/2020       USD     $ 110,190     $ 1,716  

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Brazil

    1.6

China

    35.8  

Czech Republic

    0.7  

Egypt

    0.5  

India

    10.0  

Indonesia

    1.6  

Malaysia

    5.6  

Mexico

    1.1  

Morocco

    2.6  

Peru

    0.4  

Philippines

    1.7  

Poland

    0.4  

Russia

    1.8  

South Africa

    1.1  

South Korea

    11.4  

Taiwan

    16.8  

Thailand

    5.2  

Turkey

    0.5  

Other1

    1.2  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

136    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.1%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.4%  

AAR Corp.

    2,910     $ 56,629  

Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       75,474  

AeroVironment, Inc.*

    776       59,255  

Axon Enterprise, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       191,866  

Boeing Co. (The)

    13,386       1,932,805  

BWX Technologies, Inc.

    2,522       138,735  

Curtiss-Wright Corp.

    1,358       114,561  

Ducommun, Inc.* (a)

    194       6,383  

General Dynamics Corp.

    7,954       1,044,599  

HEICO Corp.(a)

    1,164       122,278  

HEICO Corp., Class A

    1,940       181,390  

Hexcel Corp.(a)

    2,328       77,941  

Howmet Aerospace, Inc.

    14,356       247,641  

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.

    1,358       200,278  

Kaman Corp.(a)

    970       38,470  

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       54,970  

L3Harris Technologies, Inc.

    5,626       906,405  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    9,312       3,260,411  

Maxar Technologies, Inc.(a)

    17,654       454,944  

Mercury Systems, Inc.*

    1,746       120,264  

Moog, Inc., Class A

    8,924       556,768  

National Presto Industries, Inc.

    194       16,119  

Northrop Grumman Corp.

    5,820       1,686,752  

PAE, Inc.* (a)

    17,654       139,820  

Parsons Corp.* (a)

    582       18,345  

Raytheon Technologies Corp.

    56,842       3,087,657  

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc., Class A

    5,432       98,808  

Teledyne Technologies, Inc.*

    970       299,876  

Textron, Inc.

    8,148       291,698  

TransDigm Group, Inc.

    1,164       555,705  

Triumph Group, Inc.

    12,998       85,787  

Vectrus, Inc.*

    1,164       46,001  

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       40,554  
              16,209,189  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.7%  

Air Transport Services Group, Inc.* (a)

    1,940     $ 54,398  

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    7,566       447,604  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.

    4,074       360,264  

Echo Global Logistics, Inc.*

    3,104       83,715  

Expeditors International of Washington, Inc.

    4,462       394,307  

FedEx Corp.

    8,730       2,265,173  

Forward Air Corp.

    970       61,081  

Hub Group, Inc., Class A*

    9,894       495,986  

United Parcel Service, Inc., Class B

    26,190       4,114,711  

XPO Logistics, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       331,740  
              8,608,979  
Airlines – 0.5%  

Alaska Air Group, Inc.

    35,696       1,352,521  

Allegiant Travel Co.(a)

    3,492       470,582  

American Airlines Group, Inc.(a)

    19,594       221,020  

Delta Air Lines, Inc.

    25,220       772,741  

Hawaiian Holdings, Inc.(a)

    16,490       228,387  

JetBlue Airways Corp.* (a)

    82,256       984,604  

SkyWest, Inc.(a)

    15,132       439,282  

Southwest Airlines Co.

    19,982       789,889  

Spirit Airlines, Inc.* (a)

    5,044       88,623  

United Airlines Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    10,864       367,855  
              5,715,504  
Auto Components – 0.4%  

Adient plc*

    27,742       588,685  

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc.*

    28,518       191,641  

Aptiv plc

    6,790       655,167  

Autoliv, Inc.(a)

    2,134       161,757  

BorgWarner, Inc.

    9,199       321,781  

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.(a)

    12,610       433,658  

Dana, Inc.

    42,486       594,379  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      137  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Auto Components – (continued)  

Dorman Products, Inc.*

    970     $ 86,592  

Fox Factory Holding Corp.* (a)

    1,164       97,869  

Gentex Corp.

    6,790       187,879  

Gentherm, Inc.*

    1,164       53,882  

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (The)

    60,722       502,778  

LCI Industries

    970       106,370  

Lear Corp.

    1,746       210,934  

Standard Motor Products, Inc.

    582       26,656  

Tenneco, Inc., Class A* (a)

    15,132       130,438  

Veoneer, Inc.* (a)

    27,936       429,376  

Visteon Corp.*

    970       86,961  
              4,866,803  
Automobiles – 1.1%  

Ford Motor Co.

    147,634       1,141,211  

General Motors Co.

    48,112       1,661,307  

Harley-Davidson, Inc.(a)

    44,426       1,460,727  

Tesla, Inc.* (a)

    18,624       7,226,857  

Thor Industries, Inc.(a)

    16,296       1,378,316  

Winnebago Industries, Inc.(a)

    1,552       72,866  
              12,941,284  
Banks – 6.5%  

1st Source Corp.

    776       25,988  

Allegiance Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    582       16,471  

Amalgamated Bank, Class A

    9,312       103,363  

Ameris Bancorp

    19,982       585,473  

Associated Banc-Corp.

    42,098       576,322  

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp.(a)

    22,892       578,939  

Banc of California, Inc.(a)

    3,880       46,560  

BancFirst Corp.

    582       25,870  

Bancorp, Inc. (The)*

    13,774       132,230  

BancorpSouth Bank

    25,802       604,025  

Bank of America Corp.

    290,806       6,892,102  

Bank of Hawaii Corp.(a)

    1,358       82,349  

Bank OZK(a)

    33,756       836,474  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

BankUnited, Inc.(a)

    24,056     $ 607,414  

Banner Corp.(a)

    11,252       414,861  

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.

    11,640       151,669  

BOK Financial Corp.(a)

    9,312       546,987  

Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc.

    33,950       209,811  

Bridge Bancorp, Inc.

    5,626       109,932  

Brookline Bancorp, Inc.

    2,910       27,878  

Bryn Mawr Bank Corp.

    582       15,633  

Byline Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    5,044       66,278  

Cadence Bancorp

    30,458       341,739  

Cathay General Bancorp

    22,892       538,649  

CBTX, Inc.(a)

    2,328       43,999  

Central Pacific Financial Corp.

    4,074       56,099  

CIT Group, Inc.

    26,190       771,295  

Citigroup, Inc.

    77,988       3,230,263  

Citizens Financial Group, Inc.

    19,012       518,077  

City Holding Co.

    582       35,170  

Columbia Banking System, Inc.

    2,328       66,138  

Comerica, Inc.

    38,800       1,765,788  

Commerce Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    2,716       169,071  

Community Bank System, Inc.(a)

    1,552       90,000  

Community Trust Bancorp, Inc.

    2,134       67,904  

ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc.

    4,462       68,849  

CrossFirst Bankshares, Inc.* (a)

    2,716       22,679  

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc.(a)

    15,908       1,117,855  

Customers Bancorp, Inc.*

    9,700       134,054  

CVB Financial Corp.

    3,298       57,715  

Dime Community Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    1,164       14,725  

Eagle Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    8,730       261,202  

East West Bancorp, Inc.

    40,352       1,472,041  

Enterprise Financial Services Corp.

    582       16,942  

FB Financial Corp.

    1,358       40,061  

Fifth Third Bancorp

    28,324       657,683  

Financial Institutions, Inc.

    7,760       137,585  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

138    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

First Bancorp/NC

    2,910     $ 70,102  

First Bancorp/PR

    73,138       474,666  

First Bancshares, Inc. (The)(a)

    6,402       152,624  

First Citizens BancShares, Inc., Class A(a)

    1,746       807,874  

First Commonwealth Financial Corp.

    9,312       80,269  

First Financial Bancorp

    24,056       344,001  

First Financial Bankshares, Inc.(a)

    4,268       127,229  

First Financial Corp.

    1,746       60,621  

First Foundation, Inc.

    1,552       23,078  

First Hawaiian, Inc.(a)

    39,188       676,385  

First Horizon National Corp.

    159,080       1,656,023  

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc., Class A(a)

    2,522       89,027  

First Merchants Corp.(a)

    15,908       415,358  

First Midwest Bancorp, Inc.

    36,860       462,593  

First of Long Island Corp. (The)

    1,164       17,961  

First Republic Bank

    4,462       562,837  

Flushing Financial Corp.

    8,924       114,138  

FNB Corp.

    99,910       755,320  

Fulton Financial Corp.

    48,694       535,147  

German American Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    776       23,412  

Glacier Bancorp, Inc.

    2,716       97,233  

Great Southern Bancorp, Inc.

    388       15,889  

Great Western Bancorp, Inc.

    12,222       158,764  

Hancock Whitney Corp.

    22,504       514,666  

Hanmi Financial Corp.

    7,760       69,762  

HarborOne Bancorp, Inc.

    2,328       21,883  

HBT Financial, Inc.

    6,596       81,395  

Heartland Financial USA, Inc.

    7,760       255,614  

Heritage Commerce Corp.

    24,444       177,219  

Hilltop Holdings, Inc.

    19,788       451,364  

Home BancShares, Inc.(a)

    36,472       605,435  

Hope Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    29,488       237,968  

Horizon Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    15,908       197,259  

Huntington Bancshares, Inc.

    45,590       475,960  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Independent Bank Corp. – MA(a)

    1,164     $ 66,686  

Independent Bank Corp. – MI

    9,118       136,496  

Independent Bank Group, Inc.

    10,088       520,339  

International Bancshares Corp.(a)

    14,550       402,744  

Investors Bancorp, Inc.

    67,512       571,151  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    113,878       11,164,599  

KeyCorp

    43,650       566,577  

Lakeland Bancorp, Inc.

    16,102       179,215  

Lakeland Financial Corp.(a)

    776       39,677  

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc.

    970       36,162  

M&T Bank Corp.

    4,850       502,363  

Mercantile Bank Corp.

    776       16,963  

Midland States Bancorp, Inc.

    4,850       72,265  

MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc.

    5,820       117,273  

National Bank Holdings Corp., Class A(a)

    1,164       35,095  

NBT Bancorp, Inc.

    1,358       37,182  

OceanFirst Financial Corp.

    17,848       267,185  

OFG Bancorp(a)

    19,206       276,374  

Old National Bancorp(a)

    40,352       564,121  

Origin Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    3,104       69,436  

Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    25,996       662,898  

PacWest Bancorp

    30,846       593,477  

Park National Corp.(a)

    388       35,560  

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp.

    3,298       55,670  

Peoples Bancorp, Inc.

    7,760       175,376  

People’s United Financial, Inc.(a)

    17,266       184,228  

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc.

    21,340       977,159  

PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    15,714       1,758,082  

Popular, Inc.

    21,728       916,922  

Preferred Bank

    388       13,126  

Prosperity Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    2,910       160,370  

QCR Holdings, Inc.

    582       18,059  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      139  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

Regions Financial Corp.

    42,486     $ 565,064  

Renasant Corp.(a)

    14,162       403,759  

S&T Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    2,328       46,071  

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc.

    14,938       378,678  

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    1,552       57,269  

Sierra Bancorp

    3,492       69,281  

Signature Bank

    1,552       125,308  

Simmons First National Corp., Class A(a)

    31,234       530,666  

South State Corp.(a)

    1,552       95,293  

Southside Bancshares, Inc.(a)

    970       26,151  

Sterling Bancorp

    51,216       685,270  

Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc.(a)

    776       29,659  

SVB Financial Group*

    1,746       507,562  

Synovus Financial Corp.

    45,008       1,170,208  

TCF Financial Corp.

    45,396       1,235,225  

Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc.* (a)

    12,804       576,180  

Tompkins Financial Corp.

    388       21,724  

TriCo Bancshares

    776       22,450  

TriState Capital Holdings, Inc.*

    388       4,885  

Triumph Bancorp, Inc.* (a)

    582       24,520  

Truist Financial Corp.

    49,470       2,083,676  

UMB Financial Corp.

    1,358       82,661  

Umpqua Holdings Corp.

    67,512       847,951  

United Bankshares, Inc.(a)

    4,850       127,215  

United Community Banks, Inc.

    24,638       515,920  

Univest Financial Corp.

    6,014       95,382  

US Bancorp

    48,500       1,889,075  

Valley National Bancorp(a)

    122,414       935,243  

Veritex Holdings, Inc.(a)

    14,938       294,727  

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc.

    582       19,654  

Webster Financial Corp.

    24,056       774,844  

Wells Fargo & Co.

    159,274       3,416,427  

WesBanco, Inc.(a)

    17,460       424,103  

Westamerica Bancorp

    776       40,639  

Western Alliance Bancorp

    28,324       1,166,949  

Wintrust Financial Corp.

    15,714       773,600  

Zions Bancorp NA

    5,626       181,551  
              76,598,958  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Beverages – 1.0%  

Boston Beer Co., Inc. (The), Class A* (a)

    194     $ 201,601  

Brown-Forman Corp., Class A

    1,552       97,388  

Brown-Forman Corp., Class B

    4,850       338,093  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    96,418       4,633,849  

Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc.

    194       44,416  

Constellation Brands, Inc., Class A

    4,074       673,147  

Keurig Dr Pepper, Inc.(a)

    7,954       213,963  

Molson Coors Beverage Co., Class B

    7,760       273,618  

Monster Beverage Corp.*

    10,088       772,438  

National Beverage Corp.* (a)

    388       30,377  

PepsiCo, Inc.

    35,308       4,706,203  
              11,985,093  
Biotechnology – 2.3%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    66,930       5,695,743  

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    3,104       144,181  

Acceleron Pharma, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       142,020  

Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc.*

    2,134       23,282  

Agenus, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       8,590  

Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       77,736  

Alector, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       10,953  

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    7,954       915,824  

Alkermes plc*

    5,238       85,118  

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    2,910       357,843  

Amgen, Inc.

    14,938       3,240,650  

Amicus Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    8,148       145,279  

Anika Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    582       18,985  

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       49,509  

Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    2,328       199,556  

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    3,104       177,859  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

140    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Biotechnology – (continued)  

Assembly Biosciences, Inc.* (a)

    1,746     $ 25,736  

Biogen, Inc.*

    5,626       1,418,146  

BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc.*

    4,268       317,667  

Bluebird Bio, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       120,381  

Blueprint Medicines Corp.*

    1,746       178,581  

CareDx, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       66,610  

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       10,947  

ChemoCentryx, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       65,184  

Coherus Biosciences, Inc.* (a)

    17,848       297,526  

CRISPR Therapeutics AG* (a)

    1,164       106,878  

Cytokinetics, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       32,800  

Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    582       33,797  

Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       48,865  

Dynavax Technologies Corp.* (a)

    970       3,618  

Eagle Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    388       18,050  

Editas Medicine, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       54,021  

Emergent BioSolutions, Inc.*

    1,358       122,179  

Epizyme, Inc.* (a)

    2,522       31,172  

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    776       23,257  

Exact Sciences Corp.*

    3,492       432,414  

Exelixis, Inc.*

    9,700       198,656  

Fate Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       86,136  

FibroGen, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       81,903  

Flexion Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       16,282  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

    45,978       2,673,621  

Global Blood Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       102,587  

Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc.*

    3,880       108,640  

Heron Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    2,716       44,298  

ImmunoGen, Inc.*

    8,342       47,049  

Incyte Corp.*

    4,850       420,204  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Biotechnology – (continued)  

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    2,910     $ 28,663  

Insmed, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       95,855  

Intellia Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       32,511  

Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    388       10,783  

Invitae Corp.* (a)

    2,910       114,101  

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    3,492       163,949  

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       131,516  

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    5,238       51,751  

Kadmon Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    5,044       17,150  

Karyopharm Therapeutics, Inc.*

    1,746       25,876  

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    582       47,986  

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    582       74,059  

Mirati Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    970       210,626  

Moderna, Inc.* (a)

    6,596       445,032  

Myriad Genetics, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       40,994  

Natera, Inc.*

    1,746       117,436  

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.* (a)

    2,522       248,846  

Novavax, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       93,946  

OPKO Health, Inc.* (a)

    32,398       114,041  

PDL BioPharma, Inc.* (a)

    4,656       10,010  

Precision BioSciences, Inc.*

    970       6,121  

Prothena Corp. plc* (a)

    1,552       16,932  

PTC Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       101,249  

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    2,522       1,370,858  

Retrophin, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       23,559  

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       24,642  

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    6,596       16,358  

Sage Therapeutics, Inc.*

    1,552       113,886  

Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    3,880       40,119  

Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       263,665  

Seagen, Inc.*

    3,104       517,747  

TG Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    2,716       68,633  

Twist Bioscience Corp.* (a)

    970       74,341  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      141  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Biotechnology – (continued)  

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, Inc.* (a)

    1,940     $ 194,970  

United Therapeutics Corp.*

    12,998       1,744,722  

Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       16,591  

Veracyte, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       53,792  

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    6,596       1,374,343  

Viking Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    18,818       105,945  

Voyager Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    970       10,311  

XBiotech, Inc.*

    582       9,958  

Xencor, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       52,120  

Y-mAbs Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    194       8,292  

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc.* (a)

    4,850       10,137  
              26,774,755  
Building Products – 0.8%  

A O Smith Corp.

    3,686       190,529  

AAON, Inc.(a)

    1,358       79,321  

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc.

    1,746       110,749  

Allegion plc

    1,164       114,654  

American Woodmark Corp.*

    4,656       384,632  

Apogee Enterprises, Inc.

    5,238       125,136  

Armstrong World Industries, Inc.

    388       23,241  

Builders FirstSource, Inc.* (a)

    34,144       1,034,563  

Carrier Global Corp.

    28,130       939,261  

Cornerstone Building Brands, Inc.* (a)

    12,416       95,231  

Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc.

    4,462       360,842  

Gibraltar Industries, Inc.*

    970       55,726  

Griffon Corp.

    1,358       29,116  

Insteel Industries, Inc.

    388       8,443  

JELD-WEN Holding, Inc.*

    22,698       477,339  

Johnson Controls International plc

    26,578       1,121,857  

Lennox International, Inc.(a)

    970       263,510  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Building Products – (continued)  

Masco Corp.

    7,566     $ 405,538  

Masonite International Corp.*

    776       68,288  

Owens Corning

    30,458       1,994,085  

Patrick Industries, Inc.(a)

    1,358       75,709  

PGT Innovations, Inc.*

    15,714       260,538  

Quanex Building Products Corp.(a)

    9,506       173,009  

Resideo Technologies, Inc.*

    36,278       365,682  

Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc.

    1,164       103,270  

Trane Technologies plc

    5,626       746,852  

Trex Co., Inc.* (a)

    3,880       269,815  

UFP Industries, Inc.

    1,940       96,825  
              9,973,761  
Capital Markets – 2.8%  

Affiliated Managers Group, Inc.(a)

    12,028       906,550  

Ameriprise Financial, Inc.

    4,850       780,026  

Apollo Global Management, Inc.

    5,238       193,073  

Ares Management Corp.(a)

    2,328       98,474  

Artisan Partners Asset Management, Inc., Class A

    3,104       124,346  

B. Riley Financial, Inc.

    4,074       106,902  

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (The)

    29,100       999,876  

BGC Partners, Inc., Class A(a)

    79,152       233,498  

BlackRock, Inc.

    3,686       2,208,688  

Blackstone Group, Inc. (The), Class A

    14,744       743,392  

Blucora, Inc.* (a)

    16,102       160,215  

Brightsphere Investment Group, Inc.

    19,788       273,074  

Carlyle Group, Inc. (The)

    1,164       29,007  

Charles Schwab Corp. (The)

    39,111       1,607,853  

CME Group, Inc.

    8,342       1,257,306  

Cohen & Steers, Inc.

    776       43,697  

Cowen, Inc., Class A(a)

    8,536       183,183  

Eaton Vance Corp.

    3,492       208,787  

Evercore, Inc., Class A

    11,640       925,846  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

142    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

FactSet Research Systems, Inc.

    970     $ 297,305  

Federated Hermes, Inc., Class B

    25,608       612,031  

Focus Financial Partners, Inc., Class A*

    8,924       325,815  

Franklin Resources, Inc.(a)

    11,252       210,975  

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

    12,416       2,347,121  

Hamilton Lane, Inc., Class A

    970       67,609  

Houlihan Lokey, Inc.

    1,358       85,147  

Interactive Brokers Group, Inc., Class A(a)

    2,328       110,743  

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.

    14,356       1,355,206  

Invesco Ltd.(a)

    107,670       1,411,554  

Janus Henderson Group plc(a)

    41,128       999,410  

KKR & Co., Inc.

    14,550       496,883  

LPL Financial Holdings, Inc.

    2,134       170,571  

MarketAxess Holdings, Inc.

    970       522,685  

Moelis & Co., Class A(a)

    1,552       57,734  

Moody’s Corp.

    4,074       1,071,055  

Morgan Stanley

    55,482       2,671,458  

Morningstar, Inc.

    582       110,801  

MSCI, Inc.

    2,134       746,559  

Nasdaq, Inc.

    3,104       375,553  

Northern Trust Corp.(a) (b)

    7,372       577,006  

Piper Sandler Cos.

    3,492       291,407  

PJT Partners, Inc., Class A

    776       52,504  

Raymond James Financial, Inc.

    3,880       296,587  

S&P Global, Inc.

    6,208       2,003,508  

Sculptor Capital Management, Inc.

    5,044       54,677  

SEI Investments Co.

    3,298       162,097  

State Street Corp.

    11,640       685,596  

Stifel Financial Corp.(a)

    18,818       1,100,101  

StoneX Group, Inc.*

    4,850       256,953  

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

    6,014       761,733  

Tradeweb Markets, Inc., Class A

    1,940       105,691  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

Virtu Financial, Inc., Class A(a)

    21,728     $ 464,545  

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.(a)

    2,134       340,480  

Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc., Class A(a)

    15,520       238,232  
              32,521,125  
Chemicals – 1.8%  

AdvanSix, Inc.*

    8,924       135,823  

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

    5,626       1,554,126  

Albemarle Corp.(a)

    4,074       379,738  

American Vanguard Corp.

    194       2,506  

Ashland Global Holdings, Inc.

    1,746       121,818  

Avient Corp.

    2,910       90,414  

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd.*

    3,104       77,941  

Balchem Corp.

    970       96,952  

Cabot Corp.

    14,938       567,793  

Celanese Corp.

    3,880       440,419  

CF Industries Holdings, Inc.

    8,148       224,966  

Chase Corp.

    388       36,922  

Chemours Co. (The)(a)

    47,142       949,440  

Corteva, Inc.

    16,878       556,636  

Dow, Inc.

    26,772       1,217,858  

DuPont de Nemours, Inc.

    26,772       1,522,791  

Eastman Chemical Co.

    4,462       360,708  

Ecolab, Inc.

    6,402       1,175,343  

Element Solutions, Inc.*

    58,394       684,378  

Ferro Corp.*

    6,596       84,825  

FMC Corp.

    3,492       358,768  

FutureFuel Corp.(a)

    3,104       36,907  

Hawkins, Inc.

    388       18,123  

HB Fuller Co.

    1,552       70,228  

Huntsman Corp.

    54,126       1,314,721  

Ingevity Corp.*

    776       42,587  

Innospec, Inc.

    776       51,325  

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc.(a)

    2,910       298,741  

Koppers Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    6,984       156,651  

Kraton Corp.* (a)

    4,268       120,784  

Kronos Worldwide, Inc.

    4,656       62,018  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      143  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Linde plc

    13,386     $ 2,949,471  

Livent Corp.* (a)

    3,880       41,710  

LyondellBasell Industries NV, Class A

    9,700       663,965  

Minerals Technologies, Inc.(a)

    8,730       477,444  

Mosaic Co. (The)

    8,730       161,505  

Olin Corp.(a)

    38,412       635,719  

PPG Industries, Inc.

    5,432       704,639  

PQ Group Holdings, Inc.*

    10,282       118,860  

Quaker Chemical Corp.(a)

    388       74,027  

RPM International, Inc.

    3,492       295,668  

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (The)

    1,164       174,658  

Sensient Technologies Corp.

    1,358       88,854  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    1,940       1,334,681  

Stepan Co.

    582       67,768  

Tredegar Corp.

    776       11,314  

Trinseo SA(a)

    11,446       364,212  

Tronox Holdings plc, Class A(a)

    25,220       246,399  

Valvoline, Inc.

    6,014       118,295  

W R Grace & Co.

    1,164       50,622  

Westlake Chemical Corp.(a)

    388       26,237  
              21,418,298  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.7%  

ABM Industries, Inc.

    3,298       114,507  

ACCO Brands Corp.(a)

    28,324       149,267  

ADT, Inc.

    28,712       189,212  

Brady Corp., Class A

    1,552       58,541  

BrightView Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    8,536       104,395  

Brink’s Co. (The)(a)

    1,552       66,472  

Casella Waste Systems, Inc., Class A*

    1,358       73,318  

Cimpress plc* (a)

    6,402       469,907  

Cintas Corp.

    2,134       671,250  

Clean Harbors, Inc.*

    970       51,381  

Copart, Inc.*

    5,432       599,476  

Covanta Holding Corp.(a)

    3,686       33,469  

Deluxe Corp.(a)

    12,222       262,040  

Ennis, Inc.

    7,954       121,219  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Commercial Services & Supplies – (continued)  

Harsco Corp.*

    970     $ 12,513  

Herman Miller, Inc.

    17,072       520,184  

HNI Corp.

    10,476       340,994  

IAA, Inc.*

    2,328       131,741  

Interface, Inc.

    23,668       145,085  

KAR Auction Services, Inc.(a)

    36,860       536,682  

Kimball International, Inc., Class B

    1,358       13,987  

Knoll, Inc.(a)

    8,924       102,269  

Matthews International Corp., Class A

    8,148       177,871  

McGrath RentCorp

    582       33,221  

MSA Safety, Inc.

    1,164       153,555  

Pitney Bowes, Inc.(a)

    50,246       266,806  

Republic Services, Inc.

    5,626       496,044  

Rollins, Inc.

    3,492       202,012  

SP Plus Corp.*

    7,372       135,866  

Steelcase, Inc., Class A

    6,790       70,888  

Stericycle, Inc.*

    2,910       181,293  

Tetra Tech, Inc.

    1,746       176,189  

UniFirst Corp.

    582       95,337  

US Ecology, Inc.(a)

    970       29,604  

Viad Corp.(a)

    3,104       62,080  

Waste Management, Inc.

    10,282       1,109,531  
              7,958,206  
Communications Equipment – 0.8%  

Acacia Communications, Inc.*

    582       39,425  

Arista Networks, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       283,686  

Calix, Inc.*

    194       4,541  

Casa Systems, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       5,663  

Ciena Corp.*

    4,074       160,475  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    155,976       5,599,538  

CommScope Holding Co., Inc.* (a)

    54,902       488,628  

Comtech Telecommunications Corp.(a)

    582       8,381  

EchoStar Corp., Class A*

    12,804       296,541  

Extreme Networks, Inc.*

    36,084       146,501  

F5 Networks, Inc.*

    1,552       206,323  

Harmonic, Inc.*

    3,104       18,438  

Infinera Corp.* (a)

    7,566       47,363  

InterDigital, Inc.

    970       54,300  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

144    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Communications Equipment – (continued)  

Juniper Networks, Inc.

    13,386     $ 263,972  

Lumentum Holdings, Inc.*

    2,522       208,544  

Motorola Solutions, Inc.

    4,074       643,936  

NETGEAR, Inc.* (a)

    8,924       275,038  

NetScout Systems, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       43,790  

Plantronics, Inc.(a)

    9,700       189,344  

Ribbon Communications, Inc.* (a)

    30,846       132,946  

Ubiquiti, Inc.(a)

    388       72,017  

ViaSat, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       46,036  

Viavi Solutions, Inc.* (a)

    7,372       91,044  
              9,326,470  
Construction & Engineering – 0.5%  

AECOM*

    6,208       278,367  

Aegion Corp.*

    7,760       109,494  

Arcosa, Inc.

    1,552       71,656  

Argan, Inc.(a)

    388       15,982  

Comfort Systems USA, Inc.

    1,164       53,311  

Construction Partners, Inc., Class A* (a)

    1,164       23,722  

Dycom Industries, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       100,787  

EMCOR Group, Inc.

    1,746       119,060  

Fluor Corp.(a)

    28,518       323,679  

Granite Construction, Inc.(a)

    3,880       74,923  

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp.* (a)

    12,804       132,265  

Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc.

    5,432       516,040  

MasTec, Inc.* (a)

    16,296       808,933  

MYR Group, Inc.*

    3,104       132,696  

Primoris Services Corp.

    12,804       241,611  

Quanta Services, Inc.

    38,606       2,410,173  

Tutor Perini Corp.* (a)

    11,834       159,877  

Valmont Industries, Inc.

    582       82,615  

WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp.* (a)

    4,850       90,113  
              5,745,304  
Construction Materials – 0.1%  

Eagle Materials, Inc.

    1,358       115,770  

Forterra, Inc.*

    5,626       73,419  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Construction Materials – (continued)  

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.(a)

    1,746     $ 465,047  

Summit Materials, Inc., Class A* (a)

    3,686       65,205  

US Concrete, Inc.*

    5,626       191,059  

Vulcan Materials Co.

    3,492       505,781  
              1,416,281  
Consumer Finance – 0.8%  

Ally Financial, Inc.

    15,132       403,722  

American Express Co.

    24,444       2,230,270  

Capital One Financial Corp.

    17,654       1,290,154  

Credit Acceptance Corp.* (a)

    388       115,671  

Curo Group Holdings Corp.

    4,074       30,514  

Discover Financial Services

    11,834       769,328  

Encore Capital Group, Inc.* (a)

    8,148       260,166  

Enova International, Inc.* (a)

    7,954       122,094  

FirstCash, Inc.

    1,358       70,670  

Green Dot Corp., Class A*

    2,716       144,817  

LendingClub Corp.*

    12,416       57,983  

LendingTree, Inc.* (a)

    194       62,776  

Navient Corp.(a)

    56,260       450,643  

Nelnet, Inc., Class A

    6,014       367,095  

OneMain Holdings, Inc.

    22,116       771,627  

PRA Group, Inc.* (a)

    11,834       403,894  

Santander Consumer USA Holdings, Inc.(a)

    16,684       339,353  

SLM Corp.

    108,640       998,402  

Synchrony Financial

    21,340       533,927  

World Acceptance Corp.* (a)

    194       16,294  
              9,439,400  
Containers & Packaging – 0.6%  

Amcor plc

    54,126       564,534  

AptarGroup, Inc.

    1,552       177,068  

Avery Dennison Corp.

    1,940       268,477  

Ball Corp.

    8,730       776,970  

Berry Global Group, Inc.*

    5,626       262,340  

Crown Holdings, Inc.*

    5,432       466,066  

Graphic Packaging Holding Co.

    8,924       118,600  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      145  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Containers & Packaging – (continued)  

Greif, Inc., Class A

    6,208     $ 251,983  

International Paper Co.

    13,386       585,637  

Myers Industries, Inc.

    388       5,564  

O-I Glass, Inc.(a)

    43,068       406,131  

Packaging Corp. of America

    3,686       422,010  

Sealed Air Corp.

    43,456       1,720,423  

Silgan Holdings, Inc.

    2,328       80,200  

Sonoco Products Co.(a)

    3,104       151,754  

Westrock Co.

    10,282       386,089  
              6,643,846  
Distributors – 0.1%  

Core-Mark Holding Co., Inc.

    1,552       42,447  

Genuine Parts Co.

    4,268       385,955  

LKQ Corp.*

    12,222       390,982  

Pool Corp.

    970       339,335  
              1,158,719  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.3%  

Adtalem Global Education, Inc.*

    2,910       68,210  

American Public Education, Inc.*

    388       10,969  

Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       245,294  

Chegg, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       270,700  

frontdoor, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       76,863  

Graham Holdings Co., Class B

    1,164       442,716  

Grand Canyon Education, Inc.*

    1,552       121,630  

H&R Block, Inc.(a)

    52,574       907,427  

K12, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       32,415  

Laureate Education, Inc., Class A* (a)

    26,578       345,514  

OneSpaWorld Holdings Ltd.(a)

    9,894       61,442  

Perdoceo Education Corp.*

    2,328       26,283  

Service Corp. International

    4,850       224,603  

Strategic Education, Inc.

    776       64,455  

Terminix Global Holdings, Inc.*

    3,686       173,574  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Diversified Consumer Services – (continued)  

WW International, Inc.* (a)

    1,552     $ 32,840  
              3,104,935  
Diversified Financial Services – 1.4%  

Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., Class B*

    73,914       14,923,237  

Cannae Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       86,089  

Equitable Holdings, Inc.

    17,654       379,385  

Jefferies Financial Group, Inc.

    61,886       1,207,396  

Voya Financial, Inc.

    5,238       251,057  
              16,847,164  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.5%  

Anterix, Inc.* (a)

    388       12,385  

AT&T, Inc.

    263,452       7,118,473  

ATN International, Inc.

    388       17,343  

Bandwidth, Inc., Class A* (a)

    388       62,218  

CenturyLink, Inc.(a)

    36,860       317,733  

Cincinnati Bell, Inc.*

    11,058       166,423  

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.

    1,358       75,776  

GCI Liberty, Inc., Class A*

    3,104       252,138  

Iridium Communications, Inc.*

    3,104       81,977  

Liberty Latin America Ltd., Class A*

    17,460       171,108  

Liberty Latin America Ltd., Class C*

    53,794       522,878  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    155,200       8,844,848  

Vonage Holdings Corp.* (a)

    7,566       80,048  
              17,723,348  
Electric Utilities – 1.5%  

ALLETE, Inc.

    1,552       80,052  

Alliant Energy Corp.

    5,238       289,557  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

    18,042       1,622,517  

Avangrid, Inc.

    194       9,572  

Duke Energy Corp.(a)

    27,160       2,501,708  

Edison International

    13,386       750,151  

Entergy Corp.

    5,238       530,190  

Evergy, Inc.

    6,014       331,973  

Eversource Energy

    8,536       744,937  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

146    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electric Utilities – (continued)  

Exelon Corp.

    34,726     $ 1,385,220  

FirstEnergy Corp.

    12,804       380,535  

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc.

    3,492       115,376  

IDACORP, Inc.

    1,552       136,157  

MGE Energy, Inc.

    1,164       75,683  

NextEra Energy, Inc.

    49,664       3,635,901  

NRG Energy, Inc.

    9,894       312,848  

OGE Energy Corp.

    5,820       179,081  

Otter Tail Corp.

    776       29,760  

PG&E Corp.* (a)

    55,290       528,572  

Pinnacle West Capital Corp.

    2,522       205,720  

PNM Resources, Inc.(a)

    2,522       126,100  

Portland General Electric Co.

    2,716       106,739  

PPL Corp.

    26,966       741,565  

Southern Co. (The)

    37,442       2,151,043  

Xcel Energy, Inc.

    13,968       978,179  
              17,949,136  
Electrical Equipment – 0.8%  

Acuity Brands, Inc.(a)

    11,058       985,710  

AMETEK, Inc.

    5,238       514,372  

Atkore International Group, Inc.*

    11,834       244,845  

AZZ, Inc.

    194       6,516  

Eaton Corp. plc

    15,520       1,610,821  

Emerson Electric Co.

    21,728       1,407,757  

Encore Wire Corp.

    776       35,859  

EnerSys(a)

    1,358       97,233  

Generac Holdings, Inc.*

    1,746       366,922  

GrafTech International Ltd.(a)

    26,966       182,021  

Hubbell, Inc.

    1,358       197,603  

nVent Electric plc

    46,172       833,405  

Plug Power, Inc.* (a)

    10,476       146,664  

Regal Beloit Corp.

    12,028       1,186,562  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    3,104       736,020  

Sensata Technologies Holding plc*

    4,656       203,514  

Sunrun, Inc.* (a)

    2,949       153,407  

Thermon Group Holdings, Inc.*

    970       9,787  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electrical Equipment – (continued)  

Vicor Corp.*

    776     $ 60,528  
              8,979,546  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 1.2%  

Amphenol Corp., Class A

    6,984       788,075  

Arrow Electronics, Inc.*

    22,116       1,722,615  

Avnet, Inc.

    28,130       693,967  

Badger Meter, Inc.

    970       71,140  

Belden, Inc.(a)

    12,416       383,406  

Benchmark Electronics, Inc.(a)

    1,164       24,246  

CDW Corp.

    3,492       428,119  

Cognex Corp.

    4,462       294,046  

Coherent, Inc.* (a)

    776       97,109  

Corning, Inc.

    30,264       967,540  

CTS Corp.

    1,164       32,173  

Dolby Laboratories, Inc., Class A

    1,358       101,959  

ePlus, Inc.*

    388       26,194  

Fabrinet* (a)

    1,164       69,863  

FARO Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    582       35,060  

Fitbit, Inc., Class A*

    7,372       51,899  

Flex Ltd.*

    141,038       1,995,688  

FLIR Systems, Inc.

    3,492       121,137  

II-VI, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       149,960  

Insight Enterprises, Inc.* (a)

    10,476       558,895  

IPG Photonics Corp.*

    970       180,381  

Itron, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       79,094  

Jabil, Inc.

    40,740       1,350,124  

Keysight Technologies, Inc.*

    4,850       508,620  

Kimball Electronics, Inc.*

    7,178       86,997  

Knowles Corp.*

    2,910       41,468  

Littelfuse, Inc.

    776       153,601  

Methode Electronics, Inc.

    11,058       340,255  

MTS Systems Corp.(a)

    8,148       197,833  

National Instruments Corp.

    3,104       97,093  

nLight, Inc.* (a)

    388       8,241  

Novanta, Inc.*

    1,164       126,550  

OSI Systems, Inc.*

    582       44,907  

PC Connection, Inc.(a)

    388       17,673  

Plexus Corp.*

    970       67,454  

Rogers Corp.*

    582       70,550  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      147  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – (continued)  

Sanmina Corp.*

    17,848     $ 436,205  

ScanSource, Inc.*

    5,044       101,384  

SYNNEX Corp.

    1,552       204,305  

TE Connectivity Ltd.

    8,924       864,557  

Trimble, Inc.*

    6,790       326,803  

TTM Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    24,056       285,545  

Vishay Intertechnology, Inc.

    6,984       113,280  

Zebra Technologies Corp., Class A*

    1,358       385,183  
              14,701,194  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.3%  

Archrock, Inc.(a)

    28,130       166,811  

Baker Hughes Co.(a)

    27,936       412,615  

Cactus, Inc., Class A

    1,940       32,980  

ChampionX Corp.* (a)

    54,708       477,601  

Core Laboratories NV

    2,522       36,443  

Frank’s International NV*

    54,514       95,399  

Halliburton Co.

    30,264       364,984  

Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.* (a)

    17,848       44,263  

Helmerich & Payne, Inc.

    28,518       424,063  

Liberty Oilfield Services, Inc., Class A(a)

    15,714       104,969  

Nabors Industries Ltd.

    (c)      7  

National Oilwell Varco, Inc.

    6,208       52,147  

NexTier Oilfield Solutions, Inc.*

    65,766       124,298  

Oceaneering International, Inc.* (a)

    35,696       145,640  

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.(a)

    41,516       106,281  

ProPetro Holding Corp.*

    13,774       54,407  

RPC, Inc.* (a)

    31,622       75,260  

Schlumberger NV

    54,514       814,439  

SEACOR Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    582       17,827  

Select Energy Services, Inc., Class A* (a)

    18,430       55,659  

Transocean Ltd.* (a)

    140,844       94,436  
              3,700,529  
Entertainment – 1.3%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

    20,176       1,527,928  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Entertainment – (continued)  

Cinemark Holdings, Inc.(a)

    6,402     $ 52,432  

Electronic Arts, Inc.*

    7,566       906,634  

Glu Mobile, Inc.*

    3,880       27,781  

IMAX Corp.*

    2,328       26,842  

Liberty Media Corp-Liberty Formula One, Class A*

    2,716       90,443  

Liberty Media Corp-Liberty Formula One, Class C*

    2,910       105,138  

Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., Class A*

    17,848       119,582  

Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., Class B*

    36,666       229,896  

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.*

    3,686       179,877  

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp., Class A*

    194       27,478  

Marcus Corp. (The)(a)

    5,044       36,972  

Netflix, Inc.*

    11,058       5,260,733  

Roku, Inc.*

    2,522       510,453  

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.*

    3,104       480,872  

Walt Disney Co. (The)

    45,978       5,574,832  

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., Class A(a)

    1,552       56,431  

Zynga, Inc., Class A* (a)

    25,414       228,472  
              15,442,796  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 2.8%  

Acadia Realty Trust

    5,432       50,681  

Agree Realty Corp.

    1,358       84,291  

Alexander & Baldwin, Inc.

    6,014       77,280  

Alexander’s, Inc.

    194       47,179  

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.

    3,298       499,713  

American Assets Trust, Inc.

    582       12,181  

American Campus Communities, Inc.

    2,134       79,940  

American Finance Trust, Inc.

    12,222       70,460  

American Homes 4 Rent, Class A

    6,790       191,953  

American Tower Corp.

    11,252       2,584,022  

Americold Realty Trust(a)

    5,044       182,744  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

148    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Apartment Investment and Management Co., Class A

    2,522     $ 80,452  

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc.

    9,894       97,951  

Armada Hoffler Properties, Inc.(a)

    1,940       17,479  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    2,910       404,868  

Boston Properties, Inc.

    3,104       224,761  

Brixmor Property Group, Inc.

    10,282       112,691  

Brookfield Property REIT, Inc., Class A(a)

    19,400       286,150  

Camden Property Trust

    2,522       232,629  

CareTrust REIT, Inc.

    3,104       53,078  

CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc., Class A

    2,134       18,544  

Chatham Lodging Trust(a)

    8,924       65,591  

City Office REIT, Inc.

    6,402       40,461  

Colony Capital, Inc.(a)

    125,712       447,535  

Columbia Property Trust, Inc.(a)

    6,014       63,628  

Community Healthcare Trust, Inc.(a)

    776       35,929  

CoreCivic, Inc.(a)

    29,294       187,775  

CoreSite Realty Corp.

    1,164       138,935  

Corporate Office Properties Trust

    3,492       78,326  

Cousins Properties, Inc.(a)

    2,910       74,147  

Crown Castle International Corp.

    10,670       1,666,654  

CubeSmart

    5,238       177,725  

CyrusOne, Inc.

    2,910       206,755  

DiamondRock Hospitality Co.

    66,736       329,676  

Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

    6,984       1,007,791  

Diversified Healthcare Trust

    19,012       55,040  

Douglas Emmett, Inc.

    194       4,578  

Duke Realty Corp.

    9,700       368,503  

EastGroup Properties, Inc.(a)

    970       129,088  

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., Class A(a)

    11,640       62,623  

EPR Properties(a)

    19,788       471,746  

Equinix, Inc.

    2,134       1,560,466  

Equity Commonwealth

    32,592       861,081  

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc.

    4,850       287,071  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Equity Residential

    6,596     $ 309,880  

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc.

    2,910       48,073  

Essex Property Trust, Inc.

    1,164       238,143  

Extra Space Storage, Inc.

    3,492       404,897  

Federal Realty Investment Trust(a)

    1,746       120,090  

First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc.

    4,074       162,186  

Four Corners Property Trust, Inc.

    2,328       58,991  

Front Yard Residential Corp.

    1,746       23,379  

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc.

    7,650       278,077  

GEO Group, Inc. (The)(a)

    35,696       316,267  

Getty Realty Corp.

    776       20,393  

Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc.(a)

    4,074       113,257  

Healthcare Trust of America, Inc., Class A(a)

    5,432       131,998  

Healthpeak Properties, Inc.

    13,192       355,788  

Highwoods Properties, Inc.

    1,940       57,754  

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

    27,548       288,703  

Hudson Pacific Properties, Inc.

    4,074       78,465  

Independence Realty Trust, Inc.

    3,104       37,714  

Industrial Logistics Properties Trust

    2,134       40,930  

Innovative Industrial Properties, Inc.

    582       67,879  

Investors Real Estate Trust

    388       26,155  

Invitation Homes, Inc.

    14,356       391,345  

Iron Mountain, Inc.(a)

    7,566       197,170  

iStar, Inc.(a)

    6,208       73,254  

JBG SMITH Properties

    1,358       31,709  

Kilroy Realty Corp.

    1,164       54,801  

Kimco Realty Corp.

    13,192       135,350  

Kite Realty Group Trust

    3,492       36,177  

Lamar Advertising Co., Class A

    2,328       144,243  

Lexington Realty Trust

    7,760       77,057  

Life Storage, Inc.

    1,552       177,161  

LTC Properties, Inc.

    1,358       44,828  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      149  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Macerich Co. (The)(a)

    8,924     $ 62,111  

Mack-Cali Realty Corp.(a)

    5,626       61,830  

Medical Properties Trust, Inc.

    13,774       245,453  

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc.

    3,104       362,019  

Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corp.

    3,492       48,364  

National Health Investors, Inc.

    1,358       76,116  

National Retail Properties, Inc.(a)

    3,880       124,199  

National Storage Affiliates Trust(a)

    1,940       65,747  

NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc.

    (c)      13  

Office Properties Income Trust(a)

    13,968       257,151  

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.

    5,820       167,674  

Outfront Media, Inc.

    5,238       68,670  

Paramount Group, Inc.(a)

    9,700       56,066  

Park Hotels & Resorts, Inc.(a)

    73,138       726,260  

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust(a)

    41,710       499,686  

Physicians Realty Trust

    6,014       101,396  

PotlatchDeltic Corp.

    2,134       88,668  

Preferred Apartment Communities, Inc., Class A(a)

    18,624       100,570  

Prologis, Inc.

    19,206       1,905,235  

PS Business Parks, Inc.

    582       66,365  

Public Storage

    3,686       844,352  

QTS Realty Trust, Inc., Class A

    1,746       107,396  

Rayonier, Inc.

    1,358       34,466  

Realty Income Corp.

    8,730       505,118  

Regency Centers Corp.

    3,880       138,089  

Retail Opportunity Investments Corp.

    4,656       45,303  

Retail Properties of America, Inc., Class A(a)

    13,580       71,159  

Rexford Industrial Realty, Inc.(a)

    1,940       90,132  

RLJ Lodging Trust(a)

    9,506       77,759  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

RPT Realty

    9,700     $ 47,433  

Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc.

    17,072       680,319  

Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc.

    7,178       94,462  

Safehold, Inc.(a)

    388       26,702  

Saul Centers, Inc.(a)

    1,358       33,610  

SBA Communications Corp.

    2,910       844,977  

Seritage Growth Properties, Class A* (a)

    1,940       24,696  

Service Properties Trust

    41,516       299,330  

Simon Property Group, Inc.(a)

    10,864       682,368  

SITE Centers Corp.(a)

    10,864       73,984  

SL Green Realty Corp.(a)

    2,522       107,967  

Spirit Realty Capital, Inc.(a)

    3,104       93,275  

STAG Industrial, Inc.

    4,656       144,895  

STORE Capital Corp.

    5,626       144,588  

Summit Hotel Properties, Inc.

    10,864       57,362  

Sun Communities, Inc.

    2,522       347,103  

Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc.

    9,700       71,974  

Tanger Factory Outlet Centers, Inc.(a)

    9,506       58,842  

Taubman Centers, Inc.

    1,552       51,868  

Terreno Realty Corp.(a)

    2,134       120,102  

UDR, Inc.

    6,208       193,938  

Uniti Group, Inc.(a)

    6,208       54,755  

Universal Health Realty Income Trust

    388       20,746  

Urban Edge Properties

    5,044       47,414  

Urstadt Biddle Properties, Inc., Class A(a)

    9,700       92,247  

Ventas, Inc.

    9,894       390,516  

VEREIT, Inc.

    27,354       169,595  

VICI Properties, Inc.

    16,878       387,350  

Vornado Realty Trust(a)

    5,238       160,964  

Weingarten Realty Investors

    4,462       70,767  

Welltower, Inc.

    10,476       563,295  

Weyerhaeuser Co.

    16,490       450,012  

WP Carey, Inc.

    4,656       291,512  

Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

    37,830       311,719  
              32,480,339  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

150    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.4%  

Andersons, Inc. (The)

    8,730     $ 189,354  

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    38,412       1,470,795  

Casey’s General Stores, Inc.

    970       163,513  

Costco Wholesale Corp.

    11,252       4,023,940  

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp.*

    1,552       68,319  

HF Foods Group, Inc.* (a)

    11,252       74,151  

Ingles Markets, Inc., Class A(a)

    2,328       83,482  

Kroger Co. (The)

    31,234       1,006,047  

Performance Food Group Co.*

    3,298       110,846  

PriceSmart, Inc.(a)

    582       40,158  

Rite Aid Corp.* (a)

    1,746       15,958  

SpartanNash Co.

    10,670       196,435  

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       70,218  

Sysco Corp.

    18,236       1,008,633  

United Natural Foods, Inc.* (a)

    15,714       228,953  

US Foods Holding Corp.*

    63,632       1,329,909  

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.

    24,638       838,678  

Walmart, Inc.

    35,696       4,952,820  

Weis Markets, Inc.(a)

    582       26,429  
              15,898,638  
Food Products – 1.0%  

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.

    19,594       906,027  

B&G Foods, Inc.(a)

    18,818       499,806  

Beyond Meat, Inc.*

    1,164       165,789  

Bunge Ltd.

    4,074       231,118  

Calavo Growers, Inc.(a)

    582       39,070  

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc.*

    970       37,199  

Campbell Soup Co.

    4,462       208,242  

Conagra Brands, Inc.

    19,400       680,746  

Darling Ingredients, Inc.*

    5,238       225,234  

Flowers Foods, Inc.

    6,014       141,810  

Freshpet, Inc.*

    1,164       133,278  

General Mills, Inc.

    23,668       1,399,252  

Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (The)* (a)

    2,522       77,551  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – (continued)  

Hershey Co. (The)

    3,880     $ 533,345  

Hormel Foods Corp.(a)

    7,372       358,943  

Hostess Brands, Inc.* (a)

    4,074       51,495  

Ingredion, Inc.

    18,042       1,278,997  

J & J Snack Foods Corp.(a)

    388       52,601  

J M Smucker Co. (The)(a)

    3,880       435,336  

John B Sanfilippo & Son, Inc.

    388       28,231  

Kellogg Co.

    6,984       439,224  

Kraft Heinz Co. (The)

    21,922       670,594  

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.

    2,910       184,639  

Lancaster Colony Corp.

    582       96,693  

McCormick & Co., Inc. (Non-Voting)

    3,298       595,322  

Mondelez International, Inc., Class A

    36,860       1,958,003  

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp.*

    2,134       35,723  

Post Holdings, Inc.*

    1,746       149,981  

Sanderson Farms, Inc.(a)

    582       74,479  

Seneca Foods Corp., Class A* (a)

    582       21,447  

Simply Good Foods Co. (The)* (a)

    2,716       51,061  

Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc.

    (c)      10  

TreeHouse Foods, Inc.* (a)

    388       15,070  

Tyson Foods, Inc., Class A

    10,282       588,439  
              12,364,755  
Gas Utilities – 0.2%  

Atmos Energy Corp.

    1,940       177,840  

Chesapeake Utilities Corp.(a)

    582       56,576  

National Fuel Gas Co.(a)

    25,026       1,000,039  

New Jersey Resources Corp.(a)

    3,104       90,575  

ONE Gas, Inc.

    1,746       120,544  

South Jersey Industries, Inc.(a)

    388       7,477  

Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc.

    1,746       114,747  

Spire, Inc.

    1,552       86,974  

UGI Corp.

    7,954       257,232  
              1,912,004  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 2.7%  

Abbott Laboratories

    45,202       4,751,182  

ABIOMED, Inc.*

    1,164       293,188  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      151  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – (continued)  

Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc.* (a)

    1,358     $ 12,792  

Align Technology, Inc.*

    1,940       826,595  

AngioDynamics, Inc.*

    776       8,024  

Antares Pharma, Inc.* (a)

    970       2,648  

AtriCure, Inc.*

    1,358       46,932  

Avanos Medical, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       54,863  

Baxter International, Inc.

    13,386       1,038,352  

Becton Dickinson and Co.

    6,790       1,569,373  

Boston Scientific Corp.*

    33,174       1,136,873  

Cantel Medical Corp.(a)

    1,164       55,686  

Cardiovascular Systems, Inc.*

    970       34,581  

Cerus Corp.* (a)

    1,552       8,148  

CONMED Corp.(a)

    970       75,631  

Cooper Cos., Inc. (The)

    1,358       433,270  

CryoLife, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       22,760  

CryoPort, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       46,723  

Danaher Corp.

    16,102       3,696,053  

Dentsply Sirona, Inc.

    6,014       283,801  

DexCom, Inc.*

    2,328       743,982  

Edwards Lifesciences Corp.*

    16,296       1,168,260  

Envista Holdings Corp.* (a)

    5,044       133,262  

Establishment Labs Holdings, Inc.*

    388       9,712  

Glaukos Corp.* (a)

    776       43,394  

Globus Medical, Inc., Class A*

    2,522       131,447  

Haemonetics Corp.*

    776       78,446  

Heska Corp.* (a)

    194       22,762  

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc.

    1,746       159,008  

Hologic, Inc.*

    7,178       493,990  

ICU Medical, Inc.*

    582       103,474  

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.*

    2,134       906,566  

Insulet Corp.* (a)

    1,746       388,048  

Integer Holdings Corp.*

    970       56,697  

Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corp.* (a)

    2,328       102,665  

Intuitive Surgical, Inc.*

    2,910       1,941,203  

iRhythm Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    970       205,106  

Lantheus Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       16,855  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – (continued)  

LeMaitre Vascular, Inc.(a)

    388     $ 12,602  

LivaNova plc*

    1,164       58,596  

Masimo Corp.*

    1,358       303,948  

Medtronic plc

    33,368       3,355,820  

Merit Medical Systems, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       87,387  

Natus Medical, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       24,729  

Neogen Corp.*

    1,746       121,766  

Nevro Corp.*

    970       144,734  

Novocure Ltd.*

    2,134       260,561  

NuVasive, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       77,575  

OraSure Technologies, Inc.*

    582       8,695  

Orthofix Medical, Inc.*

    776       24,258  

Penumbra, Inc.* (a)

    970       253,199  

Quidel Corp.* (a)

    1,164       312,290  

ResMed, Inc.

    3,880       744,727  

STAAR Surgical Co.* (a)

    970       70,325  

STERIS plc

    2,328       412,498  

Stryker Corp.

    8,342       1,685,167  

Surmodics, Inc.*

    388       14,259  

Tactile Systems Technology, Inc.* (a)

    388       14,193  

Tandem Diabetes Care, Inc.*

    1,940       211,460  

Teleflex, Inc.

    1,164       370,420  

Varian Medical Systems, Inc.*

    1,940       335,232  

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.

    1,940       527,816  

Wright Medical Group NV*

    4,074       124,624  

Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.

    5,432       717,567  
              31,376,800  
Health Care Providers & Services – 2.8%  

1Life Healthcare, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       43,782  

Acadia Healthcare Co., Inc.* (a)

    25,414       906,009  

Addus HomeCare Corp.* (a)

    388       37,857  

Amedisys, Inc.*

    970       251,230  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    6,014       577,765  

AMN Healthcare Services, Inc.*

    1,552       101,315  

Anthem, Inc.

    9,118       2,487,390  

BioTelemetry, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       49,563  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

152    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

Brookdale Senior Living, Inc.* (a)

    70,810     $ 208,181  

Cardinal Health, Inc.

    10,670       488,579  

Centene Corp.*

    22,698       1,341,452  

Chemed Corp.

    388       185,588  

Cigna Corp.

    13,192       2,202,668  

Community Health Systems, Inc.* (a)

    29,100       181,584  

CorVel Corp.* (a)

    194       17,697  

Covetrus, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       81,428  

CVS Health Corp.

    47,918       2,687,721  

DaVita, Inc.* (a)

    3,492       301,185  

Encompass Health Corp.

    2,716       166,518  

Ensign Group, Inc. (The)(a)

    1,552       91,320  

Guardant Health, Inc.*

    1,746       186,228  

HCA Healthcare, Inc.

    10,088       1,250,307  

HealthEquity, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       59,934  

Henry Schein, Inc.*

    4,656       296,029  

Humana, Inc.

    4,850       1,936,508  

Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings*

    3,880       775,108  

LHC Group, Inc.*

    970       210,054  

Magellan Health, Inc.*

    1,358       98,143  

McKesson Corp.

    6,402       944,231  

MEDNAX, Inc.* (a)

    25,220       321,555  

Molina Healthcare, Inc.*

    2,522       470,277  

National Research Corp.

    388       20,098  

Option Care Health, Inc.* (a)

    4,656       62,065  

Owens & Minor, Inc.(a)

    18,624       467,835  

Patterson Cos., Inc.(a)

    23,862       593,567  

Premier, Inc., Class A

    3,298       107,944  

Providence Service Corp. (The)*

    388       45,609  

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

    3,686       450,208  

R1 RCM, Inc.*

    3,686       66,053  

RadNet, Inc.*

    1,358       19,705  

Select Medical Holdings Corp.*

    3,492       73,262  

Surgery Partners, Inc.* (a)

    6,014       131,225  

Tenet Healthcare Corp.*

    30,070       737,918  

Tivity Health, Inc.*

    11,252       154,715  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

Triple-S Management Corp., Class B* (a)

    5,820     $ 107,786  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    35,696       10,892,277  

Universal Health Services, Inc., Class B

    2,522       276,285  

US Physical Therapy, Inc.

    388       30,780  
              33,194,538  
Health Care Technology – 0.4%  

Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, Inc.* (a)

    45,008       453,681  

Cerner Corp.

    8,342       584,691  

Change Healthcare, Inc.*

    64,020       905,883  

Computer Programs and Systems, Inc.

    3,880       108,213  

Evolent Health, Inc., Class A* (a)

    21,146       210,191  

HealthStream, Inc.*

    388       7,100  

HMS Holdings Corp.* (a)

    2,910       77,464  

Inovalon Holdings, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,716       51,577  

Inspire Medical Systems, Inc.* (a)

    388       46,339  

Livongo Health, Inc.* (d)

    1,358       189,808  

Omnicell, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       117,535  

Teladoc Health, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       419,246  

Veeva Systems, Inc., Class A*

    3,492       943,014  

Vocera Communications, Inc.* (a)

    970       31,797  
              4,146,539  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 2.3%  

Aramark

    6,790       188,355  

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc.(a)

    2,910       82,091  

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc.(a)

    23,280       325,454  

Boyd Gaming Corp.

    20,758       658,444  

Brinker International, Inc.(a)

    12,998       565,933  

Caesars Entertainment, Inc.*

    57,424       2,573,744  

Carnival Corp.(a)

    18,236       250,016  

Cheesecake Factory, Inc. (The)(a)

    12,222       363,238  

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.*

    776       932,348  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      153  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Choice Hotels International, Inc.(a)

    970     $ 84,729  

Churchill Downs, Inc.

    1,164       173,611  

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.(a)

    6,790       772,838  

Darden Restaurants, Inc.

    3,104       285,320  

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc.

    17,072       292,956  

Denny’s Corp.* (a)

    1,940       17,382  

Dine Brands Global, Inc.(a)

    4,268       219,589  

Domino’s Pizza, Inc.

    970       366,970  

Dunkin’ Brands Group, Inc.

    1,746       174,094  

Everi Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    11,058       95,209  

Extended Stay America, Inc.

    9,312       105,691  

Hilton Grand Vacations, Inc.*

    23,862       491,557  

Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

    7,566       664,370  

Hyatt Hotels Corp., Class A(a)

    1,164       64,183  

Jack in the Box, Inc.

    582       46,595  

Las Vegas Sands Corp.

    7,372       354,298  

Marriott International, Inc., Class A

    6,208       576,599  

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corp.

    11,640       1,124,424  

McDonald’s Corp.

    19,012       4,049,556  

MGM Resorts International(a)

    14,550       299,294  

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.* (a)

    81,286       1,351,786  

Papa John’s International, Inc.(a)

    776       59,442  

Penn National Gaming, Inc.* (a)

    41,516       2,241,034  

Planet Fitness, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,134       126,482  

Red Rock Resorts, Inc., Class A(a)

    2,328       44,511  

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.(a)

    6,014       339,310  

Ruth’s Hospitality Group, Inc.(a)

    15,132       169,176  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Scientific Games Corp.* (a)

    15,908     $ 507,147  

SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc.* (a)

    3,880       85,438  

Shake Shack, Inc., Class A* (a)

    970       65,494  

Six Flags Entertainment Corp.(a)

    25,026       541,062  

Starbucks Corp.

    30,070       2,614,887  

Texas Roadhouse, Inc.

    2,134       149,444  

Vail Resorts, Inc.

    1,164       270,095  

Wendy’s Co. (The)

    5,820       127,167  

Wingstop, Inc.(a)

    970       112,840  

Wyndham Destinations, Inc.

    25,026       816,598  

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

    1,940       90,229  

Wynn Resorts Ltd.(a)

    2,328       168,617  

Yum! Brands, Inc.

    7,178       669,923  
              26,749,570  
Household Durables – 1.0%  

Cavco Industries, Inc.* (a)

    194       33,395  

Century Communities, Inc.*

    8,342       324,003  

DR Horton, Inc.

    13,386       894,319  

Ethan Allen Interiors, Inc.

    7,178       115,207  

Garmin Ltd.

    3,880       403,598  

GoPro, Inc., Class A* (a)

    3,104       18,438  

Green Brick Partners, Inc.*

    8,148       145,768  

Helen of Troy Ltd.* (a)

    776       147,130  

Installed Building Products, Inc.*

    776       70,259  

iRobot Corp.* (a)

    776       61,754  

KB Home

    25,414       819,601  

La-Z-Boy, Inc.(a)

    1,552       53,125  

Leggett & Platt, Inc.(a)

    1,940       80,956  

Lennar Corp., Class A

    11,058       776,603  

Lennar Corp., Class B

    582       33,110  

LGI Homes, Inc.* (a)

    6,596       704,980  

M/I Homes, Inc.*

    8,342       341,355  

MDC Holdings, Inc.

    14,744       641,659  

Meritage Homes Corp.*

    10,670       929,250  

Mohawk Industries, Inc.*

    1,746       180,170  

Newell Brands, Inc.

    13,192       232,971  

NVR, Inc.*

    88       347,872  

PulteGroup, Inc.

    10,282       419,094  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

154    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Household Durables – (continued)  

Skyline Champion Corp.* (a)

    1,940     $ 49,761  

Sonos, Inc.*

    2,328       33,989  

Taylor Morrison Home Corp., Class A*

    34,920       754,272  

Tempur Sealy International, Inc.*

    1,358       120,862  

Toll Brothers, Inc.

    32,010       1,353,383  

TopBuild Corp.*

    1,164       178,336  

TRI Pointe Group, Inc.*

    41,128       675,733  

Universal Electronics, Inc.*

    2,910       107,845  

Whirlpool Corp.(a)

    2,522       466,469  
              11,515,267  
Household Products – 1.2%  

Central Garden & Pet Co.* (a)

    1,746       68,024  

Central Garden & Pet Co., Class A*

    2,716       96,119  

Church & Dwight Co., Inc.

    6,596       583,020  

Clorox Co. (The)(a)

    3,298       683,511  

Colgate-Palmolive Co.

    22,310       1,760,036  

Energizer Holdings, Inc.(a)

    2,716       106,875  

Kimberly-Clark Corp.

    8,924       1,183,233  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    62,856       8,617,558  

Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc.

    10,864       617,836  

WD-40 Co.(a)

    388       94,431  
              13,810,643  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.1%
 

AES Corp. (The)

    21,146       412,347  

Clearway Energy, Inc., Class A

    1,164       30,508  

Clearway Energy, Inc., Class C

    2,522       71,020  

Ormat Technologies, Inc.(a)

    1,552       109,990  

Vistra Corp.

    19,982       347,087  
              970,952  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.7%  

3M Co.

    13,774       2,203,289  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Industrial Conglomerates – (continued)  

Carlisle Cos., Inc.

    1,552     $ 192,246  

General Electric Co.

    331,352       2,458,632  

Honeywell International, Inc.

    17,460       2,880,027  

Roper Technologies, Inc.

    2,716       1,008,560  
              8,742,754  
Insurance – 2.9%  

Aflac, Inc.

    25,996       882,564  

Alleghany Corp.

    388       212,209  

Allstate Corp. (The)

    12,222       1,084,702  

American Equity Investment Life Holding Co.(a)

    26,772       664,481  

American Financial Group, Inc.

    3,492       261,690  

American International Group, Inc.

    33,756       1,062,976  

American National Group, Inc.

    2,522       173,514  

AMERISAFE, Inc.

    582       34,326  

Aon plc, Class A(a)

    5,820       1,070,938  

Arch Capital Group Ltd.*

    15,520       468,859  

Argo Group International Holdings Ltd.

    2,328       83,063  

Arthur J Gallagher & Co.

    5,044       523,113  

Assurant, Inc.

    2,328       289,533  

Assured Guaranty Ltd.

    23,280       594,338  

Athene Holding Ltd., Class A*

    36,860       1,182,469  

Axis Capital Holdings Ltd.

    23,280       993,823  

Brighthouse Financial, Inc.* (a)

    27,160       898,996  

Brown & Brown, Inc.

    6,208       270,110  

Chubb Ltd.

    16,102       2,091,811  

Cincinnati Financial Corp.

    3,104       219,577  

CNO Financial Group, Inc.(a)

    38,024       674,926  

eHealth, Inc.*

    582       39,058  

Employers Holdings, Inc.

    970       31,050  

Enstar Group Ltd.*

    388       66,686  

Erie Indemnity Co., Class A(a)

    194       45,177  

Everest Re Group Ltd.

    970       191,168  

FBL Financial Group, Inc., Class A(a)

    4,268       212,077  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      155  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

Fidelity National Financial, Inc.

    12,057     $ 377,264  

First American Financial Corp.

    31,816       1,418,675  

Genworth Financial, Inc., Class A* (a)

    134,830       529,882  

Globe Life, Inc.

    2,910       235,972  

Goosehead Insurance, Inc., Class A(a)

    388       47,546  

Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (The)

    9,894       946,460  

Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    13,968       538,047  

HCI Group, Inc.

    1,358       63,799  

Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc.

    7,566       71,423  

Horace Mann Educators Corp.

    1,358       46,050  

James River Group Holdings Ltd.

    970       45,328  

Kemper Corp.

    17,072       1,052,660  

Kinsale Capital Group, Inc.

    582       109,108  

Lincoln National Corp.(a)

    7,566       265,567  

Loews Corp.

    9,118       316,212  

Markel Corp.*

    347       323,682  

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc.

    13,192       1,364,844  

MBIA, Inc.* (a)

    10,476       59,818  

Mercury General Corp.

    7,178       292,216  

MetLife, Inc.

    28,906       1,094,092  

National General Holdings Corp.

    19,400       659,018  

National Western Life Group, Inc., Class A(a)

    582       98,725  

Old Republic International Corp.

    83,614       1,361,236  

Palomar Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    582       51,897  

Primerica, Inc.

    1,164       128,319  

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

    9,700       380,434  

ProAssurance Corp.(a)

    3,880       59,868  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    22,698       2,085,946  

Prudential Financial, Inc.

    15,520       993,590  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Insurance – (continued)  

Reinsurance Group of America, Inc.

    1,940     $ 195,979  

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd.

    1,746       282,363  

RLI Corp.

    1,358       117,739  

Safety Insurance Group, Inc.

    388       27,160  

Selective Insurance Group, Inc.

    1,940       100,996  

State Auto Financial Corp.

    776       9,576  

Stewart Information Services Corp.

    6,984       296,052  

Third Point Reinsurance Ltd.* (a)

    23,086       179,609  

Travelers Cos., Inc. (The)

    8,730       1,053,798  

Trupanion, Inc.* (a)

    970       69,394  

United Fire Group, Inc.

    776       15,939  

United Insurance Holdings Corp.

    6,208       27,253  

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.

    8,342       104,025  

Unum Group(a)

    57,424       1,014,108  

W R Berkley Corp.

    3,880       233,266  

Willis Towers Watson plc

    3,492       637,220  
              33,705,389  
Interactive Media & Services – 3.7%  

Alphabet, Inc., Class A*

    7,566       12,227,488  

Alphabet, Inc., Class C*

    7,372       11,950,086  

ANGI Homeservices, Inc., Class A*

    1,746       18,508  

Cars.com, Inc.* (a)

    10,476       77,418  

Facebook, Inc., Class A*

    60,722       15,976,565  

IAC/InterActiveCorp*

    1,940       234,197  

Match Group, Inc.*

    6,790       792,936  

Pinterest, Inc., Class A*

    10,864       640,433  

Snap, Inc., Class A*

    20,952       825,299  

TripAdvisor, Inc.

    3,492       66,732  

Twitter, Inc.*

    20,564       850,527  

Yelp, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       41,976  

Zillow Group, Inc., Class A*

    776       69,320  

Zillow Group, Inc., Class C* (a)

    3,492       309,461  
              44,080,946  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

156    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 3.3%  

Amazon.com, Inc.*

    10,670     $ 32,395,720  

Booking Holdings, Inc.*

    970       1,573,825  

Chewy, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,522       155,355  

eBay, Inc.

    17,654       840,860  

Etsy, Inc.*

    3,104       377,415  

Expedia Group, Inc.

    2,910       273,976  

Groupon, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       56,425  

GrubHub, Inc.*

    2,910       215,224  

MercadoLibre, Inc.*

    1,164       1,413,154  

Overstock.com, Inc.* (a)

    582       32,650  

PetMed Express, Inc.(a)

    776       22,954  

Quotient Technology, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       18,993  

Qurate Retail, Inc., Series A

    113,684       769,641  

Stamps.com, Inc.*

    582       129,926  

Stitch Fix, Inc., Class A* (a)

    1,164       40,077  

Wayfair, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,716       673,649  
              38,989,844  
IT Services – 4.2%  

Accenture plc, Class A

    16,296       3,534,765  

Akamai Technologies, Inc.*

    4,268       405,972  

Alliance Data Systems Corp.

    14,356       739,908  

Automatic Data Processing, Inc.

    10,088       1,593,501  

Black Knight, Inc.*

    3,880       341,246  

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp.

    3,686       289,351  

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

    2,910       400,416  

CACI International, Inc., Class A*

    776       161,819  

Cardtronics plc, Class A* (a)

    8,342       148,571  

Cass Information Systems, Inc.(a)

    194       7,609  

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Class A

    19,400       1,385,548  

Conduent, Inc.* (a)

    69,258       241,364  

CSG Systems International, Inc.

    970       36,744  

DXC Technology Co.

    70,422       1,297,173  

Endurance International Group Holdings, Inc.*

    24,444       142,020  
Investments   Shares     Value  
IT Services – (continued)  

EPAM Systems, Inc.*

    1,358     $ 419,554  

Euronet Worldwide, Inc.*

    1,358       120,645  

EVERTEC, Inc.

    1,940       64,563  

Evo Payments, Inc., Class A*

    1,552       32,701  

ExlService Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       88,161  

Fastly, Inc., Class A* (a)

    1,358       86,247  

Fidelity National Information Services, Inc.

    15,326       1,909,466  

Fiserv, Inc.*

    14,550       1,389,089  

FleetCor Technologies, Inc.*

    1,940       428,565  

Gartner, Inc.*

    1,940       232,994  

Genpact Ltd.

    4,074       140,023  

Global Payments, Inc.

    7,760       1,224,062  

GoDaddy, Inc., Class A*

    4,656       329,366  

GTT Communications, Inc.* (a)

    3,686       13,601  

International Business Machines Corp.

    32,592       3,639,223  

International Money Express, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       40,478  

Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.

    2,134       316,366  

KBR, Inc.(a)

    39,188       873,501  

Leidos Holdings, Inc.

    3,492       289,836  

Limelight Networks, Inc.* (a)

    4,074       14,381  

LiveRamp Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       141,036  

ManTech International Corp., Class A

    776       50,347  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    22,310       6,439,558  

MAXIMUS, Inc.

    1,940       131,105  

MongoDB, Inc.* (a)

    970       221,616  

NIC, Inc.(a)

    2,134       47,844  

Okta, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       610,605  

Paychex, Inc.

    8,536       702,086  

PayPal Holdings, Inc.*

    29,876       5,560,820  

Perficient, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       45,582  

Perspecta, Inc.(a)

    38,994       699,163  

Sabre Corp.

    91,762       598,288  

Science Applications International Corp.

    1,940       148,158  

Square, Inc., Class A*

    9,118       1,412,196  

Switch, Inc., Class A

    1,746       24,549  

Sykes Enterprises, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       99,638  

TTEC Holdings, Inc.

    582       31,882  

Tucows, Inc., Class A* (a)

    388       28,631  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      157  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – (continued)  

Twilio, Inc., Class A*

    3,298     $ 920,043  

Unisys Corp.* (a)

    14,938       196,285  

VeriSign, Inc.*

    2,716       517,941  

Virtusa Corp.*

    970       48,791  

Visa, Inc., Class A(a)

    42,680       7,755,383  

Western Union Co. (The)(a)

    16,878       328,108  

WEX, Inc.*

    1,164       147,304  
              49,285,788  
Leisure Products – 0.3%  

Acushnet Holdings Corp.(a)

    1,164       39,727  

Brunswick Corp.

    2,522       160,677  

Callaway Golf Co.

    4,462       69,116  

Hasbro, Inc.

    3,298       272,810  

Johnson Outdoors, Inc., Class A

    388       33,884  

Malibu Boats, Inc., Class A* (a)

    6,014       305,692  

Mattel, Inc.*

    3,686       50,756  

Peloton Interactive, Inc., Class A*

    5,238       577,280  

Polaris, Inc.

    16,296       1,480,655  

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc.

    4,462       74,025  

Sturm Ruger & Co., Inc.

    582       38,912  

Vista Outdoor, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       38,354  

YETI Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       67,194  
              3,209,082  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.9%  

10X Genomics, Inc., Class A*

    970       132,793  

Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp.* (a)

    2,134       98,335  

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

    8,148       831,829  

Avantor, Inc.*

    6,014       139,946  

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., Class A*

    582       341,296  

Bio-Techne Corp.

    970       244,838  

Bruker Corp.

    2,716       115,539  

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.*

    1,358       309,217  

Codexis, Inc.*

    1,746       23,239  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – (continued)  

Illumina, Inc.*

    3,686     $ 1,078,892  

IQVIA Holdings, Inc.*

    4,850       746,851  

Luminex Corp.

    1,164       25,654  

Medpace Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    970       107,612  

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.*

    582       580,784  

NanoString Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       42,661  

NeoGenomics, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       129,380  

PerkinElmer, Inc.

    2,910       376,990  

PPD, Inc.*

    1,358       44,651  

PRA Health Sciences, Inc.*

    1,746       170,130  

Repligen Corp.*

    1,552       258,517  

Syneos Health, Inc.* (a)

    2,522       133,868  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

    10,088       4,772,835  

Waters Corp.*

    1,746       389,044  
              11,094,901  
Machinery – 2.6%  

AGCO Corp.

    17,072       1,315,056  

Alamo Group, Inc.(a)

    388       46,688  

Albany International Corp., Class A

    970       49,412  

Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc.

    30,264       1,094,044  

Altra Industrial Motion Corp.(a)

    17,072       729,999  

Astec Industries, Inc.(a)

    582       29,566  

Barnes Group, Inc.

    1,552       56,958  

Blue Bird Corp.*

    3,880       44,775  

Caterpillar, Inc.

    20,564       3,229,576  

Chart Industries, Inc.* (a)

    10,088       851,932  

CIRCOR International, Inc.* (a)

    6,790       189,441  

Colfax Corp.* (a)

    28,130       764,855  

Columbus McKinnon Corp.

    776       26,299  

Crane Co.

    13,386       679,339  

Cummins, Inc.

    5,820       1,279,760  

Deere & Co.

    11,446       2,585,766  

Donaldson Co., Inc.

    776       36,860  

Douglas Dynamics, Inc.

    776       26,469  

Dover Corp.

    3,880       429,555  

EnPro Industries, Inc.

    388       22,900  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

158    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Machinery – (continued)  

ESCO Technologies, Inc.

    970     $ 81,179  

Evoqua Water Technologies Corp.*

    1,940       44,484  

Federal Signal Corp.

    1,940       55,639  

Flowserve Corp.

    3,492       101,687  

Fortive Corp.

    6,984       430,214  

Franklin Electric Co., Inc.

    1,164       69,526  

Gates Industrial Corp. plc*

    13,774       152,891  

Gorman-Rupp Co. (The)

    776       24,095  

Graco, Inc.

    4,462       276,198  

Greenbrier Cos., Inc. (The)(a)

    9,700       261,706  

Helios Technologies, Inc.

    388       16,234  

Hillenbrand, Inc.(a)

    19,594       573,124  

Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc.

    388       16,451  

IDEX Corp.

    1,552       264,445  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

    7,566       1,482,028  

Ingersoll Rand, Inc.*

    8,730       305,026  

ITT, Inc.

    2,716       164,345  

John Bean Technologies Corp.(a)

    970       81,451  

Kadant, Inc.(a)

    388       44,667  

Kennametal, Inc.(a)

    4,074       126,294  

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc.

    1,552       158,025  

Lindsay Corp.

    388       40,856  

Luxfer Holdings plc

    1,164       14,457  

Manitowoc Co., Inc. (The)*

    9,506       71,580  

Meritor, Inc.*

    21,728       528,860  

Middleby Corp. (The)* (a)

    15,908       1,583,482  

Miller Industries, Inc.

    1,552       46,467  

Mueller Industries, Inc.

    582       16,837  

Mueller Water Products, Inc., Class A

    5,432       56,276  

Navistar International Corp.* (a)

    17,072       735,974  

Nordson Corp.

    1,358       262,678  

Oshkosh Corp.

    19,012       1,280,648  

Otis Worldwide Corp.

    9,312       570,639  

PACCAR, Inc.

    13,774       1,176,024  

Parker-Hannifin Corp.

    3,492       727,593  

Pentair plc

    4,268       212,376  

Proto Labs, Inc.* (a)

    776       91,630  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

RBC Bearings, Inc.*

    776     $ 92,383  

REV Group, Inc.(a)

    7,954       62,439  

Rexnord Corp.(a)

    4,850       155,588  

Snap-on, Inc.(a)

    1,746       275,047  

SPX Corp.* (a)

    1,552       65,789  

SPX FLOW, Inc.*

    1,552       65,727  

Standex International Corp.(a)

    388       24,091  

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

    5,432       902,798  

Tennant Co.

    388       23,133  

Terex Corp.(a)

    19,400       478,986  

Timken Co. (The)

    18,430       1,100,271  

Toro Co. (The)

    2,716       222,984  

TriMas Corp.*

    1,552       37,760  

Trinity Industries, Inc.(a)

    3,104       58,479  

Wabash National Corp.(a)

    17,072       243,447  

Watts Water Technologies, Inc., Class A

    776       85,958  

Welbilt, Inc.*

    12,028       73,130  

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp.

    5,044       299,109  

Woodward, Inc.(a)

    1,552       123,462  

Xylem, Inc.

    4,268       371,914  
              30,397,831  
Marine – 0.0%(e)  

Kirby Corp.*

    582       22,401  
Media – 1.5%  

Altice USA, Inc., Class A*

    7,954       214,360  

AMC Networks, Inc., Class A* (a)

    9,700       206,125  

Cable One, Inc.

    194       335,981  

Cardlytics, Inc.* (a)

    388       28,642  

Charter Communications, Inc., Class A* (a)

    3,880       2,342,822  

Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    142,008       126,955  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    170,526       7,203,018  

Discovery, Inc., Class A* (a)

    4,268       86,384  

Discovery, Inc., Class C*

    12,028       220,353  

DISH Network Corp., Class A*

    8,536       217,583  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      159  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Media – (continued)  

EW Scripps Co. (The), Class A(a)

    15,714     $ 142,683  

Fox Corp., Class A(a)

    13,386       354,997  

Fox Corp., Class B

    4,074       106,494  

Gray Television, Inc.* (a)

    25,608       324,710  

iHeartMedia, Inc., Class A* (a)

    22,892       188,172  

Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. (The)

    11,640       210,568  

John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Class A(a)

    1,358       42,044  

Liberty Broadband Corp., Class A* (a)

    582       81,800  

Liberty Broadband Corp., Class C*

    4,268       604,818  

Liberty Media Corp-Liberty SiriusXM, Class A*

    2,134       73,772  

Liberty Media Corp-Liberty SiriusXM, Class C*

    4,850       167,810  

Meredith Corp.(a)

    9,118       100,298  

MSG Networks, Inc., Class A* (a)

    8,924       79,781  

New York Times Co. (The), Class A(a)

    4,656       184,657  

News Corp., Class A

    10,282       135,003  

News Corp., Class B

    3,298       42,940  

Nexstar Media Group, Inc., Class A(a)

    12,610       1,039,064  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    6,014       283,861  

Scholastic Corp.

    970       19,167  

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., Class A(a)

    18,818       349,638  

Sirius XM Holdings, Inc.(a)

    36,666       210,096  

TechTarget, Inc.* (a)

    194       8,497  

TEGNA, Inc.

    61,692       742,155  

Tribune Publishing Co.(a)

    5,626       64,474  

ViacomCBS, Inc.(a)

    21,534       615,226  

ViacomCBS, Inc., Class A

    1,358       40,550  

WideOpenWest, Inc.*

    12,416       61,956  
              17,257,454  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Metals & Mining – 0.8%  

Alcoa Corp.* (a)

    54,126     $ 699,308  

Allegheny Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    31,428       289,452  

Carpenter Technology Corp.(a)

    11,834       206,858  

Century Aluminum Co.*

    10,476       68,932  

Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc.(a)

    117,952       976,643  

Coeur Mining, Inc.* (a)

    7,760       54,863  

Commercial Metals Co.(a)

    34,726       717,092  

Compass Minerals International, Inc.(a)

    1,164       70,282  

Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.

    31,622       548,325  

Hecla Mining Co.(a)

    17,072       78,190  

Kaiser Aluminum Corp.

    3,880       244,168  

Materion Corp.

    582       29,793  

McEwen Mining, Inc.* (a)

    9,312       9,046  

Newmont Corp.

    21,146       1,328,815  

Nucor Corp.

    9,506       454,007  

Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co.

    2,716       296,017  

Royal Gold, Inc.

    1,746       207,442  

Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc., Class A

    3,880       81,480  

Southern Copper Corp.(a)

    2,328       121,848  

Steel Dynamics, Inc.

    58,976       1,856,564  

United States Steel Corp.(a)

    63,826       616,559  

Warrior Met Coal, Inc.(a)

    14,162       212,430  

Worthington Industries, Inc.

    10,864       534,617  
              9,702,731  
Mortgage Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.7%  

AGNC Investment Corp.

    20,758       289,989  

Annaly Capital Management, Inc.

    46,172       327,359  

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc.(a)

    36,278       315,619  

Arbor Realty Trust, Inc.(a)

    30,458       360,014  

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc.(a)

    23,668       225,793  

Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc., Class A(a)

    42,098       913,527  

Capstead Mortgage Corp.

    31,234       159,606  

Chimera Investment Corp.(a)

    75,466       630,141  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

160    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Mortgage Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Colony Credit Real Estate, Inc.(a)

    14,938     $ 78,275  

Dynex Capital, Inc.(a)

    6,014       98,509  

Ellington Financial, Inc.

    13,774       168,594  

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.(a)

    2,328       97,427  

Invesco Mortgage Capital, Inc.(a)

    39,576       106,855  

KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc.

    7,566       126,428  

Ladder Capital Corp.(a)

    30,846       231,345  

MFA Financial, Inc.

    108,834       306,912  

New Residential Investment Corp.(a)

    120,280       902,100  

New York Mortgage Trust, Inc.(a)

    90,598       230,119  

PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust(a)

    29,294       438,531  

Ready Capital Corp.(a)

    14,356       161,361  

Redwood Trust, Inc.(a)

    33,368       283,628  

Starwood Property Trust, Inc.

    84,584       1,181,638  

TPG RE Finance Trust, Inc.(a)

    23,086       180,532  

Two Harbors Investment Corp.(a)

    67,900       343,574  
              8,157,876  
Multiline Retail – 0.6%  

Big Lots, Inc.(a)

    11,446       544,830  

Dillard’s, Inc., Class A(a)

    4,462       199,585  

Dollar General Corp.

    6,596       1,376,651  

Dollar Tree, Inc.*

    6,208       560,707  

Kohl’s Corp.(a)

    44,814       954,090  

Macy’s, Inc.(a)

    81,674       507,196  

Nordstrom, Inc.(a)

    28,130       340,373  

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       152,059  

Target Corp.

    19,206       2,923,537  
              7,559,028  
Multi-Utilities – 0.9%  

Ameren Corp.

    6,596       535,068  

Avista Corp.

    2,134       70,891  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Multi-Utilities – (continued)  

Black Hills Corp.(a)

    1,552     $ 87,936  

CenterPoint Energy, Inc.

    21,728       459,113  

CMS Energy Corp.

    6,790       430,011  

Consolidated Edison, Inc.

    11,058       867,942  

Dominion Energy, Inc.

    32,204       2,587,269  

DTE Energy Co.

    6,790       838,022  

MDU Resources Group, Inc.

    57,812       1,373,613  

NiSource, Inc.

    8,730       200,528  

NorthWestern Corp.

    1,552       80,906  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

    18,818       1,094,267  

Sempra Energy

    9,894       1,240,312  

Unitil Corp.

    582       20,108  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    8,342       838,788  
              10,724,774  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 2.2%  

Antero Midstream Corp.(a)

    85,360       489,113  

Antero Resources Corp.* (a)

    70,616       240,094  

Apache Corp.

    10,088       83,730  

Arch Resources, Inc.

    2,716       82,974  

Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc.*

    5,238       92,765  

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.

    12,804       227,783  

Callon Petroleum Co.* (a)

    14,744       77,111  

Centennial Resource Development, Inc., Class A* (a)

    102,820       63,718  

Cheniere Energy, Inc.*

    5,626       269,317  

Chevron Corp.

    48,306       3,357,267  

Cimarex Energy Co.

    30,458       772,719  

Clean Energy Fuels Corp.*

    4,656       11,547  

CNX Resources Corp.*

    10,088       97,854  

Concho Resources, Inc.

    4,850       201,323  

ConocoPhillips

    39,382       1,127,113  

Continental Resources, Inc.(a)

    5,044       60,679  

CVR Energy, Inc.

    11,446       126,020  

Delek US Holdings, Inc.(a)

    13,774       138,566  

Devon Energy Corp.

    105,536       942,436  

Diamond S Shipping, Inc.* (a)

    6,014       34,039  

Diamondback Energy, Inc.(a)

    6,596       171,232  

Dorian LPG Ltd.* (a)

    8,342       68,404  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      161  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

EOG Resources, Inc.

    14,162     $ 484,907  

EQT Corp.

    75,078       1,136,681  

Equitrans Midstream Corp.

    117,758       854,923  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    106,506       3,474,226  

Gulfport Energy Corp.* (a)

    57,812       14,800  

Hess Corp.

    6,596       245,503  

HollyFrontier Corp.

    7,372       136,456  

International Seaways, Inc.

    7,566       102,444  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

    73,914       879,577  

Kosmos Energy Ltd.(a)

    136,576       135,798  

Magnolia Oil & Gas Corp., Class A* (a)

    36,472       158,288  

Marathon Oil Corp.(a)

    217,862       862,734  

Marathon Petroleum Corp.

    25,414       749,713  

Matador Resources Co.*

    31,816       224,939  

Murphy Oil Corp.(a)

    41,904       323,499  

Northern Oil and Gas, Inc.* (a)

    6,072       22,467  

Occidental Petroleum Corp.(a)

    31,234       285,166  

ONEOK, Inc.

    17,654       511,966  

Ovintiv, Inc.(a)

    76,048       699,642  

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    11,446       73,712  

Parsley Energy, Inc., Class A(a)

    10,088       100,981  

PBF Energy, Inc., Class A(a)

    21,340       99,658  

PDC Energy, Inc.* (a)

    4,074       48,562  

Peabody Energy Corp.* (a)

    21,146       27,278  

Phillips 66

    16,684       778,475  

Pioneer Natural Resources Co.

    3,686       293,258  

Range Resources Corp.(a)

    71,198       468,483  

Renewable Energy Group, Inc.*

    11,446       645,554  

REX American Resources Corp.* (a)

    194       14,102  

SM Energy Co.(a)

    42,680       68,715  

Southwestern Energy Co.* (a)

    169,168       451,679  

Talos Energy, Inc.* (a)

    7,760       51,061  

Targa Resources Corp.

    66,736       1,071,113  

Tellurian, Inc.* (a)

    7,372       7,077  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Valero Energy Corp.

    15,908     $ 614,208  

W&T Offshore, Inc.* (a)

    26,772       37,481  

Williams Cos., Inc. (The)

    27,742       532,369  

World Fuel Services Corp.

    18,236       383,868  

WPX Energy, Inc.*

    13,386       61,709  
              25,868,876  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.1%  

Boise Cascade Co.

    1,164       44,674  

Clearwater Paper Corp.* (a)

    1,940       72,071  

Domtar Corp.

    1,552       37,062  

Glatfelter Corp.(a)

    1,552       22,147  

Louisiana-Pacific Corp.

    3,686       105,346  

Mercer International, Inc.

    12,028       75,656  

Neenah, Inc.

    582       21,901  

Schweitzer-Mauduit International, Inc.(a)

    7,372       244,750  

Verso Corp., Class A(a)

    11,058       86,031  
              709,638  
Personal Products – 0.2%  

BellRing Brands, Inc., Class A*

    3,686       67,417  

Coty, Inc., Class A(a)

    87,494       253,733  

Edgewell Personal Care Co.* (a)

    13,968       366,241  

elf Beauty, Inc.*

    970       19,662  

Estee Lauder Cos., Inc. (The), Class A

    5,820       1,278,421  

Herbalife Nutrition Ltd.*

    2,522       113,843  

Inter Parfums, Inc.

    582       23,897  

Medifast, Inc.(a)

    388       54,510  

Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc., Class A

    13,774       679,747  

Revlon, Inc., Class A* (a)

    970       3,977  

USANA Health Sciences, Inc.*

    388       29,352  
              2,890,800  
Pharmaceuticals – 3.0%  

Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       14,408  

Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    29,682       123,477  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

162    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,358     $ 26,603  

ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    388       9,890  

Arvinas, Inc.* (a)

    582       12,170  

Axsome Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    7,178       475,973  

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

    84,390       4,932,596  

Cara Therapeutics, Inc.*

    1,746       23,152  

Catalent, Inc.*

    4,074       357,575  

Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc.* (a)

    970       17,295  

Corcept Therapeutics, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       55,340  

Elanco Animal Health, Inc.*

    7,566       234,622  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    20,564       2,682,780  

Endo International plc* (a)

    63,050       288,139  

Horizon Therapeutics plc*

    5,238       392,483  

Innoviva, Inc.* (a)

    10,088       109,051  

Intra-Cellular Therapies, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       43,074  

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc*

    2,134       307,509  

Johnson & Johnson

    66,348       9,096,974  

Lannett Co., Inc.* (a)

    9,312       59,876  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    64,214       4,829,535  

Mylan NV*

    20,758       301,821  

MyoKardia, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       346,919  

Nektar Therapeutics* (a)

    5,044       79,897  

Odonate Therapeutics, Inc.*

    1,552       22,364  

Omeros Corp.* (a)

    1,746       17,705  

Pacira BioSciences, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       71,023  

Perrigo Co. plc

    5,432       238,302  

Pfizer, Inc.

    205,446       7,289,224  

Phibro Animal Health Corp., Class A

    970       15,947  

Prestige Consumer Healthcare, Inc.* (a)

    14,744       486,994  

Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Class A* (a)

    776       90,567  

Revance Therapeutics, Inc.*

    1,940       50,207  

Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       32,057  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Zoetis, Inc.

    12,222     $ 1,937,798  

Zogenix, Inc.*

    2,134       45,497  
              35,118,844  
Professional Services – 0.6%  

ASGN, Inc.*

    14,550       970,194  

CBIZ, Inc.*

    1,940       43,980  

Clarivate plc*

    4,074       113,054  

CoreLogic, Inc.

    2,522       194,018  

CoStar Group, Inc.*

    970       798,902  

CRA International, Inc.(a)

    194       7,944  

Equifax, Inc.

    3,298       450,507  

Exponent, Inc.

    1,746       121,504  

Forrester Research, Inc.* (a)

    388       14,333  

FTI Consulting, Inc.*

    1,164       114,607  

Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc.

    3,104       70,926  

Huron Consulting Group, Inc.*

    776       29,379  

ICF International, Inc.

    582       38,057  

IHS Markit Ltd.

    10,670       862,883  

Insperity, Inc.

    1,164       89,139  

Kelly Services, Inc., Class A

    9,700       168,586  

Kforce, Inc.

    582       20,195  

Korn Ferry

    12,222       368,982  

ManpowerGroup, Inc.

    16,102       1,092,843  

Nielsen Holdings plc(a)

    14,162       191,329  

Resources Connection, Inc.

    6,596       70,841  

Robert Half International, Inc.

    3,492       177,010  

TransUnion

    5,044       401,805  

TriNet Group, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       93,593  

TrueBlue, Inc.* (a)

    9,118       141,511  

Verisk Analytics, Inc.

    4,268       759,576  
              7,405,698  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.2%  

CBRE Group, Inc., Class A*

    13,386       674,654  

Cushman & Wakefield plc* (a)

    21,146       247,831  

eXp World Holdings, Inc.*

    776       32,895  

Forestar Group, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       22,597  

Howard Hughes Corp. (The)*

    1,358       84,454  

Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc.(a)

    2,134       240,843  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      163  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Kennedy-Wilson Holdings, Inc.(a)

    2,716     $ 35,797  

Newmark Group, Inc., Class A

    34,532       163,509  

Realogy Holdings Corp.* (a)

    31,234       348,572  

Redfin Corp.*

    2,716       113,447  

St Joe Co. (The)* (a)

    776       20,983  
              1,985,582  
Road & Rail – 0.9%  

AMERCO

    194       67,349  

ArcBest Corp.

    5,238       159,864  

Avis Budget Group, Inc.* (a)

    3,492       117,576  

CSX Corp.

    19,982       1,577,379  

Heartland Express, Inc.

    1,746       31,969  

JB Hunt Transport Services, Inc.

    2,328       283,411  

Kansas City Southern

    2,716       478,396  

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, Inc.

    4,850       184,251  

Landstar System, Inc.

    1,164       145,151  

Lyft, Inc., Class A* (a)

    5,626       128,442  

Marten Transport Ltd.

    2,910       44,654  

Norfolk Southern Corp.

    9,506       1,987,895  

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.

    2,716       517,045  

Ryder System, Inc.

    1,164       57,339  

Saia, Inc.* (a)

    776       114,584  

Schneider National, Inc., Class B

    3,104       68,474  

Uber Technologies, Inc.*

    33,368       1,114,825  

Union Pacific Corp.

    17,266       3,059,362  

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc.

    2,328       45,931  

Werner Enterprises, Inc.

    2,716       103,262  
              10,287,159  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 3.9%  

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc.*

    1,358       91,624  

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.*

    30,458       2,293,183  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

Alpha & Omega Semiconductor Ltd.* (a)

    5,820     $ 92,305  

Ambarella, Inc.*

    970       53,030  

Amkor Technology, Inc.*

    21,534       255,178  

Analog Devices, Inc.(a)

    9,700       1,149,741  

Applied Materials, Inc.

    32,204       1,907,443  

Axcelis Technologies, Inc.*

    1,164       25,689  

Broadcom, Inc.

    15,132       5,290,601  

Brooks Automation, Inc.

    2,328       108,718  

CEVA, Inc.*

    194       7,822  

Cirrus Logic, Inc.*

    1,940       133,608  

CMC Materials, Inc.

    970       137,924  

Cohu, Inc.

    1,552       33,725  

Cree, Inc.* (a)

    3,492       222,091  

Diodes, Inc.*

    1,358       78,533  

Enphase Energy, Inc.* (a)

    2,328       228,354  

Entegris, Inc.

    3,686       275,602  

First Solar, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       185,754  

FormFactor, Inc.*

    2,522       71,499  

Ichor Holdings Ltd.*

    776       18,050  

Inphi Corp.*

    1,552       216,908  

Intel Corp.

    160,438       7,104,195  

KLA Corp.

    4,074       803,311  

Kulicke & Soffa Industries, Inc.

    2,134       55,783  

Lam Research Corp.

    3,686       1,260,907  

Lattice Semiconductor Corp.*

    4,268       148,953  

MACOM Technology Solutions Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       56,648  

MagnaChip Semiconductor Corp.*

    5,432       74,364  

Marvell Technology Group Ltd.

    17,848       669,478  

Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.

    6,596       459,411  

MaxLinear, Inc.*

    1,552       41,035  

Microchip Technology, Inc.(a)

    6,208       652,337  

Micron Technology, Inc.*

    42,874       2,158,277  

MKS Instruments, Inc.

    1,552       168,221  

Monolithic Power Systems, Inc.

    1,164       372,014  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

164    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

NeoPhotonics Corp.*

    6,984     $ 47,561  

NVIDIA Corp.

    15,520       7,781,107  

ON Semiconductor Corp.*

    15,520       389,397  

Onto Innovation, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       49,773  

PDF Solutions, Inc.*

    582       10,907  

Photronics, Inc.*

    2,328       22,698  

Power Integrations, Inc.

    1,940       116,807  

Qorvo, Inc.*

    3,298       420,033  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    28,906       3,565,844  

Rambus, Inc.* (a)

    3,880       53,505  

Semtech Corp.*

    2,134       117,135  

Silicon Laboratories, Inc.*

    1,358       139,141  

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

    4,462       630,436  

SMART Global Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       51,197  

SolarEdge Technologies, Inc.*

    1,552       399,935  

SunPower Corp.* (a)

    10,088       161,307  

Synaptics, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       133,866  

Teradyne, Inc.

    4,462       391,987  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    23,474       3,394,106  

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    9,312       198,252  

Universal Display Corp.(a)

    1,164       230,833  

Veeco Instruments, Inc.* (a)

    1,746       22,227  

Xilinx, Inc.

    6,596       782,879  
              46,013,249  
Software – 6.9%  

2U, Inc.* (a)

    3,104       114,382  

8x8, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       56,989  

ACI Worldwide, Inc.*

    3,686       107,521  

Adobe, Inc.*

    12,222       5,464,456  

Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       67,896  

Altair Engineering, Inc., Class A* (a)

    1,164       50,087  

Alteryx, Inc., Class A* (a)

    1,358       170,225  

Anaplan, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       161,068  

ANSYS, Inc.*

    2,328       708,573  

Appfolio, Inc., Class A*

    388       55,434  

Appian Corp.* (a)

    970       61,401  

Aspen Technology, Inc.*

    1,746       191,728  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Software – (continued)  

Autodesk, Inc.*

    5,626     $ 1,325,148  

Avalara, Inc.*

    1,940       289,157  

Avaya Holdings Corp.* (a)

    27,742       477,162  

Bill.com Holdings, Inc.*

    1,164       116,400  

Blackbaud, Inc.(a)

    1,552       76,576  

Blackline, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       113,700  

Bottomline Technologies DE, Inc.*

    1,358       53,940  

Box, Inc., Class A*

    5,432       84,196  

Cadence Design Systems, Inc.*

    7,372       806,276  

CDK Global, Inc.

    32,592       1,404,715  

Cerence, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       63,531  

Ceridian HCM Holding, Inc.* (a)

    2,716       234,174  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    3,104       351,590  

Cloudera, Inc.* (a)

    11,058       107,484  

Cloudflare, Inc., Class A*

    1,164       60,493  

CommVault Systems, Inc.*

    1,358       53,763  

Cornerstone OnDemand, Inc.* (a)

    970       36,850  

Coupa Software, Inc.*

    1,746       467,404  

Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc., Class A*

    3,492       432,449  

Datadog, Inc., Class A* (a)

    4,074       369,715  

DocuSign, Inc.*

    4,074       823,966  

Dropbox, Inc., Class A*

    6,984       127,528  

Dynatrace, Inc.*

    2,910       102,752  

Ebix, Inc.(a)

    6,402       115,620  

Elastic NV*

    970       98,368  

Envestnet, Inc.*

    1,746       133,988  

Everbridge, Inc.* (a)

    1,164       121,859  

Fair Isaac Corp.*

    776       303,765  

Five9, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       294,337  

Fortinet, Inc.*

    3,686       406,824  

Guidewire Software, Inc.*

    1,940       186,453  

HubSpot, Inc.*

    1,164       337,641  

Intuit, Inc.

    6,596       2,075,629  

J2 Global, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       105,350  

LivePerson, Inc.* (a)

    2,522       134,826  

Manhattan Associates, Inc.*

    1,940       165,870  

Microsoft Corp.

    190,314       38,532,876  

MicroStrategy, Inc., Class A* (a)

    194       32,412  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      165  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Software – (continued)  

Mimecast Ltd.* (a)

    1,746     $ 66,715  

Model N, Inc.* (a)

    970       34,173  

New Relic, Inc.*

    1,552       94,144  

NortonLifeLock, Inc.

    12,028       247,416  

Nuance Communications, Inc.*

    8,924       284,765  

Nutanix, Inc., Class A*

    3,104       75,551  

OneSpan, Inc.* (a)

    1,940       42,544  

Oracle Corp.

    50,440       2,830,188  

Palo Alto Networks, Inc.*

    2,522       557,841  

Paycom Software, Inc.*

    1,358       494,434  

Paylocity Holding Corp.*

    1,164       215,945  

Pegasystems, Inc.(a)

    970       112,404  

Pluralsight, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,910       45,687  

Progress Software Corp.

    1,552       56,446  

Proofpoint, Inc.*

    1,552       148,588  

PROS Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       38,255  

PTC, Inc.*

    2,716       227,818  

Q2 Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    776       70,802  

QAD, Inc., Class A

    194       8,117  

Qualys, Inc.* (a)

    970       85,215  

Rapid7, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       84,101  

RealPage, Inc.* (a)

    2,134       118,842  

RingCentral, Inc., Class A*

    1,940       501,180  

SailPoint Technologies Holding, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       120,794  

salesforce.com, Inc.*

    22,892       5,317,125  

ServiceNow, Inc.*

    4,850       2,413,215  

Slack Technologies, Inc., Class A* (a)

    9,700       248,126  

Smartsheet, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,910       145,064  

SolarWinds Corp.*

    1,746       35,671  

Splunk, Inc.*

    4,074       806,815  

SPS Commerce, Inc.*

    970       83,022  

SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc.

    5,820       344,660  

SVMK, Inc.*

    3,104       64,967  

Synopsys, Inc.*

    4,074       871,266  

Tenable Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    1,552       52,939  

Teradata Corp.* (a)

    3,686       67,712  

Trade Desk, Inc. (The), Class A* (a)

    1,164       659,348  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Software – (continued)  

Tyler Technologies, Inc.* (a)

    970     $ 372,849  

Upland Software, Inc.* (a)

    776       32,375  

Varonis Systems, Inc.*

    970       112,103  

Verint Systems, Inc.*

    2,134       103,542  

VMware, Inc., Class A*

    1,940       249,736  

Workday, Inc., Class A*

    4,268       896,792  

Workiva, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       75,111  

Xperi Holding Corp.(a)

    29,294       363,246  

Yext, Inc.* (a)

    3,298       54,681  

Zendesk, Inc.* (a)

    3,104       344,358  

Zoom Video Communications, Inc., Class A*

    4,462       2,056,580  

Zscaler, Inc.*

    1,746       237,020  

Zuora, Inc., Class A* (a)

    2,522       24,262  
              80,829,097  
Specialty Retail – 2.9%  

Aaron’s Holdings Co., Inc.

    19,206       1,003,705  

Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Class A(a)

    1,552       22,069  

Advance Auto Parts, Inc.

    1,940       285,723  

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.(a)

    40,546       555,886  

America’s Car-Mart, Inc.*

    194       16,785  

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc.* (a)

    5,626       579,365  

AutoNation, Inc.*

    15,326       869,444  

AutoZone, Inc.*

    582       657,066  

Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc.(a)

    35,890       710,622  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    8,924       995,472  

Boot Barn Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    582       18,636  

Buckle, Inc. (The)(a)

    7,178       171,985  

Burlington Stores, Inc.*

    1,746       337,991  

Caleres, Inc.

    6,984       53,637  

Camping World Holdings, Inc., Class A

    7,566       200,045  

CarMax, Inc.* (a)

    5,626       486,311  

Carvana Co.* (a)

    1,552       287,663  

Children’s Place, Inc. (The)

    3,104       78,438  

Designer Brands, Inc., Class A(a)

    16,490       71,402  

Dick’s Sporting Goods, Inc.

    18,624       1,055,050  

Five Below, Inc.*

    1,164       155,208  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

166    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Specialty Retail – (continued)  

Floor & Decor Holdings, Inc., Class A*

    2,134     $ 155,782  

Foot Locker, Inc.

    30,070       1,108,982  

Gap, Inc. (The)

    58,006       1,128,217  

Group 1 Automotive, Inc.(a)

    4,656       493,908  

Guess?, Inc.(a)

    5,432       63,989  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    27,160       7,243,844  

L Brands, Inc.

    66,930       2,142,429  

Lithia Motors, Inc., Class A(a)

    7,372       1,692,390  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    19,400       3,067,140  

MarineMax, Inc.* (a)

    6,208       186,116  

Michaels Cos., Inc. (The)*

    28,324       229,708  

Monro, Inc.(a)

    970       40,798  

Murphy USA, Inc.*

    970       118,621  

National Vision Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    2,522       101,712  

ODP Corp. (The)(a)

    14,938       291,291  

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc.*

    1,940       847,004  

Penske Automotive Group, Inc.(a)

    8,342       426,777  

Rent-A-Center, Inc.

    13,774       425,617  

RH* (a)

    582       195,104  

Ross Stores, Inc.

    7,760       660,919  

Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    28,712       240,319  

Shoe Carnival, Inc.(a)

    1,552       48,081  

Signet Jewelers Ltd.

    10,476       233,405  

Sleep Number Corp.* (a)

    7,566       479,382  

Sonic Automotive, Inc., Class A(a)

    7,178       258,839  

Sportsman’s Warehouse Holdings, Inc.*

    11,834       154,079  

Tiffany & Co.

    2,910       380,744  

TJX Cos., Inc. (The)

    31,040       1,576,832  

Tractor Supply Co.

    3,104       413,484  

Ulta Beauty, Inc.*

    1,358       280,794  

Urban Outfitters, Inc.* (a)

    17,654       394,390  

Williams-Sonoma, Inc.(a)

    2,522       230,032  

Zumiez, Inc.* (a)

    6,014       168,392  
              34,091,624  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 4.2%  

Apple, Inc.

    404,490     $ 44,032,780  

Dell Technologies, Inc., Class C*

    7,372       444,237  

Diebold Nixdorf, Inc.* (a)

    22,892       142,617  

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

    48,694       420,716  

HP, Inc.

    56,260       1,010,430  

NCR Corp.* (a)

    35,308       717,459  

NetApp, Inc.

    7,178       315,042  

Pure Storage, Inc., Class A* (a)

    7,372       118,689  

Seagate Technology plc

    9,312       445,300  

Super Micro Computer, Inc.* (a)

    9,312       211,569  

Western Digital Corp.

    11,058       417,218  

Xerox Holdings Corp.

    50,246       873,275  
              49,149,332  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 1.2%  

Capri Holdings Ltd.*

    40,158       852,153  

Carter’s, Inc.

    776       63,205  

Columbia Sportswear Co.(a)

    776       57,882  

Crocs, Inc.*

    2,134       111,672  

Deckers Outdoor Corp.*

    970       245,769  

G-III Apparel Group Ltd.* (a)

    10,282       138,601  

Hanesbrands, Inc.(a)

    99,134       1,593,083  

Kontoor Brands, Inc.(a)

    10,476       344,660  

Lululemon Athletica, Inc.*

    2,910       929,134  

NIKE, Inc., Class B

    31,816       3,820,465  

Oxford Industries, Inc.(a)

    1,164       47,922  

PVH Corp.(a)

    20,564       1,198,676  

Ralph Lauren Corp.

    14,162       946,730  

Skechers USA, Inc., Class A*

    5,044       159,945  

Steven Madden Ltd.

    2,522       60,553  

Tapestry, Inc.

    83,808       1,863,052  

Under Armour, Inc., Class C*

    12,028       147,103  

VF Corp.

    8,730       586,656  

Wolverine World Wide, Inc.(a)

    23,086       615,704  
              13,782,965  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      167  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – 0.8%  

Axos Financial, Inc.* (a)

    12,610     $ 343,749  

Essent Group Ltd.

    32,204       1,283,329  

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corp., Class C

    2,910       187,957  

Flagstar Bancorp, Inc.

    11,640       341,634  

HomeStreet, Inc.

    776       24,110  

Meridian Bancorp, Inc.

    5,044       62,798  

Meta Financial Group, Inc.(a)

    12,222       358,593  

MGIC Investment Corp.

    92,926       934,836  

Mr Cooper Group, Inc.* (a)

    21,534       453,937  

New York Community Bancorp, Inc.

    132,502       1,101,092  

NMI Holdings, Inc., Class A*

    24,638       529,471  

Northfield Bancorp, Inc.

    1,358       13,797  

Northwest Bancshares, Inc.

    6,596       70,379  

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc.(a)

    12,222       621,122  

Premier Financial Corp.

    11,446       205,914  

Provident Financial Services, Inc.(a)

    21,534       292,216  

Radian Group, Inc.

    56,260       1,009,867  

TFS Financial Corp.

    1,940       30,477  

TrustCo Bank Corp.

    4,074       22,387  

Walker & Dunlop, Inc.(a)

    8,536       536,744  

Washington Federal, Inc.

    2,522       53,693  

WSFS Financial Corp.

    13,968       442,646  
              8,920,748  
Tobacco – 0.6%  

Altria Group, Inc.

    67,124       2,421,834  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    57,036       4,050,697  

Turning Point Brands, Inc.(a)

    194       7,269  

Universal Corp.(a)

    5,820       231,927  

Vector Group Ltd.

    32,010       294,172  
              7,005,899  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.9%  

Air Lease Corp.

    29,682       808,538  

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc.

    9,118       556,654  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Trading Companies & Distributors – (continued)  

Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc.*

    14,744     $ 452,641  

BMC Stock Holdings, Inc.*

    18,624       737,324  

Fastenal Co.

    15,326       662,543  

Foundation Building Materials, Inc.* (a)

    5,238       76,265  

GATX Corp.(a)

    10,476       715,301  

GMS, Inc.* (a)

    11,640       263,064  

H&E Equipment Services, Inc.

    12,028       253,069  

HD Supply Holdings, Inc.*

    45,590       1,817,217  

Herc Holdings, Inc.* (a)

    6,984       309,810  

MRC Global, Inc.*

    6,596       28,099  

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc., Class A(a)

    12,416       864,899  

NOW, Inc.*

    33,368       135,808  

Rush Enterprises, Inc., Class A

    2,910       104,294  

SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc.* (a)

    1,358       162,268  

Systemax, Inc.

    388       11,031  

Triton International Ltd.

    19,594       722,627  

United Rentals, Inc.* (a)

    2,910       518,824  

Univar Solutions, Inc.*

    47,724       791,741  

Watsco, Inc.(a)

    776       173,933  

WESCO International, Inc.*

    11,834       488,034  

WW Grainger, Inc.

    1,164       407,423  
              11,061,407  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.0%(e)  

Macquarie Infrastructure Corp.

    1,746       45,047  
Water Utilities – 0.1%  

American States Water Co.(a)

    1,164       86,939  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    4,656       700,775  

California Water Service Group(a)

    1,552       69,173  

Essential Utilities, Inc.

    5,044       207,813  

Middlesex Water Co.(a)

    582       37,329  

SJW Group

    970       58,869  

York Water Co. (The)

    582       24,589  
              1,185,487  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

168    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 0.2%  

Boingo Wireless, Inc.*

    1,552     $ 14,496  

Shenandoah Telecommunications Co.

    1,552       67,698  

Telephone & Data Systems, Inc.

    2,134       36,278  

T-Mobile US, Inc.*

    22,309       2,444,397  

United States Cellular Corp.*

    2,716       79,090  
              2,641,959  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $817,379,110)

 

    1,164,094,878  
    Number of
Rights
       
RIGHTS - 0.0%(e)  
Biotechnology – 0.0%(e)  

Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., CVR* ‡ (d)

    44,344       25,720  
Media – 0.0%(e)  

Media General, Inc., CVR* ‡ (d)

    22,261       2,226  
TOTAL RIGHTS
(Cost $–)

 

    27,946  
    Number of
Warrants
       
WARRANTS – 0.0%(e)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 0.0%(e)  

Occidental Petroleum Corp., expiring 8/3/2027, price 22.00 USD*
(Cost $21,117)

    4,266       10,537  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(f) – 8.7%  
CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT – 2.4%  

Bank of Nova Scotia, Houston (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/21/2021(g)

  $ 4,000,000     $ 4,000,844  

Cooperatieve Rabobank UA, London (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/30/2021(g)

    5,000,000       5,001,950  

Nordea Bank Abp, New York Branch (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.03%), 0.27%, 10/7/2021(g)

    4,000,000       3,999,376  

Royal Bank of Canada, New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.04%), 0.27%, 10/5/2021(g)

    3,000,000       2,999,604  

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank Ltd., New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.09%), 0.34%, 12/11/2020(g)

    5,000,000       5,000,000  

Svenska Handelsbanken, New York (ICE LIBOR USD 1 Month + 0.08%), 0.60%, 11/30/2020(g)

    4,000,000       3,998,849  

The Sumitomo Bank Ltd., New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.06%), 0.27%, 1/29/2021(g)

    4,000,000       4,000,176  
Total Certificates of Deposit
(Cost $28,998,596)

 

    29,000,799  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      169  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(f) – (continued)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 6.3%  

BofA Securities, Inc., 0.53%, dated 10/30/2020, due 2/1/2021, repurchase price $6,008,303, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $6,522,109

  $ 6,000,000     $ 6,000,000  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $6,500,060, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $6,592,314

    6,500,000       6,500,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $12,334,958, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $12,550,975

    12,334,886       12,334,886  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $11,700,195, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $11,928,917

  $ 11,700,000     $ 11,700,000  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $37,100,557, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $40,836,828

    37,100,000       37,100,000  
Total Repurchase Agreements
(Cost $73,634,886)

 

    73,634,886  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $102,633,482)

 

    102,635,685  
Total Investments – 107.8%
(Cost $920,033,709)

 

    1,266,769,046  

Liabilities in excess of other assets – (7.8%)

 

    (91,982,617
Net Assets – 100.0%

 

  $ 1,174,786,429  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

 

Value determined using significant unobservable inputs.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $133,116,681, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $102,633,369 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $32,673,237 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050 and $2,871,037 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.00%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $138,177,643.

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

170    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

(b) 

Investment in affiliated company. Northern Trust Investments, Inc., the Investment Adviser of the Fund, is a subsidiary of Northern Trust Corporation.

 

(c) 

Amount represents less than one share.

 

(d) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $217,754, which represents approximately 0.02% of net assets of the Fund.

 

(e) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(f) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $102,635,685.

 

(g) 

Variable or floating rate security, linked to the referenced benchmark. The interest rate shown is the rate in effect as of October 31, 2020.

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

CVR – Contingent Value Rights

ICE – Intercontinental Exchange

LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate

USD – US Dollar

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 413,038,962  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (66,547,431

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 346,491,531  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 920,104,509  
 

 

Investment in a company which was affiliated for the period ended October 31, 2020, was as follows:

 

Security   Value
October 31,
2019
    Purchases
at Cost
   

Sales

Proceeds

   

Shares

October 31,
2020

   

Value

October 31,
2020

   

Change in

Unrealized

Appreciation

(Depreciation)

   

Dividend

Income

   

Realized

Gain

 

Northern Trust Corp.

  $ 796,044     $ 173,813     $ 207,884       7,372     $ 577,006     $ (215,176   $ 20,862     $ 30,209  

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

   

Number of

Contracts

   

Expiration

Date

   

Trading

Currency

   

Notional

Amount

   

Value and

Unrealized

Appreciation/

(Depreciation)*

 

Long Contracts

         

Russell 2000 E-Mini Index

    26       12/18/2020       USD     $ 1,997,840     $ 6,567  

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    38       12/18/2020       USD       6,202,930       (178,018

S&P Midcap 400 E-Mini Index

    9       12/18/2020       USD       1,706,040       (1,555
                                    $ (173,006

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      171  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.1%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.6%  

Airbus SE*

    16,790     $ 1,224,125  

BAE Systems plc

    45,908       235,655  

Bombardier, Inc., Class B* (a)

    949,946       199,486  

CAE, Inc.

    4,836       82,586  

Dassault Aviation SA*

    55       45,872  

Elbit Systems Ltd.

    412       46,696  

Leonardo SpA

    12,428       59,181  

LISI*

    9,016       145,772  

Meggitt plc

    22,412       79,199  

MTU Aero Engines AG

    828       141,347  

QinetiQ Group plc

    2,288       6,994  

Rolls-Royce Holdings plc* (a)

    30,836       28,436  

Saab AB, Class B*

    2,493       57,275  

Safran SA*

    5,336       562,640  

Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd.

    17,900       45,749  

Thales SA

    2,116       137,734  

Ultra Electronics Holdings plc

    1,661       40,376  
              3,139,123  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.8%  

bpost SA

    37,582       332,927  

Cia de Distribucion Integral Logista Holdings SA

    2,159       36,416  

Deutsche Post AG (Registered)

    27,094       1,200,559  

DSV Panalpina A/S

    3,349       542,321  

Freightways Ltd.(a)

    12,987       72,098  

ID Logistics Group*

    81       18,871  

Kerry Logistics Network Ltd.

    40,500       84,396  

Kintetsu World Express, Inc.

    15,700       332,052  

Konoike Transport Co. Ltd.

    10,800       112,608  

Mainfreight Ltd.

    3,192       113,812  

PostNL NV*

    217,683       721,908  

Royal Mail plc

    14,455       42,427  

SG Holdings Co. Ltd.

    4,800       115,477  

Yamato Holdings Co. Ltd.

    6,200       163,333  
              3,889,205  
Airlines – 0.4%  

Air Canada* (a)

    7,592       83,872  

Air France-KLM* (a)

    9,516       31,148  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Airlines – (continued)  

Air New Zealand Ltd.(a)

    228,988     $ 214,900  

ANA Holdings, Inc.(a)

    4,500       97,714  

Deutsche Lufthansa AG (Registered)*

    10,660       91,540  

easyJet plc

    10,440       68,278  

Exchange Income Corp.(a)

    15,829       375,736  

Finnair OYJ* (a)

    289,149       123,274  

Japan Airlines Co. Ltd.

    500       8,690  

JET2 plc

    57,730       634,855  

Qantas Airways Ltd.

    35,730       105,133  

Singapore Airlines Ltd.

    29,999       74,476  

Wizz Air Holdings plc* (b)

    728       30,065  
              1,939,681  
Auto Components – 1.8%  

Aisin Seiki Co. Ltd.

    5,900       177,497  

ARB Corp. Ltd.

    997       21,543  

Bridgestone Corp.

    16,300       528,573  

CIE Automotive SA

    3,217       62,955  

Cie Generale des Etablissements Michelin SCA

    4,784       516,250  

Cie Plastic Omnium SA

    720       16,396  

Continental AG

    2,852       303,246  

Denso Corp.

    12,900       596,998  

Dometic Group AB* (c)

    5,962       64,194  

Exedy Corp.

    13,800       172,929  

Faurecia SE*

    3,220       122,052  

FCC Co. Ltd.

    18,400       351,138  

Freni Brembo SpA* (a)

    3,647       37,894  

Futaba Industrial Co. Ltd.

    25,600       128,073  

Gestamp Automocion SA(b)

    68,494       209,356  

G-Tekt Corp.

    15,700       175,863  

GUD Holdings Ltd.

    4,852       43,034  

Hella GmbH & Co. KGaA*

    2,652       115,783  

HI-LEX Corp.(a)

    13,800       145,604  

Ichikoh Industries Ltd.

    17,400       75,399  

Johnson Electric Holdings Ltd.(a)

    138,000       285,081  

JTEKT Corp.

    2,300       18,129  

Koito Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    3,200       153,664  

KYB Corp.*

    3,300       67,585  

Linamar Corp.

    22,078       721,114  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

172    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Auto Components – (continued)  

Magna International, Inc.

    7,912     $ 403,685  

Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co. Ltd.

    13,800       143,491  

NGK Spark Plug Co. Ltd.

    2,700       47,135  

NHK Spring Co. Ltd.

    2,900       17,393  

Nifco, Inc.(a)

    2,400       71,399  

Nippon Seiki Co. Ltd.

    18,500       207,758  

NOK Corp.

    200       2,265  

Nokian Renkaat OYJ

    4,930       151,550  

Pacific Industrial Co. Ltd.

    20,700       206,921  

Piolax, Inc.

    13,800       201,178  

Pirelli & C SpA* (b)

    2,876       11,993  

Schaeffler AG (Preference)

    72,818       443,195  

Stanley Electric Co. Ltd.

    3,800       107,595  

Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd.

    18,400       201,619  

Sumitomo Riko Co. Ltd.

    8,000       40,559  

Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd.

    9,300       81,222  

TI Fluid Systems plc(a) (b)

    102,442       254,318  

Tokai Rika Co. Ltd.

    2,400       37,306  

Topre Corp.(a)

    18,400       183,930  

Toyo Tire Corp.(a)

    4,600       67,852  

Toyoda Gosei Co. Ltd.

    2,000       50,469  

Toyota Boshoku Corp.

    2,700       38,896  

Toyota Industries Corp.(a)

    6,000       385,690  

TPR Co. Ltd.

    10,300       122,370  

TS Tech Co. Ltd.

    2,400       66,003  

Unipres Corp.

    18,400       141,687  

Valeo SA

    5,842       176,727  

Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. (The)

    8,000       114,100  
              9,088,656  
Automobiles – 2.3%  

Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings plc* (a) (b)

    11,844       8,308  

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG

    8,627       589,685  

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (Preference)

    2,092       108,197  

Daimler AG (Registered)

    22,632       1,170,512  

Ferrari NV

    1,932       344,663  

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV*

    29,440       361,519  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Automobiles – (continued)  

Honda Motor Co. Ltd.

    45,800     $ 1,066,797  

Isuzu Motors Ltd.

    8,000       64,511  

Mazda Motor Corp.

    17,900       93,490  

Mitsubishi Motors Corp.(a)

    9,700       17,630  

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

    60,200       210,763  

Peugeot SA*

    14,379       258,443  

Porsche Automobil Holding SE (Preference)

    2,714       145,424  

Renault SA*

    6,026       149,197  

Subaru Corp.

    14,200       258,830  

Suzuki Motor Corp.

    13,800       588,355  

Toyota Motor Corp.

    70,900       4,613,858  

Trigano SA

    3,542       470,765  

Volkswagen AG

    1,159       180,368  

Volkswagen AG (Preference)

    5,060       737,357  

Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd.

    6,900       97,883  
              11,536,555  
Banks – 10.2%              

77 Bank Ltd. (The)

    36,800       511,483  

ABN AMRO Bank NV, CVA(b)

    19,073       156,542  

AIB Group plc*

    45,372       50,975  

Aktia Bank OYJ

    20,838       215,303  

Aozora Bank Ltd.

    5,300       86,593  

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

    81,789       1,080,377  

Awa Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    18,400       441,431  

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA* (a)

    15,756       18,977  

Banca Popolare di Sondrio SCPA* (a)

    222,483       390,553  

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA

    217,718       624,385  

Banco BPM SpA(a)

    677,534       1,224,089  

Banco Comercial Portugues SA, Class R* (a)

    3,493,332       306,818  

Banco de Sabadell SA

    116,077       35,426  

Banco Espirito Santo SA (Registered)* ‡ (d)

    48,647        

Banco Santander SA

    475,272       947,134  

Bank Hapoalim BM*

    40,342       236,728  

Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM

    34,822       165,084  

Bank of East Asia Ltd. (The)

    36,467       65,647  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      173  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)              

Bank of Georgia Group plc*

    18,332     $ 212,618  

Bank of Ireland Group plc*

    400,338       983,031  

Bank of Kyoto Ltd. (The)

    2,600       114,282  

Bank of Montreal(a)

    18,078       1,075,582  

Bank of Nagoya Ltd. (The)(a)

    9,200       227,844  

Bank of Nova Scotia (The)

    31,694       1,315,681  

Bank of Okinawa Ltd. (The)(a)

    2,340       65,428  

Bank of Queensland Ltd.(a)

    27,437       123,698  

Bank of the Ryukyus Ltd.(a)

    9,200       75,684  

Bankia SA

    53,716       65,825  

Bankinter SA

    21,280       79,743  

Banque Cantonale de Geneve

    480       85,625  

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (Registered)(a)

    701       67,916  

Barclays plc

    490,637       676,010  

BAWAG Group AG(b)

    3,120       114,118  

Bendigo & Adelaide Bank Ltd.(a)

    9,158       43,025  

BNP Paribas SA*

    31,188       1,084,613  

BPER Banca* (a)

    442,980       524,777  

Caisse Regionale de Credit Agricole Mutuel de Paris et d’Ile-de-France

    4,140       273,627  

CaixaBank SA

    121,624       221,294  

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

    12,834       956,570  

Canadian Western Bank(a)

    40,112       737,049  

Chiba Bank Ltd. (The)

    17,400       89,380  

Close Brothers Group plc

    8,112       112,965  

comdirect bank AG*

    3,713       59,946  

Commerzbank AG*

    29,112       137,170  

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

    28,980       1,404,640  

Concordia Financial Group Ltd.

    38,321       125,733  

Credit Agricole SA*

    41,124       324,880  

Credito Emiliano SpA*

    24,288       95,485  

Dah Sing Banking Group Ltd.(a)

    130,640       112,196  

Dah Sing Financial Holdings Ltd.

    92,000       228,729  

Daishi Hokuetsu Financial Group, Inc.(a)

    23,000       439,143  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)              

Danske Bank A/S*

    16,284     $ 216,459  

DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

    50,629       754,522  

DNB ASA

    24,702       332,587  

Ehime Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    13,800       147,584  

Erste Group Bank AG

    7,222       147,893  

FIBI Holdings Ltd.

    3,458       87,298  

FinecoBank Banca Fineco SpA*

    6,110       83,628  

Fukuoka Financial Group, Inc.

    7,400       123,027  

Graubuendner Kantonalbank

    7       11,647  

Gunma Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    21,800       68,816  

Hachijuni Bank Ltd. (The)

    20,800       76,403  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.

    13,800       212,120  

Hirogin Holdings, Inc.(a)

    14,600       79,047  

Hokkoku Bank Ltd. (The)

    8,100       229,348  

Hokuhoku Financial Group, Inc.

    54,600       514,976  

HSBC Holdings plc

    562,580       2,360,828  

Hyakugo Bank Ltd. (The)

    82,800       252,661  

Hyakujushi Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    13,800       218,867  

ING Groep NV

    114,034       778,266  

Intesa Sanpaolo SpA*

    505,380       835,707  

Israel Discount Bank Ltd., Class A

    41,464       116,872  

Juroku Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    15,600       284,871  

Jyske Bank A/S (Registered)*

    26,312       783,212  

KBC Group NV

    9,292       458,171  

Keiyo Bank Ltd. (The)

    43,700       196,052  

Kiyo Bank Ltd. (The)

    29,800       444,406  

Kyushu Financial Group, Inc.

    7,600       35,405  

Laurentian Bank of Canada

    17,434       342,705  

Liberbank SA*

    954,638       254,650  

Lloyds Banking Group plc

    1,877,260       680,250  

Luzerner Kantonalbank AG (Registered)*

    204       86,804  

Mebuki Financial Group, Inc.

    4,610       9,216  

Mediobanca Banca di Credito Finanziario SpA(a)

    15,456       109,608  

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc.

    338,700       1,329,010  

Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd.

    1,889       36,942  

Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

    71,829       880,513  

Musashino Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    16,900       249,604  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

174    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)              

Nanto Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    13,846     $ 244,762  

National Australia Bank Ltd.(a)

    84,594       1,104,954  

National Bank of Canada(a)

    8,648       414,710  

Natwest Group plc

    123,372       198,124  

NIBC Holding NV(b)

    13,604       117,107  

Nishi-Nippon Financial Holdings, Inc.

    55,200       371,731  

Nordea Bank Abp

    86,756       649,904  

North Pacific Bank Ltd.(a)

    92,000       193,610  

Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    1,200       26,654  

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. Ltd.

    56,470       348,208  

Raiffeisen Bank International AG*

    6,302       90,587  

Resona Holdings, Inc.

    64,400       210,991  

Ringkjoebing Landbobank A/S

    1,100       83,729  

Royal Bank of Canada

    21,482       1,500,929  

San-In Godo Bank Ltd. (The)

    55,200       276,686  

Sbanken ASA* (b)

    33,028       209,041  

Senshu Ikeda Holdings, Inc.(a)

    82,800       125,935  

Seven Bank Ltd.

    3,800       8,688  

Shiga Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    1,000       21,513  

Shinsei Bank Ltd.

    5,200       62,277  

Shizuoka Bank Ltd. (The)(a)

    8,400       56,246  

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Class A*

    35,972       308,349  

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Class C*

    684       6,286  

Societe Generale SA*

    24,288       329,317  

Spar Nord Bank A/S*

    35,926       309,152  

SpareBank 1 Nord Norge

    51,704       345,095  

Sparebank 1 Oestlandet

    15,456       137,601  

SpareBank 1 SMN

    48,668       416,986  

SpareBank 1 SR-Bank ASA

    8,041       63,764  

Sparebanken Vest

    39,284       250,281  

St Galler Kantonalbank AG (Registered)

    110       46,326  

Standard Chartered plc

    82,340       374,546  

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc.

    36,800       1,014,165  

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc.

    9,200       244,961  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)              

Suruga Bank Ltd.(a)

    85,400     $ 276,933  

Svenska Handelsbanken AB, Class A*

    38,272       310,092  

Svenska Handelsbanken AB, Class B* (a)

    908       8,763  

Swedbank AB, Class A*

    23,046       361,180  

Sydbank A/S*

    26,588       453,433  

TBC Bank Group plc*

    19,320       229,573  

Toho Bank Ltd. (The)

    13,600       29,531  

TOMONY Holdings, Inc.(a)

    82,800       248,701  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

    48,668       2,145,502  

Unicaja Banco SA* (b)

    408,388       259,976  

UniCredit SpA*

    55,706       415,355  

United Overseas Bank Ltd.

    39,026       542,734  

Valiant Holding AG (Registered)

    1,000       80,192  

Van Lanschot Kempen NV, CVA

    18,952       379,711  

Virgin Money UK plc* (a)

    563,546       678,824  

Walliser Kantonalbank (Registered)

    485       56,885  

Westpac Banking Corp.

    104,834       1,318,528  

Yamagata Bank Ltd. (The)

    2,200       27,021  

Yamaguchi Financial Group, Inc.(a)

    13,300       86,003  
              50,713,979  
Beverages – 1.0%  

AG Barr plc*

    4,785       29,172  

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV

    14,490       752,114  

Asahi Group Holdings Ltd.

    8,500       262,058  

Britvic plc

    7,320       69,850  

C&C Group plc*

    136,344       285,242  

Carlsberg A/S, Class B

    1,794       227,076  

Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd.

    11,076       96,682  

Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan Holdings, Inc.

    3,354       47,259  

Coca-Cola European Partners plc

    3,645       130,163  

Coca-Cola HBC AG, DI

    4,000       90,769  

Diageo plc

    34,960       1,129,630  

Fevertree Drinks plc

    2,199       57,293  

Goldin Financial Holdings Ltd.* (d)

    980,000       72,032  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      175  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Beverages – (continued)  

Heineken Holding NV

    1,564     $ 120,878  

Heineken NV

    3,358       298,061  

Ito En Ltd.(a)

    800       50,583  

Kirin Holdings Co. Ltd.

    13,838       248,724  

Molson Coors Canada, Inc., Class B

    156       5,484  

Pernod Ricard SA

    2,990       482,033  

Primo Water Corp.

    5,512       69,037  

Remy Cointreau SA(a)

    584       98,639  

Royal Unibrew A/S

    1,210       118,171  

Sapporo Holdings Ltd.(a)

    1,800       29,271  

Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd.

    3,000       103,310  

Takara Holdings, Inc.

    8,600       86,378  

Treasury Wine Estates Ltd.

    14,352       92,422  
              5,052,331  
Biotechnology – 0.6%              

Abcam plc

    4,545       86,564  

Argenx SE*

    736       183,811  

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    4,368       68,304  

Avita Therapeutics, Inc., CHDI* (a)

    2,922       12,168  

Bavarian Nordic A/S* (a)

    2,132       56,473  

BioGaia AB, Class B

    1,134       53,954  

Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

    1,368       19,848  

CSL Ltd.

    7,084       1,430,536  

Galapagos NV*

    966       114,100  

Genmab A/S*

    874       291,130  

Genus plc

    520       27,580  

Grifols SA(a)

    3,726       100,650  

Grifols SA (Preference), Class B

    5,680       95,937  

Hansa Biopharma AB*

    2,660       71,004  

HEALIOS KK*

    1,100       19,835  

Mesoblast Ltd.* (a)

    16,640       35,757  

MorphoSys AG*

    920       93,835  

PeptiDream, Inc.*

    2,500       115,386  

Pharma Mar SA

    432       57,920  

SanBio Co. Ltd.* (a)

    2,200       34,955  

Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB*

    5,613       96,922  

Vitrolife AB*

    1,652       40,237  
              3,106,906  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Building Products – 1.0%              

AGC, Inc.

    4,600     $ 142,787  

Aica Kogyo Co. Ltd.

    1,500       50,363  

Assa Abloy AB, Class B

    16,652       357,317  

Bunka Shutter Co. Ltd.

    29,300       229,826  

Central Glass Co. Ltd.(a)

    14,000       299,177  

Cie de Saint-Gobain*

    14,628       570,821  

Daikin Industries Ltd.

    4,700       875,799  

dormakaba Holding AG

    20       9,191  

Geberit AG (Registered)

    506       288,181  

GWA Group Ltd.(a)

    17,760       32,926  

James Halstead plc

    4,686       28,296  

Kingspan Group plc

    2,761       240,729  

Lindab International AB

    3,680       56,888  

LIXIL Group Corp.

    4,400       94,953  

Munters Group AB* (b)

    48       358  

Nibe Industrier AB, Class B*

    8,842       213,174  

Nichias Corp.

    800       17,264  

Nichiha Corp.

    13,800       401,301  

Reliance Worldwide Corp. Ltd.

    23,739       68,517  

ROCKWOOL International A/S, Class A

    220       76,931  

ROCKWOOL International A/S, Class B

    174       68,005  

Sanwa Holdings Corp.

    9,800       111,368  

Schweiter Technologies AG

    56       76,373  

Sekisui Jushi Corp.

    3,600       72,282  

Takara Standard Co. Ltd.

    2,176       28,412  

Takasago Thermal Engineering Co. Ltd.

    3,400       44,947  

Tarkett SA*

    14,344       173,770  

TOTO Ltd.

    3,900       177,018  

Uponor OYJ

    7,733       144,305  
              4,951,279  
Capital Markets – 3.0%              

3i Group plc

    32,706       406,396  

Amundi SA* (b)

    1,440       94,437  

Anima Holding SpA(b)

    122,314       457,353  

Ashmore Group plc

    9,588       44,159  

ASX Ltd.

    2,198       122,912  

Avanza Bank Holding AB

    2,704       51,339  

Azimut Holding SpA

    5,680       95,904  

Banca Generali SpA

    1,397       39,706  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

176    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

Brederode SA*

    80     $ 6,570  

Brewin Dolphin Holdings plc

    17,746       55,758  

Brookfield Asset Management, Inc., Class A

    22,172       658,319  

Bure Equity AB(a)

    20,333       590,723  

CI Financial Corp.

    5,304       61,778  

Credit Suisse Group AG (Registered)

    63,848       600,758  

Daiwa Securities Group, Inc.

    23,000       92,625  

Deutsche Bank AG (Registered)*

    32,936       303,126  

Deutsche Boerse AG

    2,806       412,984  

EFG International AG*

    6,000       32,470  

EQT AB

    6,188       117,870  

Euronext NV(b)

    1,464       152,713  

Fairfax India Holdings Corp.* (b)

    44,666       341,695  

Flow Traders(b)

    2,452       80,317  

GAM Holding AG* (a)

    11,400       18,346  

GMO Financial Holdings, Inc.

    15,200       87,094  

Haitong International Securities Group Ltd.(a)

    828,000       187,919  

Hargreaves Lansdown plc

    5,061       88,506  

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd.

    18,458       881,146  

IG Group Holdings plc

    673       6,622  

IGM Financial, Inc.(a)

    4,992       109,511  

Intermediate Capital Group plc

    6,864       103,928  

Investec plc(a)

    306,084       567,331  

IOOF Holdings Ltd.(a)

    269,882       553,412  

IP Group plc*

    447,258       459,752  

JAFCO Group Co. Ltd.

    14,100       633,920  

Japan Exchange Group, Inc.

    7,600       184,838  

Julius Baer Group Ltd.

    5,980       267,112  

Jupiter Fund Management plc

    12,849       38,577  

Leonteq AG

    208       7,364  

London Stock Exchange Group plc

    5,290       566,213  

Macquarie Group Ltd.

    4,646       413,541  

Magellan Financial Group Ltd.

    2,640       102,152  

Man Group plc

    61,623       85,694  

Monex Group, Inc.

    36,800       88,005  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

Natixis SA* (a)

    27,241     $ 63,336  

Ninety One plc*

    151,708       404,086  

Nomura Holdings, Inc.

    86,600       384,788  

Okasan Securities Group, Inc.(a)

    12,500       40,654  

Partners Group Holding AG

    322       290,399  

Pendal Group Ltd.(a)

    6,964       31,641  

Perpetual Ltd.

    3,971       75,851  

Platinum Asset Management Ltd.

    16       34  

Quilter plc(b)

    83,720       132,281  

Rathbone Brothers plc

    2,584       48,446  

Ratos AB, Class B

    84,548       308,513  

Rothschild & Co.* (a)

    16,422       422,755  

Sanne Group plc

    9,329       73,098  

SBI Holdings, Inc.

    9,600       219,751  

Schroders plc

    960       32,447  

Schroders plc (Non-Voting)

    96       2,279  

Singapore Exchange Ltd.

    7,600       48,199  

St James’s Place plc

    8,712       101,291  

Standard Life Aberdeen plc

    36,296       105,359  

TMX Group Ltd.

    1,371       133,116  

Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings, Inc.

    73,600       187,978  

TP ICAP plc

    18,772       46,311  

UBS Group AG (Registered)

    101,430       1,178,029  

Value Partners Group Ltd.(a)

    8,000       3,487  

VNV Global AB* (a)

    25,576       221,822  

Vontobel Holding AG (Registered)(a)

    339       20,749  

VZ Holding AG

    285       23,912  
              14,871,507  
Chemicals – 3.3%              

ADEKA Corp.

    4,200       54,157  

Air Liquide SA

    7,636       1,116,297  

Air Water, Inc.

    6,000       85,517  

Akzo Nobel NV

    3,495       336,684  

Arkema SA

    1,794       175,705  

Asahi Kasei Corp.

    36,800       316,957  

BASF SE

    24,012       1,316,566  

Borregaard ASA

    6,375       85,233  

C Uyemura & Co. Ltd.

    2,200       143,314  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      177  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)              

Chr Hansen Holding A/S

    1,656     $ 166,806  

Chugoku Marine Paints Ltd.

    9,500       90,420  

CI Takiron Corp.

    27,600       175,569  

Clariant AG (Registered)

    2,836       48,641  

Corbion NV

    1,352       61,578  

Covestro AG(b)

    832       39,706  

Croda International plc

    2,668       208,156  

Daicel Corp.

    100       712  

DIC Corp.

    2,899       70,326  

Elkem ASA(b)

    7       15  

EMS-Chemie Holding AG (Registered)(a)

    156       137,184  

Evonik Industries AG

    4,348       104,689  

FUCHS PETROLUB SE

    55       2,108  

FUCHS PETROLUB SE (Preference)

    1,182       60,829  

Fuso Chemical Co. Ltd.

    1,100       37,512  

Givaudan SA (Registered)

    138       562,509  

Hexpol AB

    5,784       50,945  

ICL Group Ltd.

    5,140       18,740  

Incitec Pivot Ltd.(a)

    54,091       72,932  

Israel Corp. Ltd. (The)*

    243       27,249  

JCU Corp.

    500       15,640  

Johnson Matthey plc

    3,360       93,363  

JSP Corp.

    2,300       32,650  

JSR Corp.

    3,100       69,568  

K+S AG (Registered)

    9,758       65,381  

Kaneka Corp.

    4,400       122,395  

Kansai Paint Co. Ltd.

    5,500       141,472  

Kanto Denka Kogyo Co. Ltd.(a)

    20,800       139,476  

Koninklijke DSM NV

    3,040       486,730  

Konishi Co. Ltd.

    8,300       120,522  

Kumiai Chemical Industry Co. Ltd.(a)

    8,000       76,449  

Kuraray Co. Ltd.

    6,700       61,655  

Kureha Corp.

    9,200       388,540  

LANXESS AG

    2,254       114,265  

Lenzing AG* (a)

    485       33,897  

Lintec Corp.

    1,800       39,774  

Methanex Corp.(a)

    29,210       865,335  

Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp.

    28,300       158,690  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – (continued)              

Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co., Inc.

    6,200     $ 112,269  

Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.

    5,600       142,812  

Nihon Parkerizing Co. Ltd.

    1,900       18,666  

Nippon Kayaku Co. Ltd.

    8,100       69,424  

Nippon Paint Holdings Co. Ltd.

    3,200       287,431  

Nippon Sanso Holdings Corp.

    7,200       105,169  

Nippon Shokubai Co. Ltd.

    400       19,514  

Nippon Soda Co. Ltd.

    12,439       325,432  

Nissan Chemical Corp.

    3,800       200,650  

Nitto Denko Corp.

    3,300       230,754  

NOF Corp.

    2,000       74,900  

Novozymes A/S, Class B

    4,002       240,504  

Nufarm Ltd.*

    23,520       56,818  

Nutrien Ltd.

    7,268       295,222  

OCI NV*

    1,318       15,798  

Okamoto Industries, Inc.

    600       24,593  

Orica Ltd.

    4,722       50,603  

Osaka Soda Co. Ltd.(a)

    10,000       237,421  

Sakata INX Corp.

    18,800       195,121  

Sanyo Chemical Industries Ltd.

    8,000       337,478  

Shikoku Chemicals Corp.

    7,600       83,314  

Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd.

    5,600       744,060  

Shin-Etsu Polymer Co. Ltd.

    14,200       125,646  

Showa Denko KK(a)

    1,700       28,734  

Sika AG (Registered)

    1,932       475,754  

SOL SpA

    3,009       39,607  

Solvay SA

    1,656       134,451  

Sumitomo Bakelite Co. Ltd.

    3,000       84,370  

Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd.

    39,800       129,443  

Symrise AG

    2,070       255,230  

Synthomer plc

    153,459       748,450  

T Hasegawa Co. Ltd.

    900       17,511  

Taiyo Holdings Co. Ltd.

    900       46,920  

Teijin Ltd.

    3,000       45,801  

Tenma Corp.

    1,100       19,224  

Tessenderlo Group SA*

    779       26,497  

Toagosei Co. Ltd.

    5,300       55,920  

Tokai Carbon Co. Ltd.

    11,000       124,268  

Tokuyama Corp.

    3,200       70,832  

Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co. Ltd.

    700       41,314  

Toray Industries, Inc.

    41,400       186,288  

Tosoh Corp.

    12,600       203,692  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

178    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)              

Toyo Ink SC Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,600     $ 29,631  

Toyobo Co. Ltd.(a)

    41,400       548,489  

Ube Industries Ltd.

    3,900       66,666  

Umicore SA

    3,404       131,009  

Victrex plc

    2,830       67,512  

Wacker Chemie AG

    786       75,828  

Yara International ASA

    3,588       124,807  

Zeon Corp.(a)

    8,000       96,805  
              16,461,510  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 1.1%  

Aggreko plc

    114,494       653,452  

Babcock International Group plc

    14,064       39,497  

Bell System24 Holdings, Inc.

    5,600       84,102  

Biffa plc(b)

    5,928       16,633  

Bilfinger SE

    12,650       231,050  

Boyd Group Services, Inc.

    208       29,813  

Brambles Ltd.

    26,818       180,608  

Bravida Holding AB(b)

    988       11,399  

Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd.

    56,747       81,694  

Coor Service Management Holding AB* (b)

    6,692       43,079  

Dai Nippon Printing Co. Ltd.

    3,900       72,337  

Daiseki Co. Ltd.

    2,500       63,373  

Downer EDI Ltd.

    34,707       107,241  

Duskin Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,700       94,217  

Elis SA*

    2,812       30,807  

Elis SA – XLON*

    4,520       49,453  

G4S plc*

    74,776       197,335  

HomeServe plc

    8,123       116,059  

Intrum AB

    4,732       115,892  

ISS A/S*

    3,956       51,336  

Kokuyo Co. Ltd.

    5,600       75,745  

Lassila & Tikanoja OYJ

    960       14,537  

Loomis AB*

    2,271       50,695  

Mitsubishi Pencil Co. Ltd.

    1,800       23,124  

Nippon Kanzai Co. Ltd.

    1,300       25,318  

Okamura Corp.

    43,200       328,938  

Park24 Co. Ltd.* (a)

    2,200       29,631  

PayPoint plc

    3,648       23,773  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Commercial Services & Supplies – (continued)  

Pilot Corp.

    500     $ 13,904  

Prestige International, Inc.

    4,000       33,901  

Prosegur Cash SA(b)

    163,760       126,853  

Prosegur Cia de Seguridad SA

    105,938       242,361  

Relia, Inc.

    2,100       23,804  

Rentokil Initial plc

    33,672       229,009  

Ritchie Bros Auctioneers, Inc.

    2,886       174,803  

Sato Holdings Corp.

    1,100       20,803  

Secom Co. Ltd.

    4,400       370,174  

Securitas AB, Class B*

    7,047       99,714  

Serco Group plc

    57,046       95,446  

Smart Metering Systems plc

    5,165       38,801  

Societe BIC SA

    770       36,864  

Sohgo Security Services Co. Ltd.

    2,900       134,680  

SPIE SA

    1,216       19,179  

TOMRA Systems ASA

    2,590       104,236  

Toppan Printing Co. Ltd.

    4,600       58,215  

Transcontinental, Inc., Class A(a)

    35,466       419,735  

Waste Connections, Inc.

    3,634       359,925  
              5,443,545  
Communications Equipment – 0.3%  

Evertz Technologies Ltd.

    1,712       15,113  

Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd.*

    22,770       134,350  

Nokia OYJ*

    70,518       238,214  

Spirent Communications plc

    5,928       22,190  

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Class A

    3,789       45,292  

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Class B

    41,963       468,039  

VTech Holdings Ltd.(a)

    69,000       457,784  
              1,380,982  
Construction & Engineering – 2.2%  

ACS Actividades de Construccion y Servicios SA

    8,077       191,933  

Aecon Group, Inc.

    294       3,135  

AF Gruppen ASA

    2,860       46,376  

Arcadis NV* (a)

    34,351       800,275  

Ashtrom Group Ltd.

    832       10,605  

Badger Daylighting Ltd.(a)

    2,812       81,533  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      179  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Construction & Engineering – (continued)  

Balfour Beatty plc

    6,760     $ 18,670  

Boskalis Westminster*

    218       4,398  

Bouygues SA

    5,934       194,579  

Chiyoda Corp.* (a)

    45,400       97,714  

Cie d’Entreprises CFE*

    282       17,443  

CIMIC Group Ltd.*

    5,661       85,472  

COMSYS Holdings Corp.

    4,300       108,837  

Dai-Dan Co. Ltd.(a)

    9,300       227,474  

Eiffage SA*

    1,840       133,572  

Elco Ltd.

    2,668       101,031  

Elecnor SA

    21,850       222,450  

Electra Ltd.

    103       45,081  

Ferrovial SA

    5,060       109,484  

Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas SA

    3,696       31,256  

Gold-Finance Holdings Ltd.* ‡ (b) (d)

    89,827       417  

Hazama Ando Corp.

    15,600       96,698  

Hibiya Engineering Ltd.(a)

    4,600       74,144  

HOCHTIEF AG

    442       32,539  

JDC Corp.

    23,000       118,806  

JGC Holdings Corp.

    5,400       44,165  

John Laing Group plc(b)

    312       1,135  

Kajima Corp.

    12,700       135,091  

Kandenko Co. Ltd.

    3,000       22,470  

Kinden Corp.

    2,300       35,994  

Kumagai Gumi Co. Ltd.

    14,600       336,160  

Kyowa Exeo Corp.(a)

    3,900       89,759  

Kyudenko Corp.

    2,100       57,150  

Maeda Corp.

    8,100       58,112  

Maeda Road Construction Co. Ltd.

    1,200       19,962  

Meisei Industrial Co. Ltd.(a)

    15,600       119,828  

Mirait Holdings Corp.(a)

    6,700       95,046  

Monadelphous Group Ltd.

    9,080       58,281  

Morgan Sindall Group plc

    18,354       261,998  

NCC AB, Class B

    246       3,924  

Nichireki Co. Ltd.

    9,200       148,200  

Nippo Corp.(a)

    2,000       51,272  

Nippon Densetsu Kogyo Co. Ltd.

    1,700       32,930  

Nippon Koei Co. Ltd.

    4,600       121,050  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Construction & Engineering – (continued)  

Nippon Road Co. Ltd. (The)

    4,200     $ 304,534  

Nishimatsu Construction Co. Ltd.

    25,600       495,642  

NRW Holdings Ltd.(a)

    190,716       291,968  

Obayashi Corp.

    9,300       77,396  

Okumura Corp.

    16,800       388,261  

Peab AB, Class B*

    3,999       37,065  

Penta-Ocean Construction Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,500       9,484  

Raito Kogyo Co. Ltd.(a)

    7,600       107,232  

Raiznext Corp.

    13,800       159,200  

Sacyr SA(a)

    157,404       267,511  

Sanki Engineering Co. Ltd.

    20,000       216,185  

Shapir Engineering and Industry Ltd.*

    7,497       50,617  

Shikun & Binui Ltd.*

    10,078       47,245  

Shimizu Corp.

    9,400       65,100  

Shinnihon Corp.

    5,600       46,551  

SHO-BOND Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,200       57,624  

Skanska AB, Class B

    5,096       95,781  

SNC-Lavalin Group, Inc.(a)

    6,208       86,787  

Sumitomo Densetsu Co. Ltd.

    9,200       218,075  

Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co. Ltd.

    79,840       307,018  

Sweco AB, Class B

    2,583       130,120  

Taihei Dengyo Kaisha Ltd.

    4,800       103,493  

Taikisha Ltd.

    15,800       409,585  

Taisei Corp.

    3,500       108,643  

Takamatsu Construction Group Co. Ltd.

    9,300       190,288  

Toda Corp.

    14,000       79,548  

Toenec Corp.

    4,600       149,168  

Tokyu Construction Co. Ltd.(a)

    37,600       165,089  

Totetsu Kogyo Co. Ltd.

    1,800       46,696  

Veidekke ASA*

    3,088       35,406  

Vinci SA

    8,279       654,042  

Webuild SpA(a)

    119,186       127,658  

WSP Global, Inc.

    1,210       76,474  

YIT OYJ(a)

    85,560       451,680  

Yokogawa Bridge Holdings Corp.

    18,800       331,437  

Yurtec Corp.

    18,600       112,091  
              11,047,143  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

180    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Construction Materials – 0.6%  

Adbri Ltd.

    8,796     $ 17,481  

Boral Ltd.(a)

    35,620       114,064  

Breedon Group plc*

    45,296       41,349  

Brickworks Ltd.

    3,147       38,255  

Buzzi Unicem SpA

    3,145       68,049  

Buzzi Unicem SpA (Retirement Savings Plan)

    5       71  

Cementir Holding NV

    30,130       191,980  

CRH plc

    13,571       477,287  

CSR Ltd.

    42,536       131,731  

Fletcher Building Ltd.(a)

    17,649       47,823  

HeidelbergCement AG

    3,450       197,400  

Ibstock plc* (b)

    9,600       19,935  

Imerys SA

    1,103       32,943  

James Hardie Industries plc, CHDI

    6,940       168,530  

LafargeHolcim Ltd. (Registered)*

    8,456       363,039  

Marshalls plc*

    3,724       32,237  

Mitani Sekisan Co. Ltd.(a)

    100       4,510  

RHI Magnesita NV

    13,432       444,610  

Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co. Ltd.

    1,700       51,550  

Taiheiyo Cement Corp.

    100       2,338  

Vicat SA

    13,340       410,232  

Wienerberger AG

    3,846       97,037  
              2,952,451  
Consumer Finance – 0.5%  

Acom Co. Ltd.(a)

    24,400       108,999  

AEON Financial Service Co. Ltd.

    4,800       48,808  

Aiful Corp.*

    151,800       447,239  

Allied Properties HK Ltd.(d)

    764,000       188,171  

Cembra Money Bank AG

    726       80,557  

Credit Corp. Group Ltd.(a)

    3,350       43,098  

Credit Saison Co. Ltd.

    6,200       66,543  

Hitachi Capital Corp.

    2,300       48,403  

Hong Leong Finance Ltd.

    115,000       189,491  

Isracard Ltd.

    80,961       228,865  

Jaccs Co. Ltd.

    13,800       239,592  

Provident Financial plc

    112,884       340,085  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Consumer Finance – (continued)  

Resurs Holding AB(b)

    65,438     $ 299,653  

Sun Hung Kai & Co. Ltd.

    105,996       41,142  

Zip Co. Ltd.* (a)

    14,040       56,397  
              2,427,043  
Containers & Packaging – 0.3%  

BillerudKorsnas AB*

    2,965       46,468  

Cascades, Inc.

    29,026       308,688  

CCL Industries, Inc., Class B

    2,960       112,775  

DS Smith plc

    28,888       105,744  

FP Corp.(a)

    1,200       47,810  

Fuji Seal International, Inc.(a)

    2,000       37,306  

Huhtamaki OYJ

    2,051       100,151  

Mayr Melnhof Karton AG

    275       44,911  

Orora Ltd.(a)

    35,495       64,310  

Pack Corp. (The)

    1,200       33,610  

Pact Group Holdings Ltd.(a)

    81,236       134,063  

Rengo Co. Ltd.

    700       5,377  

Smurfit Kappa Group plc

    5,382       202,621  

Toyo Seikan Group Holdings Ltd.

    5,600       52,122  

Vidrala SA(a)

    1,239       118,346  

Winpak Ltd.

    74       2,284  
              1,416,586  
Distributors – 0.2%              

Arata Corp.(a)

    8,100       394,385  

Bapcor Ltd.

    25,156       135,320  

Doshisha Co. Ltd.

    7,000       128,429  

Inchcape plc

    8,938       57,299  

Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd.

    4,422       57,513  

PALTAC Corp.

    800       44,768  
              817,714  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.1%  

AcadeMedia AB(b)

    29,946       240,883  

Benesse Holdings, Inc.

    2,000       47,044  

IDP Education Ltd.(a)

    2,501       33,862  

InvoCare Ltd.(a)

    4,432       31,404  
              353,193  
Diversified Financial Services – 1.2%  

Ackermans & van Haaren NV

    454       55,846  

Aker ASA, Class A

    760       30,260  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      181  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Financial Services – (continued)  

AMP Ltd.

    89,503     $ 96,166  

Banca Farmafactoring SpA(b)

    57,822       266,385  

Banca Mediolanum SpA

    9,158       62,513  

Banque Nationale de Belgique(a)

    86       162,788  

Burford Capital Ltd.(a)

    85,836       729,733  

Cerved Group SpA*

    10,505       74,155  

Challenger Ltd.(a)

    11,680       39,453  

ECN Capital Corp.

    116,505       461,354  

Element Fleet Management Corp.

    13,936       131,171  

Eurazeo SE*

    1,664       75,672  

EXOR NV

    2,944       152,948  

FFP

    2,070       164,688  

Financial Products Group Co. Ltd.

    23,000       99,445  

First Pacific Co. Ltd.

    1,012,000       313,197  

Fuyo General Lease Co. Ltd.

    700       39,975  

GRENKE AG

    495       19,328  

Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA

    1,466       120,015  

Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA – SW(d)

    1,176       96,504  

HAL Trust

    1,054       133,825  

Industrivarden AB, Class A*

    5,078       136,575  

Industrivarden AB, Class C*

    250       6,392  

Investor AB, Class A

    2,092       125,269  

Investor AB, Class B

    7,713       463,067  

Israel Land Development – Urban Renewal Ltd.

    6,207       43,000  

Japan Securities Finance Co. Ltd.

    23,000       108,246  

KBC Ancora*

    1,377       38,977  

Kinnevik AB, Class B

    5,014       205,688  

L E Lundbergforetagen AB, Class B*

    1,348       60,667  

M&G plc

    75,992       144,095  

Mitsubishi UFJ Lease & Finance Co. Ltd.

    21,500       90,492  

Mizuho Leasing Co. Ltd.

    13,938       353,850  

Onex Corp.

    157       6,782  

ORIX Corp.

    38,300       445,319  

Plus500 Ltd.

    4,264       81,349  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Diversified Financial Services – (continued)  

Ricoh Leasing Co. Ltd.

    4,600     $ 122,942  

Sofina SA

    330       85,721  

SRH NV*  (d)

    2,857        

Tokyo Century Corp.

    600       29,214  

Wendel SE

    497       43,072  

Zenkoku Hosho Co. Ltd.

    1,600       62,751  
              5,978,889  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.2%  

Altice Europe NV*

    4,851       23,897  

ARTERIA Networks Corp.

    1,900       29,807  

BCE, Inc.

    3,818       153,310  

Bezeq The Israeli Telecommunication Corp. Ltd.*

    52,780       60,269  

BT Group plc

    236,532       310,117  

Cellnex Telecom SA(b)

    5,426       348,385  

Chorus Ltd.

    13,242       73,689  

Deutsche Telekom AG (Registered)

    84,686       1,289,309  

Elisa OYJ

    1,820       89,550  

Euskaltel SA(b)

    8,683       82,634  

Gamma Communications plc

    1,701       36,730  

HKBN Ltd.

    51,500       88,724  

HKT Trust & HKT Ltd.

    53,400       68,998  

Iliad SA

    646       124,914  

Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane SpA(b)

    5,179       55,984  

Internet Initiative Japan, Inc.

    2,300       103,075  

Koninklijke KPN NV

    30,314       81,922  

Masmovil Ibercom SA* (a)

    1,672       43,822  

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp.

    33,200       697,410  

NOS SGPS SA

    1,360       4,670  

Orange SA

    51,520       577,926  

PCCW Ltd.

    127,035       76,337  

Proximus SADP

    4,056       78,878  

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd.

    46,000       68,385  

Spark New Zealand Ltd.

    3,166       9,395  

Swisscom AG (Registered)

    368       187,222  

TalkTalk Telecom Group plc

    45,639       56,769  

Telecom Italia SpA

    267,444       90,780  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

182    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

Telecom Italia SpA (Retirement Savings Plan)

    178,600     $ 64,971  

Telefonica Deutschland Holding AG

    14,053       35,473  

Telefonica SA(a)

    132,465       432,971  

Telekom Austria AG

    1,426       9,601  

Telenor ASA

    5,842       89,963  

Telia Co. AB(a)

    52,026       199,427  

Telstra Corp. Ltd.

    52,988       99,725  

TELUS Corp.

    10,528       179,869  

United Internet AG (Registered)

    1,560       54,697  

Vocus Group Ltd.* (a)

    38,775       93,943  
              6,173,548  
Electric Utilities – 1.4%              

Acciona SA

    857       86,550  

AusNet Services

    46,020       64,635  

BKW AG

    773       76,916  

Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.

    18,400       206,195  

Chugoku Electric Power Co., Inc. (The)(a)

    4,206       52,907  

CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd.

    500       2,353  

CLP Holdings Ltd.

    23,500       216,065  

Contact Energy Ltd.

    20,140       98,232  

EDP – Energias de Portugal SA

    34,044       167,825  

Electricite de France SA

    12,455       144,618  

Elia Group SA/NV

    794       76,858  

Emera, Inc.

    3,084       122,934  

Endesa SA

    4,678       125,385  

Enel SpA

    219,774       1,749,530  

EVN AG

    2,240       35,747  

Fortis, Inc.(a)

    6,348       250,568  

Fortum OYJ

    10,350       194,708  

Genesis Energy Ltd.

    14,326       29,351  

HK Electric Investments & HK Electric Investments Ltd.(b)

    500       509  

Hokkaido Electric Power Co., Inc.(a)

    89,900       348,283  

Hokuriku Electric Power Co.(a)

    9,300       66,276  

Hydro One Ltd.(b)

    1,092       23,841  

Iberdrola SA

    99,844       1,177,571  

Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. (The)

    22,500       204,661  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electric Utilities – (continued)              

Mercury NZ Ltd.

    17,270     $ 61,063  

Okinawa Electric Power Co., Inc. (The)(a)

    5,170       75,418  

Orsted A/S(b)

    3,220       511,103  

Power Assets Holdings Ltd.

    17,000       87,358  

Red Electrica Corp. SA

    3,432       60,466  

Romande Energie Holding SA (Registered)

    21       25,891  

Shikoku Electric Power Co., Inc.(a)

    8,600       61,863  

Spark Infrastructure Group

    1,271       1,772  

SSE plc

    10,305       167,221  

Terna Rete Elettrica Nazionale SpA

    24,026       162,435  

Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc.

    5,800       51,154  

Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings, Inc.*

    31,200       80,283  

Trustpower Ltd.

    5,123       23,971  

Verbund AG

    1,385       79,666  
              6,972,182  
Electrical Equipment – 1.3%              

ABB Ltd. (Registered)

    30,079       730,192  

Ballard Power Systems, Inc.*

    1,824       26,881  

Fagerhult AB*

    31,408       142,023  

Fuji Electric Co. Ltd.

    4,700       141,620  

Fujikura Ltd.

    115,000       302,516  

Futaba Corp.

    3,400       28,816  

Huber + Suhner AG (Registered)

    867       62,527  

ITM Power plc* (a)

    10,192       30,442  

Legrand SA

    5,198       384,364  

Mabuchi Motor Co. Ltd.

    2,000       82,074  

Melrose Industries plc*

    134,918       208,728  

Mitsubishi Electric Corp.

    29,500       378,133  

NEL ASA* (a)

    12,688       23,999  

Nexans SA*

    12,604       611,349  

Nidec Corp.

    9,310       935,097  

Nissin Electric Co. Ltd.

    1,200       11,938  

Nitto Kogyo Corp.

    1,800       33,162  

Nordex SE*

    3,040       43,556  

OSRAM Licht AG*

    2,342       137,495  

Prysmian SpA

    5,708       155,187  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      183  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electrical Equipment – (continued)  

Schneider Electric SE

    8,050     $ 977,088  

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy SA

    6,044       171,292  

Signify NV* (b)

    3,848       137,115  

Somfy SA

    275       38,312  

TKH Group NV, CVA

    2,194       70,639  

Ushio, Inc.

    5,900       65,750  

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

    3,082       526,087  
              6,456,382  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 2.0%  

Alps Alpine Co. Ltd.

    5,348       76,378  

ALSO Holding AG (Registered)*

    52       12,170  

Amano Corp.

    2,600       60,909  

Anritsu Corp.(a)

    500       10,910  

Azbil Corp.

    3,000       121,246  

Barco NV(a)

    2,726       42,725  

Canon Electronics, Inc.

    2,800       38,462  

Canon Marketing Japan, Inc.

    3,700       78,360  

Carel Industries SpA(a) (b)

    4,028       75,072  

Celestica, Inc.*

    52,210       306,599  

Citizen Watch Co. Ltd.

    9,200       24,289  

Comet Holding AG (Registered)

    352       49,466  

CONEXIO Corp.

    2,200       26,327  

Daiwabo Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    9,200       600,191  

Datalogic SpA(a)

    535       6,163  

FIH Mobile Ltd.* (a)

    1,262,000       138,326  

Fingerprint Cards AB, Class B*

    10,108       17,045  

FIT Hon Teng Ltd.* (a) (b)

    644,000       251,626  

Halma plc

    8,510       260,561  

Hamamatsu Photonics KK

    3,400       170,423  

Hexagon AB, Class B

    4,002       292,423  

Hirose Electric Co. Ltd.

    782       108,765  

Hitachi Ltd.

    27,600       924,576  

Horiba Ltd.

    800       39,105  

Hosiden Corp.

    18,400       162,281  

Inficon Holding AG (Registered)

    110       80,650  

Iriso Electronics Co. Ltd.

    1,200       45,342  

Japan Aviation Electronics Industry Ltd.

    2,044       27,940  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – (continued)  

Jenoptik AG

    2,585     $ 63,776  

Kaga Electronics Co. Ltd.

    9,300       178,812  

Keyence Corp.

    3,200       1,446,336  

Kyocera Corp.

    5,500       301,516  

Lagercrantz Group AB, Class B

    5,832       35,931  

Landis+Gyr Group AG*

    1,102       61,560  

LEM Holding SA (Registered)

    27       48,960  

Macnica Fuji Electronics Holdings, Inc.

    23,100       410,338  

Murata Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    9,200       639,529  

Mycronic AB

    3,001       63,417  

Nichicon Corp.

    7,600       61,140  

Nippon Ceramic Co. Ltd.

    900       21,781  

Nippon Signal Co. Ltd.

    24,500       212,330  

Nissha Co. Ltd.

    18,400       215,611  

Nohmi Bosai Ltd.

    2,500       53,903  

Oki Electric Industry Co. Ltd.

    41,400       382,160  

Omron Corp.

    4,500       322,843  

Optex Group Co. Ltd.

    1,000       14,808  

Renishaw plc

    1,617       116,979  

Restar Holdings Corp.(a)

    13,800       293,847  

Shimadzu Corp.

    1,800       51,156  

Siix Corp.(a)

    12,428       146,464  

Spectris plc

    3,026       96,876  

Taiyo Yuden Co. Ltd.

    2,500       91,831  

TDK Corp.

    2,900       338,712  

Topcon Corp.

    2,200       21,781  

Venture Corp. Ltd.

    4,500       63,471  

VSTECS Holdings Ltd.

    372,000       232,654  

Yokogawa Electric Corp.

    1,600       23,356  
              10,060,208  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.4%  

BW Offshore Ltd.

    44,206       105,441  

CGG SA*

    52,560       29,363  

John Wood Group plc

    301,898       827,941  

Modec, Inc.

    10,400       150,220  

Ocean Yield ASA(a)

    30,348       66,990  

Petrofac Ltd.(a)

    137,356       210,813  

Saipem SpA(a)

    8,562       15,035  

SBM Offshore NV

    5,113       82,429  

Subsea 7 SA*

    26       171  

TechnipFMC plc

    12,879       71,050  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

184    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Energy Equipment & Services – (continued)  

Tecnicas Reunidas SA*

    14,536     $ 115,986  

Tenaris SA

    6,336       30,053  

TGS NOPEC Geophysical Co. ASA

    1,140       10,495  

Vallourec SA*

    (e)      2  

Worley Ltd.

    10,916       72,135  
              1,788,124  
Entertainment – 0.7%  

Akatsuki, Inc.

    4,600       203,951  

Bollore SA

    12,858       46,071  

Capcom Co. Ltd.

    2,600       143,007  

Cineplex, Inc.(a)

    6,480       24,737  

Cineworld Group plc(a)

    433,136       159,669  

CTS Eventim AG & Co. KGaA*

    1,375       60,927  

Daiichikosho Co. Ltd.

    1,100       37,565  

DeNA Co. Ltd.

    4,000       68,223  

EVENT Hospitality and Entertainment Ltd.(a)

    2,282       13,221  

IGG, Inc.(a)

    322,000       345,882  

Kinepolis Group NV*

    1,030       26,156  

Koei Tecmo Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,728       84,631  

Konami Holdings Corp.

    2,200       85,651  

Modern Times Group MTG AB, Class B*

    416       5,548  

Nexon Co. Ltd.(a)

    9,200       256,885  

Nintendo Co. Ltd.

    2,100       1,144,614  

Paradox Interactive AB

    952       29,412  

Shochiku Co. Ltd.

    300       34,609  

Square Enix Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,800       105,376  

Toei Animation Co. Ltd.

    900       62,675  

Toho Co. Ltd.

    4,100       161,976  

Ubisoft Entertainment SA*

    1,489       131,368  

Vivendi SA

    10,166       293,560  
              3,525,714  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 2.4%  

Activia Properties, Inc.

    15       54,094  

Advance Residence Investment Corp.

    18       52,516  

Aedifica SA

    1,039       104,568  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

AEON REIT Investment Corp.

    29     $ 32,734  

ALE Property Group

    9,405       28,334  

Allied Properties REIT(a)

    1,540       37,318  

alstria office REIT-AG

    6,756       86,016  

Altarea SCA

    129       16,529  

Argosy Property Ltd.

    65,492       60,164  

Artis REIT

    23,874       149,330  

Ascendas REIT

    69,080       145,698  

Ascott Residence Trust

    30,164       18,335  

Assura plc(a)

    57,957       57,103  

Aventus Group(a)

    149,730       258,664  

Befimmo SA

    657       25,561  

Big Yellow Group plc

    7,176       102,064  

Boardwalk REIT(a)

    9,154       183,856  

British Land Co. plc (The)

    16,528       74,498  

BWP Trust

    12,444       35,043  

CapitaLand Mall Trust

    37,044       46,932  

CapitaLand Retail China Trust

    3,233       2,770  

Carmila SA

    18,308       141,605  

CDL Hospitality Trusts

    36,800       26,680  

Champion REIT(a)

    68,000       32,883  

Charter Hall Group

    5,096       44,161  

Charter Hall Long Wale REIT(a)

    3,602       12,066  

Charter Hall Retail REIT

    25,935       62,652  

Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT

    31       63  

Choice Properties REIT(a)

    3,957       35,702  

Cofinimmo SA

    507       68,861  

Comforia Residential REIT, Inc.

    34       97,180  

Cominar REIT(a)

    37,812       201,346  

Covivio

    1,449       86,250  

Cromwell European REIT(b)

    533,600       282,812  

Cromwell Property Group(a)

    48,403       29,742  

Daiwa House REIT Investment Corp.

    42       97,186  

Daiwa Securities Living Investments Corp.

    26       25,393  

Derwent London plc

    1,508       51,827  

Dexus

    9,292       56,183  

Dream Office REIT(a)

    3,966       52,083  

ESR-REIT

    72,000       18,455  

Eurocommercial Properties NV, CVA

    17,756       193,594  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      185  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Far East Hospitality Trust

    53,976     $ 22,136  

First Capital REIT(a)

    4,784       42,410  

Fortune REIT

    48,000       39,985  

Frasers Centrepoint Trust

    33,249       51,377  

Frasers Hospitality Trust

    39,200       11,483  

Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust(b)

    4,239       3,818  

Frontier Real Estate Investment Corp.(a)

    12       40,119  

Fukuoka REIT Corp.

    26       31,412  

Gecina SA

    368       45,696  

Global One Real Estate Investment Corp.

    48       43,252  

GLP J-REIT

    74       113,966  

Goodman Group

    31,418       405,965  

Goodman Property Trust

    19,085       31,281  

GPT Group (The)

    43,286       122,502  

Granite REIT(a)

    1,072       60,058  

Growthpoint Properties Australia Ltd.

    19,121       45,654  

H&R REIT

    60,122       461,731  

Hamborner REIT AG

    6,058       56,545  

Hammerson plc* (a)

    1,764,080       371,910  

Hankyu Hanshin REIT, Inc.

    26       28,626  

Heiwa Real Estate REIT, Inc.

    87       93,957  

Hibernia REIT plc

    34,222       41,299  

Hoshino Resorts REIT, Inc.(a)

    24       112,952  

Hulic Reit, Inc.

    23       30,186  

ICADE

    154       7,785  

Ichigo Office REIT Investment Corp.

    40       25,827  

Inmobiliaria Colonial Socimi SA

    7,185       51,095  

InterRent REIT

    1,952       16,631  

Invincible Investment Corp.

    121       38,485  

Japan Hotel REIT Investment Corp.

    77       37,049  

Japan Logistics Fund, Inc.

    19       53,271  

Japan Prime Realty Investment Corp.(a)

    25       67,558  

Japan Real Estate Investment Corp.

    24       117,544  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Japan Retail Fund Investment Corp.

    52     $ 74,762  

Kenedix Office Investment Corp.(a)

    9       51,999  

Kenedix Residential Next Investment Corp.

    34       55,518  

Kenedix Retail REIT Corp.

    31       59,070  

Keppel DC REIT

    47,500       100,879  

Keppel Pacific Oak US REIT(b)

    271,400       189,980  

Keppel REIT

    80,733       58,828  

Kiwi Property Group Ltd.

    3,973       3,230  

Klepierre SA(a)

    5,108       64,707  

Land Securities Group plc

    13,636       89,796  

LaSalle Logiport REIT

    44       68,437  

Link REIT

    37,575       286,118  

LondonMetric Property plc(a)

    51,336       143,243  

LXI REIT plc(a) (b)

    219,420       310,379  

Mapletree Commercial Trust

    34,368       43,290  

Mapletree Industrial Trust

    33,416       74,394  

Mapletree Logistics Trust

    73,207       104,543  

Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust(b)

    49,500       31,538  

MCUBS MidCity Investment Corp.

    43       30,767  

Mercialys SA

    13,624       65,225  

Merlin Properties Socimi SA

    10,940       73,593  

Mirvac Group

    47,426       70,273  

Mori Hills REIT Investment Corp.

    16       19,667  

Mori Trust Hotel Reit, Inc.

    138       142,171  

National Storage REIT

    70,798       89,741  

Nippon Accommodations Fund, Inc.

    8       45,762  

Nippon Building Fund, Inc.(a)

    17       85,862  

Nippon Prologis REIT, Inc.

    41       134,915  

NIPPON REIT Investment Corp.

    23       73,594  

Nomura Real Estate Master Fund, Inc.

    7       8,343  

Northview Apartment REIT(a)

    15,180       411,221  

One REIT, Inc.

    14       32,275  

Orix JREIT, Inc.

    49       68,667  

OUE Commercial REIT

    82,177       19,559  

Parkway Life REIT

    12,500       37,074  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

186    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Precinct Properties New Zealand Ltd.

    22,735     $ 26,595  

Premier Investment Corp.(a)

    67       73,512  

Primary Health Properties plc

    6,188       11,522  

Property for Industry Ltd.

    26,128       50,077  

Reit 1 Ltd.

    72,910       278,233  

Retail Estates NV

    3,956       233,633  

Safestore Holdings plc

    12,195       126,697  

Scentre Group

    127,558       188,113  

Secure Income REIT plc

    14,030       43,719  

Segro plc

    19,964       232,837  

Sekisui House Reit, Inc.(a)

    55       38,406  

Shaftesbury plc

    4,480       26,356  

Shopping Centres Australasia Property Group

    54,215       88,328  

Societe Fonciere Lyonnaise SA

    516       32,818  

SPH REIT

    44,800       24,442  

Star Asia Investment Corp.

    156       66,107  

Starhill Global REIT

    72,900       22,156  

Stockland

    60,536       163,669  

Summit Industrial Income REIT(a)

    26,174       264,420  

Sunlight REIT

    55,000       23,688  

Suntec REIT

    3,900       3,827  

Tokyu REIT, Inc.

    21       28,485  

Tritax Big Box REIT plc

    47,975       97,142  

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield(a)

    3,634       147,734  

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, CHDI(a)

    5       10  

UNITE Group plc (The)

    9,194       99,026  

United Urban Investment Corp.

    84       89,432  

Vicinity Centres

    98,852       83,997  

Vital Healthcare Property Trust(a)

    45,104       86,745  

Warehouses De Pauw CVA, CVA

    4,239       141,814  

Workspace Group plc(a)

    8,954       71,433  

WPT Industrial REIT(a)

    15,226       197,177  
              12,193,986  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.5%  

Aeon Co. Ltd.

    15,313       390,149  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food & Staples Retailing – (continued)  

Ain Holdings, Inc.

    800     $ 55,864  

Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc.

    608       18,810  

Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc., Class B

    12,972       399,176  

Arcs Co. Ltd.

    2,818       61,999  

Axfood AB

    3,184       74,045  

Belc Co. Ltd.

    800       49,053  

Carrefour SA

    11,445       178,112  

Casino Guichard Perrachon SA* (a)

    2,142       48,218  

Cawachi Ltd.

    1,000       28,391  

Coles Group Ltd.

    15,548       193,805  

Cosmos Pharmaceutical Corp.

    200       33,939  

Create SD Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,000       64,473  

Daikokutenbussan Co. Ltd.

    400       21,657  

Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd.

    7,600       28,652  

Distribuidora Internacional de Alimentacion SA*

    37,128       4,874  

Empire Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,666       45,419  

Etablissements Franz Colruyt NV

    1,044       61,802  

George Weston Ltd.

    1,703       119,332  

GrainCorp Ltd., Class A* (a)

    10,837       26,940  

Heiwado Co. Ltd.

    19,600       397,287  

ICA Gruppen AB

    1,916       90,686  

Inageya Co. Ltd.(a)

    2,398       41,725  

Itochu-Shokuhin Co. Ltd.

    400       20,892  

J Sainsbury plc(a)

    17,618       45,925  

Jeronimo Martins SGPS SA

    988       15,698  

Kato Sangyo Co. Ltd.

    1,400       46,403  

Kesko OYJ, Class A

    2,248       55,252  

Kesko OYJ, Class B

    8,204       210,815  

Kobe Bussan Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,200       90,147  

Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV

    31,372       862,065  

Kusuri no Aoki Holdings Co. Ltd.

    600       48,096  

Loblaw Cos. Ltd.

    2,760       137,281  

MARR SpA*

    1,155       15,661  

Matsumotokiyoshi Holdings Co. Ltd.

    3,600       132,753  

Maxvalu Tokai Co. Ltd.

    2,400       59,805  

Metcash Ltd.(a)

    43,474       90,062  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      187  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Food & Staples Retailing – (continued)  

METRO AG

    8,528     $ 83,643  

Metro, Inc.

    4,738       220,847  

Nihon Chouzai Co. Ltd.

    1,600       25,759  

North West Co., Inc. (The)

    95       2,341  

Olam International Ltd.

    35,100       32,902  

Qol Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,500       16,300  

Rami Levy Chain Stores Hashikma Marketing 2006 Ltd.

    243       15,900  

Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd.

    9,500       288,889  

Sheng Siong Group Ltd.

    51,500       62,984  

Shufersal Ltd.

    3,578       27,088  

Sligro Food Group NV(a)

    10,488       149,780  

Sonae SGPS SA

    314,962       185,276  

Sugi Holdings Co. Ltd.

    800       52,956  

Sundrug Co. Ltd.

    1,600       59,307  

Tesco plc

    145,682       387,094  

Tsuruha Holdings, Inc.

    900       125,866  

United Super Markets Holdings, Inc.

    2,000       21,542  

Valor Holdings Co. Ltd.

    21,200       521,381  

Welcia Holdings Co. Ltd.

    3,600       141,190  

Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc(a)

    58,466       123,147  

Woolworths Group Ltd.

    20,148       539,923  

Yokohama Reito Co. Ltd.(a)

    23,100       186,497  

Zur Rose Group AG* (a)

    260       72,478  
              7,608,353  
Food Products – 2.7%  

a2 Milk Co. Ltd. (The)* (a)

    8,840       85,532  

AAK AB

    5,004       97,481  

Agrana Beteiligungs AG

    920       16,611  

Ajinomoto Co., Inc.

    8,100       162,519  

Ariake Japan Co. Ltd.

    800       51,196  

Associated British Foods plc

    4,888       107,285  

Austevoll Seafood ASA

    8,913       60,562  

Bakkafrost P/F*

    1,281       72,902  

Barry Callebaut AG (Registered)

    38       78,483  

Bega Cheese Ltd.

    7,095       24,912  

Bell Food Group AG (Registered)

    320       81,174  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – (continued)  

Bonduelle SCA

    965     $ 20,795  

Calbee, Inc.

    3,200       97,953  

Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Spruengli AG

    41       325,209  

Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Spruengli AG (Registered)

    4       346,080  

Costa Group Holdings Ltd.

    13,860       34,650  

Danone SA

    10,134       559,538  

DyDo Group Holdings, Inc.

    500       25,827  

Ebro Foods SA

    1,618       36,224  

Elders Ltd.

    1,508       11,871  

Emmi AG (Registered)

    41       38,739  

First Resources Ltd.

    5,100       4,519  

Freedom Foods Group Ltd. (a) (d)

    4,368       6,925  

Fuji Oil Holdings, Inc.

    3,400       107,327  

Fujicco Co. Ltd.

    2,000       38,339  

Fujiya Co. Ltd.

    400       8,881  

Glanbia plc

    7,586       72,106  

Golden Agri-Resources Ltd.

    2,559,600       264,301  

Greencore Group plc

    27,840       32,559  

Grieg Seafood ASA

    5,037       35,542  

House Foods Group, Inc.

    2,400       79,319  

Inghams Group Ltd.

    24,494       49,195  

Itoham Yonekyu Holdings, Inc.

    6,500       43,400  

Japfa Ltd.

    210,820       99,582  

J-Oil Mills, Inc.

    4,600       162,368  

Kagome Co. Ltd.

    900       30,778  

Kameda Seika Co. Ltd.

    900       40,721  

Kerry Group plc, Class A

    2,346       280,652  

Kikkoman Corp.

    4,000       198,202  

Kotobuki Spirits Co. Ltd.

    1,000       46,107  

LDC SA

    1,812       198,407  

Leroy Seafood Group ASA

    11,649       54,645  

Lotus Bakeries NV

    13       50,881  

Maple Leaf Foods, Inc.

    301       5,477  

Maruha Nichiro Corp.(a)

    18,200       379,878  

Mehadrin Ltd.*

    (e)      14  

MEIJI Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,600       115,707  

Mitsui Sugar Co. Ltd.

    3,400       59,095  

Morinaga & Co. Ltd.

    1,100       41,721  

Morinaga Milk Industry Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,200       57,739  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

188    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Food Products – (continued)  

Mowi ASA

    3,640     $ 57,367  

Nestle SA (Registered)

    46,368       5,215,799  

Nichirei Corp.

    3,500       87,985  

Nippon Flour Mills Co. Ltd.

    1,500       24,019  

Nippon Suisan Kaisha Ltd.

    16,000       61,374  

Nisshin Oillio Group Ltd. (The)

    10,300       295,187  

Nisshin Seifun Group, Inc.

    7,090       106,547  

Nissin Foods Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,500       129,711  

Norway Royal Salmon ASA

    2,651       56,798  

Orkla ASA

    14,424       135,928  

Premium Brands Holdings Corp.

    1,100       78,407  

Riken Vitamin Co. Ltd.

    400       5,904  

S Foods, Inc.

    9,100       302,057  

S&B Foods, Inc.

    4,600       198,450  

Sakata Seed Corp.

    2,800       98,565  

Salmar ASA*

    52       2,625  

Saputo, Inc.

    4,455       108,355  

Savencia SA*

    1,794       100,308  

Schouw & Co. A/S

    1,160       100,910  

Showa Sangyo Co. Ltd.(a)

    13,800       425,722  

Starzen Co. Ltd.

    4,600       170,949  

Strauss Group Ltd.

    952       27,571  

Suedzucker AG

    1,979       28,493  

Synlait Milk Ltd.* (a)

    1,760       6,200  

Tate & Lyle plc

    3,262       25,104  

Toyo Suisan Kaisha Ltd.

    2,800       139,277  

Vilmorin & Cie SA

    1,612       84,217  

Viscofan SA

    825       55,690  

Vitasoy International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    16,000       64,579  

WH Group Ltd.(b)

    161,000       126,436  

Wilmar International Ltd.

    78,200       231,364  

Yakult Honsha Co. Ltd.

    1,700       82,284  

Yamazaki Baking Co. Ltd.(a)

    2,900       47,603  
              13,581,715  
Gas Utilities – 0.5%              

AltaGas Ltd.(a)

    7,107       90,027  

APA Group

    17,066       125,718  

Enagas SA

    1,976       42,651  

Hong Kong & China Gas Co. Ltd.

    157,340       226,022  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Gas Utilities – (continued)              

Naturgy Energy Group SA(a)

    7,130     $ 132,471  

Nippon Gas Co. Ltd.

    2,000       95,466  

Osaka Gas Co. Ltd.

    5,900       111,860  

Rubis SCA

    2,653       87,086  

Saibu Gas Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,600       86,436  

Shizuoka Gas Co. Ltd.(a)

    27,600       241,837  

Snam SpA

    24,749       120,793  

Superior Plus Corp.(a)

    78,579       698,362  

Toho Gas Co. Ltd.(a)

    2,000       103,118  

Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd.

    7,000       158,394  
              2,320,241  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 1.3%  

Alcon, Inc.*

    8,188       465,435  

Ambu A/S, Class B(a)

    3,172       96,156  

Ansell Ltd.

    52       1,468  

Arjo AB, Class B

    4,131       29,354  

Asahi Intecc Co. Ltd.

    3,200       99,024  

BioMerieux

    825       122,816  

Carl Zeiss Meditec AG

    715       92,365  

Cochlear Ltd.

    848       126,355  

Coloplast A/S, Class B

    1,564       228,258  

ConvaTec Group plc(b)

    5,396       12,607  

CYBERDYNE, Inc.*

    4,500       30,735  

Demant A/S* (a)

    2,796       88,061  

DiaSorin SpA

    293       64,335  

Draegerwerk AG & Co. KGaA (Preference)

    585       47,019  

Eiken Chemical Co. Ltd.

    1,600       30,518  

Elekta AB, Class B

    6,069       71,114  

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd.

    11,339       262,288  

Getinge AB, Class B

    3,120       61,112  

GN Store Nord A/S

    1,976       142,122  

Hogy Medical Co. Ltd.

    1,200       35,240  

Hoya Corp.

    5,300       598,240  

Japan Lifeline Co. Ltd.

    3,000       38,512  

Koninklijke Philips NV*

    15,174       704,808  

Mani, Inc.

    3,900       97,481  

Menicon Co. Ltd.

    1,600       112,952  

Nagaileben Co. Ltd.

    1,500       37,507  

Nakanishi, Inc.

    5,100       90,740  

Nanosonics Ltd.* (a)

    16,777       60,675  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      189  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – (continued)  

Nihon Kohden Corp.

    2,300     $ 71,944  

Nipro Corp.

    5,200       54,567  

Olympus Corp.

    22,800       433,798  

Paramount Bed Holdings Co. Ltd.

    800       30,840  

PolyNovo Ltd.* (a)

    32,604       59,530  

Sartorius AG (Preference)

    638       270,069  

Sectra AB, Class B*

    1,654       100,900  

Siemens Healthineers AG(b)

    3,225       138,451  

Smith & Nephew plc

    16,146       279,018  

Sonova Holding AG (Registered)*

    880       208,827  

Straumann Holding AG (Registered)

    195       203,393  

Sysmex Corp.

    2,400       224,986  

Terumo Corp.

    12,200       447,785  

Ypsomed Holding AG (Registered)

    81       10,075  
              6,381,480  
Health Care Providers & Services – 0.6%  

AEVIS VICTORIA SA*

    2,808       38,449  

Alfresa Holdings Corp.

    5,500       100,540  

Ambea AB* (b)

    20,095       113,104  

Amplifon SpA*

    3,067       111,501  

As One Corp.

    700       100,842  

BML, Inc.

    3,300       92,428  

Chartwell Retirement Residences(a)

    5,472       39,234  

China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group Ltd.* (a)

    40,000       110,640  

EBOS Group Ltd.

    2,014       34,275  

Fagron

    2,504       55,565  

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA

    2,852       217,867  

Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA

    9,936       368,515  

Galenica AG(b)

    132       8,339  

Healius Ltd.

    27,458       64,982  

Korian SA* (a)

    2,644       74,471  

Mediclinic International plc(a)

    22,600       82,581  

Medipal Holdings Corp.

    700       12,468  

Metlifecare Ltd.* (d)

    69,372       274,171  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

NMC Health plc* (d)

    2,074     $ 852  

Orpea*

    992       99,075  

Raffles Medical Group Ltd.

    4,124       2,325  

Ramsay Health Care Ltd.

    2,340       102,458  

Ryman Healthcare Ltd.

    2,860       26,462  

Ship Healthcare Holdings, Inc.

    900       42,615  

Sienna Senior Living, Inc.(a)

    2,835       24,685  

Sonic Healthcare Ltd.

    9,897       242,005  

Summerset Group Holdings Ltd.(a)

    11,505       79,078  

Suzuken Co. Ltd.

    3,380       121,730  

Toho Holdings Co. Ltd.

    4,200       77,419  

Town Health International Medical Group Ltd.*  (a) (d)

    398,000        

UDG Healthcare plc

    11,405       106,987  

Vital KSK Holdings, Inc.(a)

    18,800       169,225  
              2,994,888  
Health Care Technology – 0.1%  

AGFA-Gevaert NV* (a)

    53,820       204,377  

CompuGroup Medical SE & Co. KGaA

    624       53,461  

Craneware plc

    608       12,224  

M3, Inc.

    7,000       470,528  
              740,590  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 2.3%  

Accor SA*

    4,370       111,276  

Arcland Service Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,400       26,744  

Aristocrat Leisure Ltd.

    9,338       187,744  

Atom Corp.(a)

    5,800       46,382  

Autogrill SpA* (a)

    52,118       195,242  

Basic-Fit NV* (b)

    1,196       28,978  

Betsson AB*

    62,100       473,713  

Carnival plc

    5,876       64,474  

Colowide Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,500       52,195  

Compass Group plc

    25,530       348,259  

Corporate Travel Management Ltd.(a)

    3,366       34,511  

Create Restaurants Holdings, Inc.(a)

    4,400       22,939  

Crown Resorts Ltd.

    11,014       64,042  

Dalata Hotel Group plc(a)

    82,248       231,852  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

190    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd.

    1,460     $ 86,872  

Domino’s Pizza Group plc

    15,345       65,753  

Doutor Nichires Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,700       37,863  

Evolution Gaming Group AB(b)

    2,024       150,302  

Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd.(a)

    4,910       38,825  

Flutter Entertainment plc

    1,493       257,908  

Flutter Entertainment plc – XDUB(a)

    1,009       175,771  

Fuji Kyuko Co. Ltd.

    1,000       42,759  

Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd.

    36,000       237,219  

Gamesys Group plc

    2,860       42,971  

Genting Hong Kong Ltd.*

    1,601,000       51,613  

Genting Singapore Ltd.

    144,000       68,019  

GL Ltd.

    188,600       67,678  

Great Canadian Gaming Corp.*

    2,860       48,798  

Greggs plc*

    1,040       17,307  

GVC Holdings plc

    12,972       162,059  

Hiday Hidaka Corp.

    2,191       35,629  

HIS Co. Ltd.* (a)

    14,600       195,663  

Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels Ltd. (The)(a)

    24,307       17,615  

Ichibanya Co. Ltd.

    1,000       50,603  

InterContinental Hotels Group plc

    2,300       116,458  

J D Wetherspoon plc*

    3,795       42,298  

Kindred Group plc, SDR

    99,176       755,423  

Kisoji Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,700       39,939  

KOMEDA Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,200       21,190  

Kyoritsu Maintenance Co. Ltd.

    15,400       548,001  

Mandarin Oriental International Ltd.

    8,000       14,640  

McDonald’s Holdings Co. Japan Ltd.

    1,100       52,085  

Melco International Development Ltd.

    21,000       34,012  

Melia Hotels International SA* (a)

    46,828       173,461  

MGM China Holdings Ltd.(a)

    32,400       42,699  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Miramar Hotel & Investment

    138,000     $ 224,933  

Mitchells & Butlers plc*

    95,542       193,704  

MOS Food Services, Inc.(a)

    2,100       57,150  

NagaCorp Ltd.(a)

    94,000       96,972  

Ohsho Food Service Corp.

    1,504       82,437  

Oriental Land Co. Ltd.

    4,500       627,822  

Pandox AB*

    5,720       57,257  

Playtech plc

    145,912       641,836  

Plenus Co. Ltd.

    1,000       16,329  

Rank Group plc

    85,332       99,301  

Restaurant Brands International, Inc.(a)

    4,232       219,733  

Restaurant Brands New Zealand Ltd.*

    1,154       9,053  

Ringer Hut Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,700       36,703  

Round One Corp.

    5,100       39,955  

Royal Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,600       27,105  

Saizeriya Co. Ltd.

    1,800       31,113  

Sands China Ltd.

    42,000       147,043  

Scandic Hotels Group AB(a) (b)

    84,552       214,677  

Shangri-La Asia Ltd.*

    32,000       25,130  

SJM Holdings Ltd.

    76,000       78,697  

SkiStar AB

    2,828       31,708  

Skylark Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,700       52,630  

Sodexo SA

    988       63,413  

SSP Group plc

    234,922       567,109  

St Marc Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,900       27,026  

Star Entertainment Grp Ltd. (The)

    11,421       26,307  

Tabcorp Holdings Ltd.

    42,680       98,608  

Tokyo Dome Corp.

    7,000       55,778  

Toridoll Holdings Corp.

    3,200       40,406  

TUI AG, DI

    13,832       54,119  

Whitbread plc

    1,820       50,524  

William Hill plc

    473,156       1,678,754  

Wynn Macau Ltd.* (a)

    12,800       17,661  

Yoshinoya Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    4,900       89,760  

Zensho Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,600       83,784  
              11,444,321  
Household Durables – 1.4%  

Barratt Developments plc

    30,314       189,121  

Bellway plc

    3,680       111,105  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      191  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Household Durables – (continued)  

Berkeley Group Holdings plc

    1,456     $ 76,377  

Bonava AB, Class B(a)

    33,864       264,600  

Breville Group Ltd.

    4,514       82,641  

Cairn Homes plc*

    289,064       264,322  

Casio Computer Co. Ltd.

    3,600       54,375  

Countryside Properties plc(a) (b)

    13,624       59,401  

Crest Nicholson Holdings plc

    123,786       351,801  

De’ Longhi SpA*

    2,352       75,233  

Electra Consumer Products 1970 Ltd.

    4,888       134,891  

Electrolux AB, Series B(a)

    7,237       163,340  

ES-Con Japan Ltd.

    18,800       151,961  

Fiskars OYJ Abp

    574       8,612  

Forbo Holding AG (Registered)

    24       36,712  

Fujitsu General Ltd.

    2,100       57,934  

Haseko Corp.

    3,500       41,750  

Hunter Douglas NV*

    1,352       78,429  

Husqvarna AB, Class B

    10,433       107,833  

Iida Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    5,400       97,266  

JM AB

    1,842       53,308  

Kaufman & Broad SA

    416       14,828  

Man Wah Holdings Ltd.

    54,400       75,200  

Nagawa Co. Ltd.

    500       35,058  

Neinor Homes SA* (a) (b)

    17,020       205,395  

Nikon Corp.

    1,400       8,423  

Nobia AB*

    55,798       336,625  

Panasonic Corp.

    55,200       507,276  

Persimmon plc

    7,774       234,810  

Pressance Corp.

    18,400       250,285  

Redrow plc

    8,322       44,720  

Rinnai Corp.

    100       9,853  

Sangetsu Corp.

    2,256       32,392  

SEB SA

    560       91,063  

Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd.

    8,700       134,819  

Sekisui House Ltd.

    17,200       284,062  

Sharp Corp.

    6,200       71,169  

Sony Corp.

    19,400       1,609,677  

Sumitomo Forestry Co. Ltd.

    7,700       120,722  

Tamron Co. Ltd.

    5,200       77,149  

Taylor Wimpey plc

    91,494       125,163  

Token Corp.(a)

    4,600       345,418  

TomTom NV*

    25       168  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Household Durables – (continued)  

Vistry Group plc

    5,405     $ 38,088  

Zojirushi Corp.

    1,300       23,180  
              7,136,555  
Household Products – 0.5%  

Earth Corp.

    600       37,995  

Essity AB, Class A

    2,977       89,967  

Essity AB, Class B(a)

    7,651       221,678  

Henkel AG & Co. KGaA

    1,770       160,098  

Henkel AG & Co. KGaA (Preference)

    2,392       232,713  

Lion Corp.

    2,400       49,061  

Pigeon Corp.

    2,400       110,312  

PZ Cussons plc

    28,228       84,677  

Reckitt Benckiser Group plc

    12,006       1,055,616  

Unicharm Corp.

    5,400       250,010  
              2,292,127  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.3%
 

Boralex, Inc., Class A

    2,081       60,478  

Capital Power Corp.

    1,924       42,366  

ContourGlobal plc(b)

    75,164       188,349  

Drax Group plc

    175,674       671,899  

EDP Renovaveis SA

    26       494  

Electric Power Development Co. Ltd.

    7,700       103,855  

Encavis AG

    3,696       72,673  

Enlight Renewable Energy Ltd.*

    32,188       60,888  

ERG SpA

    2,090       47,376  

Innergex Renewable Energy, Inc.

    559       10,070  

Meridian Energy Ltd.(a)

    28,875       101,142  

Northland Power, Inc.(a)

    2,116       68,383  

Renewables Infrastructure Group Ltd. (The)(a)

    57,872       101,168  

Scatec Solar ASA(b)

    988       21,706  

TransAlta Corp.

    3,496       20,714  

Uniper SE

    2,028       60,617  
              1,632,178  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.8%  

Bonheur ASA

    8,832       186,640  

CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd.

    66,356       399,598  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

192    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Industrial Conglomerates – (continued)  

DCC plc

    988     $ 64,181  

Guoco Group Ltd.

    4,000       49,002  

Indus Holding AG

    7,615       225,306  

Investment AB Latour, Class B

    6,498       151,698  

Italmobiliare SpA

    245       7,920  

Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.

    9,200       408,388  

Jardine Strategic Holdings Ltd.

    5,500       119,295  

Keppel Corp. Ltd.

    27,500       88,411  

Lifco AB, Class B

    1,772       129,598  

Mie Kotsu Group Holdings, Inc.(a)

    32,900       142,879  

Nisshinbo Holdings, Inc.

    7,800       51,632  

Nolato AB, Class B*

    710       59,026  

Noritsu Koki Co. Ltd.

    5,200       95,604  

NWS Holdings Ltd.

    53,401       46,757  

Rheinmetall AG

    1,144       83,553  

Sembcorp Industries Ltd.

    17,200       19,902  

Shun Tak Holdings Ltd.(a)

    920,000       269,302  

Siemens AG (Registered)

    12,144       1,424,496  

Smiths Group plc

    2,990       51,399  

TOKAI Holdings Corp.

    2,795       27,619  

Toshiba Corp.

    4,600       115,682  
              4,217,888  
Insurance – 4.2%              

Admiral Group plc

    4,922       175,014  

Aegon NV(a)

    38,669       104,276  

Ageas SA

    5,796       233,263  

AIA Group Ltd.

    186,400       1,755,871  

Allianz SE (Registered)

    11,132       1,958,812  

Alm Brand A/S

    8,488       97,079  

ASR Nederland NV

    4,975       151,253  

Assicurazioni Generali SpA

    33,396       447,754  

AUB Group Ltd.

    2,255       26,414  

Aviva plc

    123,924       412,602  

AXA SA

    55,062       885,118  

Baloise Holding AG (Registered)

    1,748       238,966  

Beazley plc

    12,948       49,221  

CBL Corp. Ltd.* ‡ (d)

    102,937        

Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd.*

    25,162       255,934  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Insurance – (continued)              

CNP Assurances*

    5,980     $ 67,359  

Coface SA*

    37,260       290,795  

Dai-ichi Life Holdings, Inc.

    34,600       511,851  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

    48,208       164,247  

E-L Financial Corp. Ltd.(a)

    736       364,591  

Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.

    690       181,247  

Gjensidige Forsikring ASA

    945       17,924  

Great Eastern Holdings Ltd.

    6,800       88,542  

Great-West Lifeco, Inc.

    6,344       129,178  

Grupo Catalana Occidente SA

    2,102       48,481  

Hannover Rueck SE

    722       104,875  

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.*

    8,005       58,629  

Hastings Group Holdings plc(b)

    11,223       36,191  

Helvetia Holding AG (Registered)

    1,265       99,097  

Hiscox Ltd.

    9,568       101,990  

iA Financial Corp., Inc.(a)

    4,278       148,937  

IDI Insurance Co. Ltd.*

    4,420       108,794  

Insurance Australia Group Ltd.

    33,212       111,251  

Intact Financial Corp.

    1,656       170,922  

Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd.

    39,700       271,490  

Just Group plc*

    515,436       280,579  

Lancashire Holdings Ltd.

    2,288       18,830  

Legal & General Group plc

    177,332       423,728  

Manulife Financial Corp.

    54,326       735,836  

Mapfre SA

    37,752       56,904  

Medibank Pvt Ltd.

    54,859       102,861  

Menora Mivtachim Holdings Ltd.*

    13,755       185,494  

Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd.*

    90,400       71,410  

MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings, Inc.

    13,800       375,494  

Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG in Muenchen (Registered)

    3,680       860,759  

nib holdings Ltd.

    11,260       32,895  

NN Group NV

    6,566       228,993  

Phoenix Group Holdings plc

    14,158       121,261  

Phoenix Holdings Ltd. (The)*

    13,484       71,129  

Poste Italiane SpA(b)

    12,259       99,959  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      193  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)              

Power Corp. of Canada

    13,533     $ 257,496  

Prudential plc

    69,644       848,988  

QBE Insurance Group Ltd.(a)

    34,776       201,477  

RSA Insurance Group plc

    22,494       123,203  

Sabre Insurance Group plc(a)* (b)

    21,200       62,773  

Sampo OYJ, Class A

    6,903       260,527  

SCOR SE*

    5,934       144,189  

Societa Cattolica di Assicurazioni SC*

    74,047       366,406  

Sompo Holdings, Inc.

    8,700       323,816  

Steadfast Group Ltd.(a)

    30,580       76,450  

Storebrand ASA*

    17,930       93,975  

Sun Life Financial, Inc.

    16,330       649,232  

Suncorp Group Ltd.

    24,242       139,767  

Swiss Life Holding AG (Registered)*

    966       324,828  

Swiss Re AG

    8,418       603,785  

T&D Holdings, Inc.

    13,800       136,891  

Talanx AG

    3,266       96,175  

Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.

    18,200       811,113  

Topdanmark A/S

    1,650       64,539  

Tryg A/S

    2,365       65,606  

Unipol Gruppo SpA*

    6,080       22,153  

UnipolSai Assicurazioni SpA(a)

    27,841       64,667  

UNIQA Insurance Group AG

    4,884       27,478  

Wuestenrot & Wuerttembergische AG

    8,096       134,858  

Yunfeng Financial Group Ltd.* (a)

    136,000       65,415  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

    4,279       1,419,253  
              20,919,160  
Interactive Media & Services – 0.2%  

Adevinta ASA*

    470       7,252  

Auto Trader Group plc(b)

    16,652       124,665  

carsales.com Ltd.(a)

    634       9,247  

Dip Corp.

    1,400       26,771  

Kakaku.com, Inc.

    1,600       42,410  

LIFULL Co. Ltd.

    7,600       28,425  

LINE Corp.* (a)

    900       46,231  

New Work SE

    159       41,395  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Interactive Media & Services – (continued)  

REA Group Ltd.(a)

    1,668     $ 138,536  

Rightmove plc

    18,492       147,765  

Scout24 AG(b)

    2,290       184,458  

SEEK Ltd.(a) (d)

    5,653       85,391  

Z Holdings Corp.

    38,800       269,121  
              1,151,667  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 0.4%  

ASKUL Corp.

    500       19,084  

ASOS plc*

    1,370       78,084  

Belluna Co. Ltd.

    15,600       126,692  

boohoo Group plc*

    15,511       54,471  

Delivery Hero SE* (b)

    2,208       254,061  

Dustin Group AB(b)

    3,680       23,400  

HelloFresh SE*

    1,596       85,370  

Just Eat Takeaway.com NV* (b)

    1,703       188,709  

Moneysupermarket.com Group plc

    22,168       69,709  

Ocado Group plc*

    10,810       318,124  

Prosus NV*

    6,256       625,105  

Rakuten, Inc.

    7,000       67,964  

Rocket Internet SE* (b)

    1       22  

Trainline plc* (b)

    5,876       20,894  

Webjet Ltd.

    5,413       13,266  

Zalando SE* (b)

    1,702       158,963  

ZOZO, Inc.

    2,800       71,004  
              2,174,922  
IT Services – 1.6%              

Adyen NV* (b)

    460       775,615  

Afterpay Ltd.*

    2,660       180,616  

Alten SA*

    1,130       90,363  

Amadeus IT Group SA

    5,428       259,172  

Atea ASA*

    8,826       101,936  

Atos SE*

    1,886       128,739  

Bechtle AG

    703       120,622  

CANCOM SE

    2,071       81,781  

Capgemini SE

    2,668       308,109  

Capita plc*

    739,726       236,151  

CGI, Inc.*

    4,738       293,764  

Computacenter plc

    1,092       32,108  

Computershare Ltd.

    627       5,350  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

194    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – (continued)              

Digital Garage, Inc.

    1,300     $ 46,073  

DTS Corp.(a)

    4,000       77,674  

Edenred

    3,346       156,059  

Equiniti Group plc(b)

    151,938       203,135  

FDM Group Holdings plc

    3,850       49,781  

Formula Systems 1985 Ltd.

    829       65,948  

Fujitsu Ltd.

    3,900       456,069  

GMO internet, Inc.

    1,200       31,957  

Indra Sistemas SA*

    5,627       33,756  

Infocom Corp.

    1,600       58,007  

Infomart Corp.

    5,300       43,803  

Itochu Techno-Solutions Corp.

    2,400       81,615  

Keywords Studios plc*

    1,140       31,190  

Link Administration Holdings Ltd.(a)

    6,824       22,859  

Matrix IT Ltd.

    2,464       56,938  

Megaport Ltd.* (a)

    7,072       66,896  

NEC Corp.

    2,900       145,638  

NEC Networks & System Integration Corp.

    2,400       41,554  

NET One Systems Co. Ltd.

    3,800       113,411  

Nexi SpA* (b)

    1,457       22,386  

NEXTDC Ltd.*

    16,647       148,935  

Nihon Unisys Ltd.

    2,600       76,478  

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

    5,945       176,007  

NS Solutions Corp.

    800       23,340  

NSD Co. Ltd.(a)

    5,160       90,475  

NTT Data Corp.

    10,400       116,893  

Obic Co. Ltd.

    1,500       266,166  

Otsuka Corp.

    3,400       156,763  

Reply SpA

    880       94,614  

S&T AG*

    228       4,135  

SCSK Corp.

    900       44,682  

Shopify, Inc., Class A*

    1,702       1,567,816  

Softcat plc

    364       5,295  

Sopra Steria Group*

    884       105,032  

SUNeVision Holdings Ltd.

    134,000       117,155  

TietoEVRY OYJ

    1,598       39,835  

TIS, Inc.

    6,300       120,588  

Transcosmos, Inc.

    2,100       57,070  

Worldline SA* (b)

    3,234       239,740  
              7,870,094  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Leisure Products – 0.4%              

Bandai Namco Holdings, Inc.(a)

    4,700     $ 349,600  

BRP, Inc.(a)

    1,664       89,805  

Games Workshop Group plc

    684       91,713  

Heiwa Corp.

    2,450       39,513  

Mizuno Corp.

    9,200       152,864  

Sega Sammy Holdings, Inc.

    5,300       66,212  

Shimano, Inc.

    1,700       386,460  

Technogym SpA* (a) (b)

    4,905       36,453  

Thule Group AB(b)

    2,805       91,513  

Tomy Co. Ltd.(a)

    32,700       284,960  

Universal Entertainment Corp.*

    300       5,097  

Yamaha Corp.

    4,600       216,491  

Yonex Co. Ltd.(a)

    10,000       56,151  
              1,866,832  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.3%  

Clinigen Group plc

    5,270       41,021  

EPS Holdings, Inc.

    1,900       17,157  

Eurofins Scientific SE*

    230       183,201  

Evotec SE*

    3,180       84,012  

Gerresheimer AG

    755       75,898  

Lonza Group AG (Registered)

    1,242       752,341  

PureTech Health plc*

    5,168       17,340  

QIAGEN NV*

    4,369       207,265  

Sartorius Stedim Biotech

    260       98,611  

Siegfried Holding AG (Registered)*

    165       104,503  

Tecan Group AG (Registered)

    303       143,806  
              1,725,155  
Machinery – 4.4%  

Aalberts NV

    1,404       47,166  

Alfa Laval AB*

    5,520       111,936  

Alstom SA* (a)

    3,506       157,151  

Amada Co. Ltd.

    7,200       62,330  

ANDRITZ AG

    2,081       70,104  

Atlas Copco AB, Class A

    8,832       389,848  

Atlas Copco AB, Class B

    7,268       278,680  

ATS Automation Tooling Systems, Inc.*

    1,400       17,325  

Beijer Alma AB

    2,304       30,026  

Bobst Group SA (Registered)

    52       2,502  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      195  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Machinery – (continued)  

Bodycote plc

    11,283     $ 94,901  

Bucher Industries AG (Registered)

    275       105,913  

Cargotec OYJ, Class B

    684       23,488  

CKD Corp.

    2,500       41,252  

CNH Industrial NV*

    23,230       180,216  

Concentric AB*

    914       15,136  

Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles SA*

    720       22,812  

Conzzeta AG (Registered)

    55       55,507  

Daetwyler Holding AG

    474       106,017  

Daifuku Co. Ltd.

    2,800       287,392  

Daiwa Industries Ltd.

    1,600       14,326  

Danieli & C Officine Meccaniche SpA(a)

    9,196       131,757  

Danieli & C Officine Meccaniche SpA (Retirement Savings Plan)

    19,669       177,793  

DMG Mori AG

    1,007       47,565  

DMG Mori Co. Ltd.

    2,100       27,842  

Duerr AG

    23,660       679,638  

Epiroc AB, Class A

    10,590       158,235  

FANUC Corp.

    3,600       759,327  

Fincantieri SpA* (a)

    213,096       119,346  

FLSmidth & Co. A/S* (a)

    19,044       485,825  

Fluidra SA

    912       16,488  

Fuji Corp.

    5,400       107,855  

Fujitec Co. Ltd.

    2,400       52,091  

Furukawa Co. Ltd.(a)

    18,400       189,562  

GEA Group AG

    4,390       146,098  

Georg Fischer AG (Registered)

    139       140,281  

Glory Ltd.

    100       2,099  

Harmonic Drive Systems, Inc.(a)

    1,500       98,718  

Hino Motors Ltd.

    10,300       78,427  

Hirata Corp.

    4,600       284,255  

Hitachi Construction Machinery Co. Ltd.

    4,600       112,646  

Hitachi Zosen Corp.

    73,600       294,991  

Hoshizaki Corp.

    1,200       95,619  

IHI Corp.

    2,500       30,012  

IMA Industria Macchine Automatiche SpA* (a)

    857       67,434  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

IMI plc

    1,824     $ 24,386  

Interpump Group SpA

    2,231       84,200  

Interroll Holding AG (Registered)

    34       91,255  

Japan Steel Works Ltd. (The)(a)

    29,800       632,544  

Jungheinrich AG (Preference)

    19,412       705,497  

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd.(a)

    2,800       33,212  

KION Group AG

    1,932       150,423  

Kitz Corp.(a)

    31,900       172,103  

Komatsu Ltd.

    26,700       597,902  

Komori Corp.

    4,400       28,116  

Kone OYJ, Class B

    6,624       527,309  

Konecranes OYJ

    2,273       71,488  

Krones AG

    926       52,875  

Kubota Corp.

    18,400       318,665  

Kurita Water Industries Ltd.

    3,400       100,823  

Kyokuto Kaihatsu Kogyo Co. Ltd.

    18,500       227,401  

Makita Corp.

    6,000       264,014  

Manitou BF SA* (a)

    7,200       142,578  

Max Co. Ltd.

    2,800       38,971  

Meidensha Corp.

    17,300       263,455  

Metso Outotec OYJ

    17,994       126,705  

MINEBEA MITSUMI, Inc.

    9,211       165,118  

MISUMI Group, Inc.

    2,900       85,718  

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

    9,200       196,646  

Mitsuboshi Belting Ltd.

    9,200       143,359  

Mitsui E&S Holdings Co. Ltd.* (a)

    41,400       130,291  

Miura Co. Ltd.

    3,300       154,520  

Morgan Advanced Materials plc

    114,448       369,953  

Morita Holdings Corp.

    2,600       47,379  

Nachi-Fujikoshi Corp.

    8,900       350,330  

Neles OYJ

    989       13,243  

NFI Group, Inc.(a)

    25,990       294,138  

NGK Insulators Ltd.

    8,100       114,906  

Nikkiso Co. Ltd.(a)

    32,600       310,283  

Nitta Corp.

    12,600       264,921  

Noritake Co. Ltd.

    4,600       134,867  

Norma Group SE

    13,478       418,244  

NSK Ltd.

    18,400       145,912  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

196    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Machinery – (continued)  

NTN Corp.(a)

    7,600     $ 13,958  

Obara Group, Inc.(a)

    4,600       159,068  

OC Oerlikon Corp. AG (Registered)

    469       3,262  

Oiles Corp.

    2,920       40,641  

OKUMA Corp.

    1,000       48,116  

Organo Corp.

    4,600       239,372  

OSG Corp.

    1,500       22,355  

Palfinger AG

    5,409       125,005  

Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology AG

    398       72,601  

Rational AG

    55       41,227  

Rotork plc

    23,256       84,497  

Ryobi Ltd.(a)

    15,500       166,802  

Sandvik AB*

    17,020       303,070  

Schindler Holding AG

    738       188,818  

Sembcorp Marine Ltd.*

    263,569       23,162  

SFS Group AG

    593       55,318  

Shibaura Machine Co. Ltd.

    4,649       92,544  

Shima Seiki Manufacturing Ltd.(a)

    10,500       155,180  

Shinmaywa Industries Ltd.

    22,200       171,586  

Sintokogio Ltd.(a)

    23,000       157,968  

SKF AB, Class A

    2,427       49,624  

SKF AB, Class B

    3,728       76,309  

SMC Corp.

    1,100       581,883  

Spirax-Sarco Engineering plc

    1,501       218,921  

Stabilus SA

    582       32,962  

Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd.

    5,200       110,427  

Tadano Ltd.(a)

    8,900       68,023  

Takeuchi Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    18,400       398,133  

Takuma Co. Ltd.(a)

    37,000       564,521  

Techtronic Industries Co. Ltd.

    23,000       306,673  

Tocalo Co. Ltd.(a)

    8,200       81,420  

Trelleborg AB, Class B*

    6,432       106,873  

Tsubakimoto Chain Co.

    11,400       252,340  

Tsugami Corp.

    3,400       47,029  

Union Tool Co.

    500       14,731  

Valmet OYJ

    4,429       105,659  

VAT Group AG* (b)

    76       14,246  

Vesuvius plc

    106,030       547,290  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

Volvo AB, Class A* (a)

    9,246     $ 179,702  

Volvo AB, Class B*

    48,346       940,453  

Wacker Neuson SE*

    12,466       229,142  

Wartsila OYJ Abp

    8,141       64,693  

Weir Group plc (The)

    3,920       72,658  

Yaskawa Electric Corp.

    4,600       177,549  
              21,817,493  
Marine – 0.3%  

AP Moller – Maersk A/S, Class A

    52       76,721  

AP Moller – Maersk A/S, Class B

    104       166,134  

Dfds A/S*

    14,997       558,916  

Golden Ocean Group Ltd.(a)

    40,710       131,684  

Irish Continental Group plc

    11,810       43,197  

Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd.* (a)

    1,300       15,743  

Kuehne + Nagel International AG (Registered)

    782       156,221  

SITC International Holdings Co. Ltd.

    49,000       75,571  

Stolt-Nielsen Ltd.

    12,602       116,016  

Wallenius Wilhelmsen ASA

    71,008       135,199  

Wilh Wilhelmsen Holding ASA, Class A

    2,468       36,405  
              1,511,807  
Media – 0.8%  

Ascential plc(b)

    19,337       69,108  

Cogeco, Inc.

    3,220       192,425  

CyberAgent, Inc.

    2,200       137,842  

Daily Mail & General Trust plc, Class A

    6,037       52,767  

Dentsu Group, Inc.

    2,100       60,083  

Euromoney Institutional Investor plc

    4,083       43,502  

Eutelsat Communications SA

    9,280       93,332  

Future plc

    3,420       87,734  

Hakuhodo DY Holdings, Inc.

    7,400       93,933  

Informa plc

    36,156       195,414  

IPSOS

    17,158       421,715  

ITV plc*

    91,152       85,024  

JCDecaux SA*

    4,626       71,399  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      197  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Media – (continued)  

Lagardere SCA* (a)

    4,213     $ 92,114  

Mediaset Espana Comunicacion SA*

    70,288       234,981  

Mediaset SpA*

    7,888       13,397  

Metropole Television SA*

    21,298       233,949  

Nine Entertainment Co. Holdings Ltd.(a)

    10,556       15,419  

Nippon Television Holdings, Inc.

    2,400       25,253  

Pearson plc(a)

    16,422       108,292  

ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE*

    9,500       106,013  

Publicis Groupe SA(a)

    5,554       192,793  

Quebecor, Inc., Class B

    4,781       110,834  

RAI Way SpA(b)

    8,120       49,374  

Schibsted ASA, Class A*

    2,349       95,642  

Schibsted ASA, Class B*

    2,493       89,352  

SES SA, FDR

    6,561       52,382  

Shaw Communications, Inc., Class B

    7,109       117,030  

Singapore Press Holdings Ltd.

    50,900       36,903  

SKY Perfect JSAT Holdings, Inc.

    59,800       254,553  

Stroeer SE & Co. KGaA*

    620       44,813  

Telenet Group Holding NV

    1,273       48,934  

Television Francaise 1*

    51,290       301,116  

TX Group AG

    316       22,134  

Wowow, Inc.

    3,630       95,594  

WPP plc

    32,936       262,587  

Zenrin Co. Ltd.

    2,400       26,195  
              4,233,932  
Metals & Mining – 4.7%  

Acerinox SA*

    72,818       577,129  

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.

    3,135       247,983  

Aichi Steel Corp.(a)

    6,300       151,142  

Alamos Gold, Inc., Class A

    3,943       35,989  

Alumina Ltd.

    7,644       7,703  

Anglo American plc

    36,248       848,885  

Antofagasta plc

    7,124       94,831  

Aperam SA(a)

    22,912       615,983  

ArcelorMittal SA*

    18,354       249,116  

Asahi Holdings, Inc.

    19,200       623,532  

Aurubis AG

    14,398       921,427  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

B2Gold Corp.

    13,052     $ 83,891  

Barrick Gold Corp.

    5,266       140,679  

Barrick Gold Corp. – XLON

    22,380       583,898  

Bekaert SA

    18,354       390,393  

BHP Group Ltd.

    43,930       1,042,108  

BHP Group plc

    59,662       1,149,584  

BlueScope Steel Ltd.

    15,410       158,646  

Boliden AB

    5,796       158,360  

Centamin plc

    2,912       4,667  

Centerra Gold, Inc.

    10,883       95,007  

Daido Steel Co. Ltd.(a)

    2,000       65,143  

Deterra Royalties Ltd.*

    6,916       19,087  

Dowa Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,200       62,650  

Eldorado Gold Corp.*

    7,220       90,429  

Endeavour Mining Corp.*

    2,501       61,299  

Eramet SA* (a)

    4,876       129,386  

Evolution Mining Ltd.

    37,412       145,550  

Evraz plc

    23,537       109,408  

Ferrexpo plc(a)

    122,912       302,753  

First Majestic Silver Corp.* (a)

    7,676       78,467  

First Quantum Minerals Ltd.

    13,936       160,018  

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

    42,412       517,345  

Franco-Nevada Corp.

    2,686       365,808  

Glencore plc*

    302,726       610,231  

Granges AB* (a)

    36,616       330,530  

Highland Gold Mining Ltd.(a)

    109,848       425,532  

Hill & Smith Holdings plc

    3,264       50,644  

Hitachi Metals Ltd.

    4,740       62,617  

Hochschild Mining plc

    14,099       40,106  

Hudbay Minerals, Inc.

    100,188       451,592  

IAMGOLD Corp.*

    27,352       100,107  

IGO Ltd.

    17,166       53,523  

Iluka Resources Ltd.

    6,916       25,012  

Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., Class A*

    21,170       83,197  

JFE Holdings, Inc.

    18,400       128,135  

KAZ Minerals plc

    17,892       145,746  

Kinross Gold Corp.

    24,079       191,426  

Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd.

    3,588       163,342  

Kobe Steel Ltd.*

    15,800       61,211  

Kyoei Steel Ltd.(a)

    13,100       164,157  

Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corp.(a)

    29,257       537,371  

Lundin Gold, Inc.* (a)

    6,342       52,796  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

198    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Lundin Mining Corp.

    8,112     $ 48,976  

Lynas Corp. Ltd.* (a)

    57,395       114,065  

MAG Silver Corp.*

    4,656       78,604  

Mineral Resources Ltd.

    1,300       22,787  

Mitsubishi Materials Corp.

    5,300       96,783  

Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co. Ltd.

    23,000       575,330  

Mount Gibson Iron Ltd.(a)

    218,737       104,453  

Newcrest Mining Ltd.

    11,178       229,527  

Nippon Light Metal Holdings Co. Ltd.

    27,600       433,775  

Nippon Steel Corp.*

    25,115       241,805  

Norsk Hydro ASA*

    42,080       117,671  

Northern Star Resources Ltd.

    12,278       128,040  

Novagold Resources, Inc.* (a)

    7,962       82,465  

OceanaGold Corp.*

    35,910       46,862  

Osaka Steel Co. Ltd.

    1,000       10,685  

Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd.(a)

    5,548       61,998  

Outokumpu OYJ* (a)

    156,446       390,532  

OZ Minerals Ltd.

    13,621       142,141  

Pan American Silver Corp.

    4,082       129,622  

Perseus Mining Ltd.*

    23,104       19,713  

Petropavlovsk plc* (a)

    1,184,914       409,069  

Polymetal International plc

    5,376       113,964  

Pretium Resources, Inc.*

    5,096       62,107  

Ramelius Resources Ltd.

    7,332       9,937  

Regis Resources Ltd.

    7,828       22,813  

Resolute Mining Ltd.* (a)

    474,674       266,672  

Rio Tinto Ltd.

    9,982       647,921  

Rio Tinto plc

    28,290       1,593,746  

Salzgitter AG*

    988       14,386  

Sandfire Resources Ltd.

    80,592       250,153  

Sandstorm Gold Ltd.*

    14,396       106,241  

Sanyo Special Steel Co. Ltd.

    4,800       46,696  

Saracen Mineral Holdings Ltd.*

    36,229       143,492  

Sims Ltd.

    5,980       39,937  

South32 Ltd.

    68,448       97,577  

SSAB AB, Class A*

    13,394       38,943  

SSR Mining, Inc.* (a)

    8,991       166,286  

St Barbara Ltd.

    320,246       595,966  

Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd.

    5,300       163,401  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Teck Resources Ltd., Class B

    12,880     $ 169,145  

thyssenkrupp AG*

    3,839       18,312  

Toho Titanium Co. Ltd.

    200       1,188  

Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    36,800       233,036  

Torex Gold Resources, Inc.*

    5,650       76,105  

Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd.*

    3,437       26,989  

UACJ Corp.

    800       12,588  

voestalpine AG

    1,880       52,230  

Westgold Resources Ltd.* (a)

    165,784       299,204  

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.

    6,614       303,281  

Yamana Gold, Inc.

    25,540       141,937  

Yodogawa Steel Works Ltd.

    7,500       140,329  
              23,305,056  
Multiline Retail – 0.5%  

B&M European Value Retail SA

    25,070       157,151  

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd., Class A(a)

    1,248       139,256  

Dollarama, Inc.

    4,646       159,867  

Europris ASA(b)

    5,876       30,429  

Fuji Co. Ltd.

    13,800       254,773  

H2O Retailing Corp.

    5,615       36,631  

Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd.

    5,610       17,492  

Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd.

    300       1,449  

Izumi Co. Ltd.

    1,300       43,959  

J Front Retailing Co. Ltd.

    300       2,270  

Lifestyle International Holdings Ltd.* (a)

    138,000       108,018  

Marks & Spencer Group plc

    57,720       66,527  

Marui Group Co. Ltd.

    5,500       98,594  

Next plc

    2,530       191,043  

Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp.

    12,300       261,437  

Ryohin Keikaku Co. Ltd.

    6,000       125,234  

Seria Co. Ltd.

    1,000       38,454  

Takashimaya Co. Ltd.

    9,100       67,549  

Warehouse Group Ltd. (The)(a)

    11,552       18,247  

Wesfarmers Ltd.

    17,066       550,812  
              2,369,192  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      199  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Multi-Utilities – 0.7%  

A2A SpA

    78,430     $ 99,719  

ACEA SpA

    1,552       30,806  

AGL Energy Ltd.

    12,880       112,881  

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.

    9,248       140,105  

Atco Ltd., Class I

    1,064       29,598  

Centrica plc(a)

    173,334       83,328  

E.ON SE

    31,346       326,868  

Engie SA*

    50,876       615,445  

Hera SpA(a)

    30,628       96,328  

Iren SpA

    34,534       78,483  

Keppel Infrastructure Trust

    170,047       67,869  

National Grid plc

    61,885       735,359  

REN – Redes Energeticas Nacionais SGPS SA

    13,606       35,739  

RWE AG

    10,120       374,750  

Suez SA

    9,640       176,522  

Telecom Plus plc

    4,843       83,285  

Veolia Environnement SA

    9,384       174,786  
              3,261,871  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 3.5%  

Aker BP ASA

    4,404       68,325  

Ampol Ltd.

    6,084       110,828  

ARC Resources Ltd.(a)

    155,388       764,499  

Beach Energy Ltd.

    90,532       75,020  

BP plc

    550,988       1,400,632  

Brightoil Petroleum Holdings Ltd.* ‡ (d)

    50,147        

BW LPG Ltd.(b)

    38,318       166,359  

Cairn Energy plc*

    27,958       50,248  

Cameco Corp.(a)

    9,372       88,986  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

    34,684       551,469  

Cenovus Energy, Inc.(a)

    32,051       104,805  

China Aviation Oil Singapore Corp. Ltd.

    96,000       64,680  

Cosmo Energy Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    600       8,724  

Crescent Point Energy Corp.(a)

    237,360       295,510  

Delek Group Ltd.*

    4,089       74,684  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Diversified Gas & Oil plc(a) (b)

    299,368     $ 432,759  

DNO ASA(a)

    22,960       9,481  

Enbridge, Inc.

    31,280       861,206  

ENEOS Holdings, Inc.

    78,250       262,430  

Energean plc*

    3,432       23,035  

Enerplus Corp.(a)

    17,160       31,145  

Eni SpA

    72,726       509,221  

Equinor ASA

    16,468       208,890  

Equital Ltd.*

    8,510       157,680  

Euronav NV

    6,241       45,545  

Galp Energia SGPS SA

    7,324       59,327  

Gaztransport Et Technigaz SA

    660       63,234  

Gibson Energy, Inc.

    7,625       112,200  

Husky Energy, Inc.

    11,656       29,985  

Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd.

    4,282       86,222  

Imperial Oil Ltd.(a)

    7,476       99,355  

Inpex Corp.

    25,000       117,658  

Inter Pipeline Ltd.(a)

    11,856       105,458  

Itochu Enex Co. Ltd.

    18,500       172,896  

Iwatani Corp.

    2,197       99,405  

Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd.

    15,500       243,309  

Keyera Corp.

    1,840       26,095  

Koninklijke Vopak NV

    1,558       80,996  

Lundin Energy AB

    4,170       79,571  

MEG Energy Corp.*

    119,186       217,214  

Mitsuuroko Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,200       14,314  

Naphtha Israel Petroleum Corp. Ltd.*

    20,959       81,828  

Neste OYJ

    8,004       416,572  

New Hope Corp. Ltd.(a)

    222,602       167,265  

Oil Refineries Ltd.*

    686,412       122,106  

OMV AG

    5,382       123,504  

Origin Energy Ltd.

    33,994       95,489  

Parex Resources, Inc.*

    66,032       642,318  

Parkland Corp.

    2,207       53,861  

Paz Oil Co. Ltd.

    4,094       377,360  

Pembina Pipeline Corp.

    7,682       160,686  

PrairieSky Royalty Ltd.

    486       2,978  

Repsol SA

    40,800       253,788  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A

    113,160       1,412,533  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class B

    103,408       1,242,134  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

200    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

San-Ai Oil Co. Ltd.

    17,900     $ 179,274  

Santos Ltd.

    40,112       133,238  

Saras SpA* (a)

    237,406       121,513  

Seven Generations Energy Ltd., Class A*

    14,612       51,726  

Suncor Energy, Inc.

    26,082       294,006  

TC Energy Corp.

    13,846       544,556  

TOTAL SE

    69,186       2,080,868  

Tourmaline Oil Corp.

    3,328       43,080  

United Energy Group Ltd.(a)

    198,000       26,809  

Vermilion Energy, Inc.(a)

    69,322       171,050  

Washington H Soul Pattinson & Co. Ltd.(a)

    3,009       53,545  

Whitehaven Coal Ltd.(a)

    379,316       283,689  

Woodside Petroleum Ltd.

    14,767       181,685  

Z Energy Ltd.

    208,886       390,689  
              17,681,550  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.4%  

Ahlstrom-Munksjo OYJ

    4,545       95,191  

Canfor Corp.*

    4,489       54,406  

Daiken Corp.

    2,100       39,131  

Daio Paper Corp.(a)

    3,745       54,129  

Hokuetsu Corp.(a)

    69,100       227,381  

Holmen AB, Class B

    3,602       136,535  

Metsa Board OYJ

    6,595       55,350  

Mondi plc

    11,684       221,021  

Navigator Co. SA (The)* (a)

    6,520       14,362  

Nippon Paper Industries Co. Ltd.(a)

    8,100       91,197  

Norbord, Inc.

    3,136       102,946  

Oji Holdings Corp.(a)

    27,000       113,382  

Semapa-Sociedade de Investimento e Gestao

    12,896       96,891  

Stella-Jones, Inc.

    1,045       33,983  

Stora Enso OYJ, Class R

    5,044       73,591  

Svenska Cellulosa AB SCA, Class A*

    3,160       43,808  

Svenska Cellulosa AB SCA, Class B*

    4,108       55,728  

Tokushu Tokai Paper Co. Ltd.(a)

    4,600       191,850  

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

    10,672       301,583  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Paper & Forest Products – (continued)  

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.

    2,213     $ 102,555  
              2,105,020  
Personal Products – 1.1%  

Beiersdorf AG

    1,380       144,514  

Blackmores Ltd.*

    46       2,270  

Fancl Corp.

    400       12,550  

Interparfums SA*

    654       29,749  

Kao Corp.

    8,000       567,821  

Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    1,400       136,197  

Kose Corp.

    700       88,923  

L’Occitane International SA

    15,500       28,262  

L’Oreal SA

    3,919       1,267,714  

Mandom Corp.

    2,600       38,525  

Milbon Co. Ltd.

    1,000       51,272  

Noevir Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,900       84,695  

Pola Orbis Holdings, Inc.

    2,000       39,372  

Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    2,000       62,368  

Shiseido Co. Ltd.

    6,900       425,722  

Unilever NV(a)

    23,440       1,325,613  

Unilever plc

    17,158       977,040  
              5,282,607  
Pharmaceuticals – 4.3%  

ALK-Abello A/S*

    208       69,383  

Almirall SA

    4,342       46,456  

Aphria, Inc.* (a)

    15,976       71,771  

Astellas Pharma, Inc.

    31,800       436,512  

AstraZeneca plc

    20,286       2,037,006  

Aurora Cannabis, Inc.* (a)

    4,316       17,415  

Bausch Health Cos., Inc.*

    7,682       126,463  

Bayer AG (Registered)

    26,312       1,237,015  

Canopy Growth Corp.*

    6,156       115,562  

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    9,600       369,252  

COSMO Pharmaceuticals NV* (a)

    413       33,390  

Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd.

    31,500       828,028  

Dechra Pharmaceuticals plc

    3,220       145,388  

Eisai Co. Ltd.

    5,700       441,049  

Faes Farma SA

    15,630       58,898  

Financiere de Tubize SA

    751       64,036  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

    81,728       1,365,101  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      201  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

GW Pharmaceuticals plc* (d)

    1     $ 7  

H Lundbeck A/S

    1,852       52,157  

Haw Par Corp. Ltd.

    3,200       21,982  

Hikma Pharmaceuticals plc

    2,900       94,117  

Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co., Inc.

    1,900       90,420  

Hutchison China MediTech Ltd.*

    7,150       41,464  

Ipsen SA

    770       70,095  

JCR Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd.

    2,400       61,917  

Kaken Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    1,500       58,901  

Kissei Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    1,400       27,480  

Knight Therapeutics, Inc.*

    11,684       47,933  

Kyowa Kirin Co. Ltd.

    4,600       113,966  

Merck KGaA

    1,610       238,458  

Mochida Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    900       32,715  

Nichi-iko Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.(a)

    27,600       273,518  

Nippon Shinyaku Co. Ltd.

    2,000       142,338  

Novartis AG (Registered)

    38,134       2,974,415  

Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B

    24,932       1,601,488  

Ono Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    9,800       278,607  

Orion OYJ, Class A

    1,474       63,529  

Orion OYJ, Class B

    1,404       60,103  

Otsuka Holdings Co. Ltd.

    10,500       387,196  

Recipharm AB, Class B* (a)

    5,237       84,370  

Recordati Industria Chimica e Farmaceutica SpA

    2,359       122,253  

Roche Holding AG

    10,902       3,505,935  

Roche Holding AG – BR

    518       166,836  

Sanofi

    17,388       1,567,084  

Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    9,300       165,201  

Seikagaku Corp.

    1,800       16,495  

Shionogi & Co. Ltd.

    4,100       193,117  

Sosei Group Corp.*

    1,200       14,314  

Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Co. Ltd.

    3,600       42,082  

Taisho Pharmaceutical Holdings Co. Ltd.

    600       35,986  

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    23,017       713,144  

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.*

    27,094       234,863  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Torii Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    800     $ 22,667  

Towa Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    1,200       22,143  

Tsumura & Co.

    900       26,387  

UCB SA

    2,300       226,924  

Vifor Pharma AG

    875       98,474  

Virbac SA*

    212       49,340  

ZERIA Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,800       31,888  
              21,535,034  
Professional Services – 1.2%  

Adecco Group AG (Registered)

    5,750       282,309  

AF Poyry AB, Class B*

    4,429       101,108  

Akka Technologies* (a)

    5,428       99,268  

ALS Ltd.

    13,503       88,661  

Applus Services SA*

    61,686       483,224  

Benefit One, Inc.

    2,000       49,723  

Bureau Veritas SA*

    4,296       94,329  

DKSH Holding AG

    660       42,485  

en-japan, Inc.

    1,700       37,239  

Experian plc

    13,202       480,867  

Funai Soken Holdings, Inc.

    2,700       58,267  

Hays plc

    34,264       47,316  

Intertek Group plc

    2,484       178,962  

Intertrust NV(b)

    5,909       91,545  

IPH Ltd.(a)

    21,158       97,618  

JAC Recruitment Co. Ltd.

    1,300       15,544  

Meitec Corp.

    1,500       74,182  

Morneau Shepell, Inc.

    2,428       48,493  

Nihon M&A Center, Inc.

    2,400       140,272  

Nomura Co. Ltd.

    6,000       38,684  

Outsourcing, Inc.

    46,400       428,315  

Pagegroup plc

    20,728       95,842  

Persol Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    5,700       85,658  

Randstad NV*

    2,714       135,656  

Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd.

    24,700       938,005  

RELX plc

    29,118       575,097  

RWS Holdings plc

    3,113       22,500  

SGS SA (Registered)

    92       229,962  

SmartGroup Corp. Ltd.(a)

    57,316       218,558  

SMS Co. Ltd.

    3,200       93,974  

Stantec, Inc.

    1,027       29,469  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

202    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Professional Services – (continued)  

TechnoPro Holdings, Inc.

    1,900     $ 117,591  

Teleperformance

    966       289,976  

Thomson Reuters Corp.

    2,166       168,264  

Wolters Kluwer NV

    3,358       272,167  
              6,251,130  
Real Estate Management & Development – 2.9%  

ADLER Group SA* (b)

    2,368       59,525  

Aedas Homes SA* (b)

    9,568       189,470  

Aeon Mall Co. Ltd.

    1,990       30,933  

AFI Properties Ltd.*

    280       6,765  

Airport City Ltd.*

    1,928       21,054  

Allreal Holding AG (Registered)

    366       77,549  

Alrov Properties and Lodgings Ltd.*

    2,548       73,405  

Altus Group Ltd.

    1,792       73,260  

Amot Investments Ltd.

    11,168       51,470  

Aroundtown SA*

    24,073       115,447  

Ashtrom Properties Ltd.

    13,172       74,471  

Atrium Ljungberg AB, Class B

    2,912       47,044  

Azrieli Group Ltd.

    1,016       47,988  

Bayside Land Corp.

    9,800       68,726  

Big Shopping Centers Ltd.*

    16       1,215  

Blue Square Real Estate Ltd.

    710       29,137  

Bukit Sembawang Estates Ltd.

    73,600       192,422  

CA Immobilien Anlagen AG

    1,760       48,281  

CapitaLand Ltd.(a)

    62,731       118,066  

Castellum AB

    7,038       146,593  

Catena AB

    1,676       68,255  

Cibus Nordic Real Estate AB

    11,546       200,537  

City Developments Ltd.

    600       2,786  

CK Asset Holdings Ltd.

    69,000       319,426  

CLS Holdings plc(a)

    14,403       36,911  

Colliers International Group, Inc.

    1,142       80,818  

Corem Property Group AB, Class B

    61,048       118,308  

Daibiru Corp.

    3,300       37,186  

Daito Trust Construction Co. Ltd.

    1,900       172,479  

Daiwa House Industry Co. Ltd.

    16,800       439,606  

Deutsche EuroShop AG*

    20,746       261,959  

Deutsche Wohnen SE

    5,980       301,828  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Dios Fastigheter AB

    42,596     $ 298,373  

Emperor International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    574,000       80,680  

Fabege AB

    8,276       104,552  

Far East Consortium International Ltd.

    518,969       153,251  

Fastighets AB Balder, Class B*

    2,944       138,714  

FastPartner AB, Class A(a)

    6,642       55,144  

FirstService Corp.

    676       90,574  

Gazit-Globe Ltd.

    3,498       14,560  

Goldcrest Co. Ltd.

    1,000       12,742  

Grand City Properties SA

    2,508       56,939  

Great Eagle Holdings Ltd.(a)

    8,776       21,162  

GuocoLand Ltd.

    36,400       38,919  

Henderson Land Development Co. Ltd.

    33,239       117,657  

Hiag Immobilien Holding AG*

    355       36,021  

Ho Bee Land Ltd.

    78,800       134,459  

Hufvudstaden AB, Class A

    2,610       34,102  

Hulic Co. Ltd.

    4,900       45,278  

Hysan Development Co. Ltd.

    19,000       60,394  

Ichigo, Inc.

    14,300       40,353  

IMMOFINANZ AG* (a)

    2,253       30,181  

Intershop Holding AG

    76       46,601  

Israel Canada T.R Ltd.

    26,616       45,238  

Isras Investment Co. Ltd.

    312       49,933  

IWG plc* (a)

    18,668       61,165  

Jeudan A/S*

    560       19,188  

K Wah International Holdings Ltd.

    639,089       302,450  

Kenedix, Inc.

    67,500       349,316  

Kerry Properties Ltd.

    38,500       94,129  

Klovern AB, Class B(a)

    22,886       34,890  

Kowloon Development Co. Ltd.

    188,000       183,276  

Kungsleden AB

    208       1,767  

Lai Sun Development Co. Ltd.(a)

    78,826       68,104  

LEG Immobilien AG

    1,196       161,634  

Lendlease Corp. Ltd.

    15,615       131,149  

Leopalace21 Corp.*

    78,200       121,930  

Mega Or Holdings Ltd.

    9,706       251,668  

Melisron Ltd.

    944       34,306  

Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd.

    21,200       315,141  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      203  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Mitsui Fudosan Co. Ltd.

    27,300     $ 463,400  

Mivne Real Estate KD Ltd.

    14,248       27,454  

Mobimo Holding AG (Registered)*

    232       67,078  

Morguard Corp.

    1,840       132,823  

New World Development Co. Ltd.

    33,590       159,832  

Nexity SA

    19,274       541,077  

Nomura Real Estate Holdings, Inc.

    5,800       101,031  

Norstar Holdings, Inc.

    9,152       39,653  

Norwegian Property ASA

    16,948       19,858  

NP3 Fastigheter AB

    12,428       144,928  

Open House Co. Ltd.

    4,000       136,024  

OUE Ltd.

    41,600       34,121  

Oxley Holdings Ltd.

    467,080       71,832  

Pacific Century Premium Developments Ltd.* (a)

    13,719       1,451  

PATRIZIA AG

    3,248       73,928  

Polytec Asset Holdings Ltd.

    512,640       42,969  

Property & Building Corp. Ltd.

    480       39,453  

PSP Swiss Property AG (Registered)

    531       64,250  

Real Matters, Inc.*

    423       7,382  

Relo Group, Inc.

    2,270       54,242  

S IMMO AG(a)

    2,564       37,871  

Sagax AB, Class B

    8,693       136,726  

Samhallsbyggnadsbolaget i Norden AB(a)

    36,868       101,643  

SAMTY Co. Ltd.(a)

    14,100       222,411  

Savills plc

    10,452       112,373  

Sella Capital Real Estate Ltd., REIT

    65,936       104,713  

Selvaag Bolig ASA

    21,356       106,234  

Sino Land Co. Ltd.

    29,823       35,227  

Sirius Real Estate Ltd.

    94,543       89,849  

St Modwen Properties plc

    1,373       5,885  

Starts Corp., Inc.

    13,800       320,117  

Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. Ltd.

    7,600       202,613  

Summit Real Estate Holdings Ltd.

    15,268       133,919  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Sun Frontier Fudousan Co. Ltd.

    14,400     $ 115,294  

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

    46,000       588,135  

Swire Pacific Ltd., Class A

    3,500       15,932  

Swire Properties Ltd.

    24,800       66,358  

Swiss Prime Site AG (Registered)

    1,372       115,412  

TAG Immobilien AG*

    4,270       125,840  

Takara Leben Co. Ltd.

    31,200       86,849  

Tokyo Tatemono Co. Ltd.

    10,000       114,406  

Tokyu Fudosan Holdings Corp.

    20,000       86,857  

Tosei Corp.

    10,400       103,861  

Tricon Residential, Inc.(a)

    84,182       690,705  

United Industrial Corp. Ltd.

    5,656       9,030  

UOL Group Ltd.

    15,599       71,055  

Vonovia SE

    9,536       608,941  

Wallenstam AB, Class B

    7,068       93,778  

Wang On Properties Ltd.

    312,000       3,782  

Wharf Holdings Ltd. (The)

    29,000       59,833  

Wharf Real Estate Investment Co. Ltd.

    25,000       95,908  

Wihlborgs Fastigheter AB

    5,830       105,188  

Wing Tai Holdings Ltd.

    59,200       77,604  

YH Dimri Construction & Development Ltd.

    1,596       47,694  
              14,463,689  
Road & Rail – 1.6%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.

    31,840       84,296  

Canadian National Railway Co.

    12,052       1,196,297  

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.

    1,886       563,162  

Central Japan Railway Co.

    5,300       638,038  

ComfortDelGro Corp. Ltd.

    106,400       105,192  

East Japan Railway Co.

    9,400       490,681  

Firstgroup plc* (a)

    556,324       295,068  

Fukuyama Transporting Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,000       41,802  

Go-Ahead Group plc (The)

    21,804       164,927  

Hamakyorex Co. Ltd.

    7,000       197,532  

Hankyu Hanshin Holdings, Inc.

    4,800       146,011  

Hitachi Transport System Ltd.

    2,700       85,360  

Keikyu Corp.

    1,300       18,106  

Keio Corp.

    2,800       162,043  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

204    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Road & Rail – (continued)  

Keisei Electric Railway Co. Ltd.

    4,700     $ 131,055  

Kintetsu Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    3,900       155,194  

Kyushu Railway Co.

    2,100       44,575  

Maruzen Showa Unyu Co. Ltd.

    8,100       236,321  

MTR Corp. Ltd.

    26,764       132,356  

Nagoya Railroad Co. Ltd.

    4,600       122,150  

Nankai Electric Railway Co. Ltd.

    3,000       68,242  

National Express Group plc

    236,992       458,727  

Nikkon Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,600       49,568  

Nippon Express Co. Ltd.

    3,700       207,050  

Nishi-Nippon Railroad Co. Ltd.

    1,000       26,344  

Nobina AB* (b)

    30,636       168,235  

Odakyu Electric Railway Co. Ltd.

    4,800       115,386  

Sankyu, Inc.

    2,333       83,242  

SBS Transit Ltd.

    30,400       63,449  

Seibu Holdings, Inc.

    2,600       25,915  

Seino Holdings Co. Ltd.

    7,500       96,709  

Senko Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    68,000       604,936  

Sixt SE*

    550       41,643  

Sixt SE (Preference)

    298       14,163  

Stef SA*

    1,380       101,272  

TFI International, Inc.

    3,864       171,907  

Tobu Railway Co. Ltd.

    4,000       113,067  

Tokyu Corp.

    9,300       109,867  

Tonami Holdings Co. Ltd.

    4,600       246,413  

Trancom Co. Ltd.

    600       42,988  

West Japan Railway Co.

    4,500       191,984  
              8,011,273  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 1.3%  

Advantest Corp.

    3,100       178,812  

ams AG*

    8,843       189,586  

ASM International NV

    1,058       151,340  

ASM Pacific Technology Ltd.

    5,000       50,291  

ASML Holding NV

    6,624       2,407,382  

BE Semiconductor Industries NV

    2,736       110,558  

Dialog Semiconductor plc*

    720       27,492  

Disco Corp.

    700       187,689  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

Infineon Technologies AG

    18,584     $ 517,377  

Japan Material Co. Ltd.

    3,900       50,102  

Lasertec Corp.

    1,000       86,474  

Melexis NV

    495       37,652  

Mimasu Semiconductor Industry Co. Ltd.

    9,400       220,029  

Nordic Semiconductor ASA*

    12,606       132,405  

Renesas Electronics Corp.*

    15,600       128,483  

Rohm Co. Ltd.

    2,000       153,052  

SCREEN Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,800       97,972  

Shinko Electric Industries Co. Ltd.

    5,800       100,809  

Siltronic AG

    1,016       96,170  

SOITEC*

    816       115,773  

STMicroelectronics NV

    12,374       376,922  

SUMCO Corp.

    7,600       115,229  

Tokyo Electron Ltd.

    2,500       667,209  

Tower Semiconductor Ltd.*

    3,423       71,543  

Ulvac, Inc.

    1,700       61,713  
              6,332,064  
Software – 1.0%  

Altium Ltd.(a)

    1,716       44,804  

AVEVA Group plc(a)

    2,286       126,804  

BlackBerry Ltd.* (a)

    8,682       38,938  

Blue Prism Group plc* (a)

    4,832       96,466  

Bravura Solutions Ltd.(a)

    5,168       10,634  

Constellation Software, Inc.

    372       390,202  

Dassault Systemes SE

    2,366       403,897  

Descartes Systems Group, Inc. (The)*

    832       44,578  

Enghouse Systems Ltd.

    1,300       64,456  

Fuji Soft, Inc.

    1,600       85,403  

GB Group plc*

    1,064       12,230  

Hilan Ltd.

    1,569       70,238  

IRESS Ltd.

    17       109  

Kinaxis, Inc.*

    520       79,317  

Lightspeed POS, Inc.*

    2,184       69,811  

Micro Focus International plc

    11,284       31,500  

Miroku Jyoho Service Co. Ltd.

    1,000       20,241  

Nemetschek SE

    884       63,946  

Nice Ltd.*

    1,243       284,752  

Open Text Corp.

    3,864       141,855  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      205  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Software – (continued)  

Oracle Corp. Japan

    800     $ 80,046  

Sage Group plc (The)

    17,250       141,766  

SAP SE

    16,698       1,779,541  

SimCorp A/S

    1,150       137,105  

Sinch AB* (b)

    780       74,310  

Software AG

    1,320       47,297  

Systena Corp.

    5,200       94,360  

TeamViewer AG* (b)

    2,080       91,585  

Technology One Ltd.(a)

    7,884       49,663  

Temenos AG (Registered)

    799       85,815  

Trend Micro, Inc.

    2,500       139,899  

WiseTech Global Ltd.

    4,953       100,486  
              4,902,054  
Specialty Retail – 2.5%  

ABC-Mart, Inc.

    700       35,556  

Alpen Co. Ltd.

    9,400       181,544  

AOKI Holdings, Inc.

    3,800       16,394  

Aoyama Trading Co. Ltd.(a)

    15,600       73,717  

Arcland Sakamoto Co. Ltd.

    17,300       332,298  

AT-Group Co. Ltd.

    10,400       131,915  

Autobacs Seven Co. Ltd.

    2,100       26,717  

Bic Camera, Inc.

    4,100       45,102  

Bilia AB, Class A

    38,226       510,616  

CECONOMY AG*

    81,972       362,652  

Chiyoda Co. Ltd.

    2,800       24,561  

Clas Ohlson AB, Class B*

    5,460       48,459  

DCM Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,400       29,707  

Delek Automotive Systems Ltd.

    17,264       83,416  

Dixons Carphone plc

    429,594       533,524  

Dufry AG (Registered)* (a)

    16,284       616,502  

Dunelm Group plc

    2,604       43,872  

Eagers Automotive Ltd.

    76,590       584,109  

EDION Corp.

    46,000       451,904  

Fast Retailing Co. Ltd.

    1,100       765,076  

Fenix Outdoor International AG*

    369       38,305  

Fielmann AG*

    607       46,030  

Fnac Darty SA*

    9,338       401,157  

Fox Wizel Ltd.

    3,116       242,669  

Geo Holdings Corp.

    18,200       269,501  

GrandVision NV(b)

    1,506       41,839  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Specialty Retail – (continued)  

Hennes & Mauritz AB, Class B

    6,900     $ 112,091  

Hikari Tsushin, Inc.

    600       140,099  

Hornbach Holding AG & Co. KGaA

    3,956       381,094  

IDOM, Inc.

    20,800       113,212  

Industria de Diseno Textil SA(a)

    16,146       398,534  

JB Hi-Fi Ltd.

    2,881       95,959  

JD Sports Fashion plc

    8,827       84,595  

JINS Holdings, Inc.

    900       64,999  

Joshin Denki Co. Ltd.

    9,200       227,228  

Joyful Honda Co. Ltd.

    2,000       31,031  

Kingfisher plc*

    47,059       174,693  

Kohnan Shoji Co. Ltd.

    13,800       470,604  

Komeri Co. Ltd.

    13,800       404,601  

K’s Holdings Corp.

    6,100       77,840  

Leon’s Furniture Ltd.

    12,116       168,925  

Luk Fook Holdings International Ltd.

    154,672       377,762  

Nishimatsuya Chain Co. Ltd.

    1,300       21,016  

Nitori Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,600       329,826  

Nojima Corp.

    18,400       514,827  

PAL GROUP Holdings Co. Ltd.

    8,800       101,687  

Pets at Home Group plc

    26,936       134,298  

Premier Investments Ltd.

    6,508       97,575  

Shimachu Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,300       68,768  

Super Retail Group Ltd.(a)

    68,172       535,708  

T-Gaia Corp.

    1,000       18,270  

United Arrows Ltd.

    9,000       121,475  

USS Co. Ltd.

    1,000       18,270  

Valora Holding AG (Registered)* (a)

    1,242       177,516  

Vivo Energy plc(a) (b)

    161,230       157,604  

Watches of Switzerland Group plc* (c)

    44,160       225,541  

WH Smith plc

    3,950       50,920  

World Co. Ltd.

    9,400       118,961  

Xebio Holdings Co. Ltd.

    7,600       49,363  

Yamada Holdings Co. Ltd.

    7,800       37,903  

Yellow Hat Ltd.

    18,600       303,358  
              12,343,295  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 0.3%  

Brother Industries Ltd.

    7,600       116,755  

Canon, Inc.(a)

    17,400       299,682  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

206    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

Eizo Corp.

    1,400     $ 52,831  

Elecom Co. Ltd.

    800       39,946  

FUJIFILM Holdings Corp.

    6,900       351,006  

Konica Minolta, Inc.

    18,900       47,729  

Logitech International SA (Registered)

    3,249       273,660  

MCJ Co. Ltd.

    32,200       294,463  

Ricoh Co. Ltd.

    17,200       112,210  

Riso Kagaku Corp.

    1,700       20,295  

Seiko Epson Corp.(a)

    8,300       95,592  

Toshiba TEC Corp.

    1,100       43,878  
              1,748,047  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 1.9%  

adidas AG*

    3,174       942,795  

Aritzia, Inc.*

    2,860       43,157  

Asics Corp.

    5,200       64,664  

Brunello Cucinelli SpA*

    1,368       41,049  

Burberry Group plc

    8,050       141,141  

Canada Goose Holdings, Inc.*

    1,100       34,278  

Chow Sang Sang Holdings International Ltd.

    204,000       222,813  

Cie Financiere Richemont SA (Registered)

    8,050       505,019  

Coats Group plc*

    98,856       72,602  

Crystal International Group Ltd.(b)

    397,500       109,180  

Delta Galil Industries Ltd.

    4,626       82,034  

Descente Ltd.*

    2,400       37,191  

EssilorLuxottica SA — IM*

    2,578       317,565  

EssilorLuxottica SA — MO*

    2,114       261,517  

Gildan Activewear, Inc.

    2,703       55,951  

Goldwin, Inc.

    1,900       141,219  

Gunze Ltd.

    700       25,679  

Hermes International

    553       514,685  

HUGO BOSS AG

    27,094       620,636  

Japan Wool Textile Co. Ltd. (The)

    25,400       245,885  

Kering SA

    1,150       694,571  

Kurabo Industries Ltd.(a)

    7,000       125,550  

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

    4,094       1,918,527  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – (continued)  

Moncler SpA*

    3,061     $ 122,514  

Onward Holdings Co. Ltd.

    64,400       125,671  

Pacific Textiles Holdings Ltd.

    322,000       182,699  

Pandora A/S

    3,542       280,525  

Puma SE*

    1,840       160,835  

Samsonite International SA* (a) (b)

    619,800       623,409  

Seiko Holdings Corp.

    14,100       177,093  

Seiren Co. Ltd.(a)

    26,600       419,585  

Stella International Holdings Ltd.

    115,500       118,109  

Swatch Group AG (The)

    364       77,026  

Swatch Group AG (The) (Registered)

    8       327  

Tod’s SpA* (a)

    245       5,160  

TSI Holdings Co. Ltd.

    41,500       97,259  

Wacoal Holdings Corp.

    1,500       27,147  

Yondoshi Holdings, Inc.

    1,400       23,784  

Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Ltd.

    22,000       35,802  
              9,694,653  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – 0.6%  

Aareal Bank AG*

    25,668       442,212  

Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG* (b)

    61,686       376,161  

Equitable Group, Inc.

    4,738       302,328  

Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia Ltd.(a)

    94,900       113,627  

Home Capital Group, Inc.*

    23,644       431,438  

OneSavings Bank plc

    177,877       707,924  

Paragon Banking Group plc

    131,790       503,034  
              2,876,724  
Tobacco – 0.7%  

British American Tobacco plc

    61,502       1,946,701  

Imperial Brands plc

    25,484       403,318  

Japan Tobacco, Inc.

    27,600       520,107  

Scandinavian Tobacco Group A/S(a) (b)

    21,069       297,833  

Swedish Match AB

    1,840       138,623  
              3,306,582  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      207  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 1.7%  

AddTech AB, Class B

    2,196     $ 24,301  

Advan Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,200       14,544  

Ashtead Group plc

    6,716       243,146  

Beijer Ref AB

    780       21,539  

Brenntag AG

    2,305       147,352  

Bunzl plc

    6,256       194,136  

Electrocomponents plc

    2,548       22,387  

Ferguson plc

    3,726       372,024  

Finning International, Inc.(a)

    4,111       62,466  

Grafton Group plc

    11,760       102,258  

Hanwa Co. Ltd.

    22,600       435,829  

Howden Joinery Group plc

    16,698       137,488  

IMCD NV

    1,420       164,516  

Inaba Denki Sangyo Co. Ltd.

    1,600       38,385  

Inabata & Co. Ltd.

    13,400       154,970  

Indutrade AB*

    2,198       111,466  

ITOCHU Corp.

    42,500       1,016,357  

Japan Pulp & Paper Co. Ltd.(a)

    6,100       212,689  

Kanamoto Co. Ltd.(a)

    14,923       306,625  

Kanematsu Corp.

    32,200       380,092  

Marubeni Corp.

    49,000       254,609  

Mitsubishi Corp.

    36,800       818,619  

Mitsui & Co. Ltd.

    46,800       729,711  

MonotaRO Co. Ltd.

    2,800       155,347  

Nagase & Co. Ltd.

    4,900       63,605  

Nippon Steel Trading Corp.

    5,200       147,833  

Nishio Rent All Co. Ltd.

    10,300       199,221  

Reece Ltd.(a)

    5,999       57,715  

Rexel SA*

    4,641       48,806  

Richelieu Hardware Ltd.

    1,340       35,999  

Russel Metals, Inc.(a)

    22,678       301,557  

Seven Group Holdings Ltd.(a)

    104       1,418  

Sojitz Corp.

    43,300       94,851  

Sumitomo Corp.

    25,200       275,889  

Toromont Industries Ltd.

    2,466       153,414  

Toyota Tsusho Corp.

    5,500       152,521  

Travis Perkins plc*

    8,632       118,476  

Wakita & Co. Ltd.(a)

    18,400       190,090  

Yamazen Corp.

    34,400       335,971  

Yuasa Trading Co. Ltd.

    9,200       261,198  
              8,559,420  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.4%  

Aena SME SA* (b)

    1,150     $ 154,855  

Aeroports de Paris

    555       54,241  

ASTM SpA* (a)

    1,668       31,010  

Atlantia SpA*

    11,316       173,402  

Atlas Arteria Ltd.

    26,785       106,087  

Auckland International Airport Ltd.

    22,876       105,831  

Enav SpA(b)

    12,657       43,936  

Flughafen Zurich AG (Registered)* (a)

    320       43,153  

Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide*

    890       32,159  

Getlink SE*

    9,278       124,718  

Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG

    1,220       20,436  

James Fisher & Sons plc

    1,322       19,384  

Kamigumi Co. Ltd.

    800       14,264  

Port of Tauranga Ltd.

    5,225       25,001  

Qube Holdings Ltd.

    58,293       108,481  

SATS Ltd.

    19,000       41,465  

Signature Aviation plc

    24,573       75,111  

Sumitomo Warehouse Co. Ltd. (The)

    7,600       88,621  

Sydney Airport

    4,561       17,456  

Transurban Group

    38,491       363,828  

Westshore Terminals Investment Corp.(a)

    17,204       172,769  
              1,816,208  
Water Utilities – 0.1%  

Pennon Group plc

    4,356       55,906  

Severn Trent plc

    5,520       173,438  

United Utilities Group plc

    11,730       130,951  
              360,295  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 1.2%  

1&1 Drillisch AG

    987       20,798  

Airtel Africa plc(a) (b)

    554,346       442,247  

Freenet AG

    2,198       38,930  

KDDI Corp.

    43,200       1,153,970  

Millicom International Cellular SA, SDR(a)

    1,924       56,848  

NTT DOCOMO, Inc.

    17,400       646,966  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

208    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

Rogers Communications, Inc., Class B

    7,130     $ 289,403  

SmarTone Telecommunications Holdings Ltd.

    4,740       2,555  

Softbank Corp.

    18,500       214,571  

SoftBank Group Corp.

    26,282       1,707,802  

StarHub Ltd.

    17,700       15,166  

Tele2 AB, Class B

    11,754       139,379  

VEON Ltd.

    19,670       24,791  

Vodafone Group plc

    759,138       1,011,012  
              5,764,438  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $506,376,400)

 

    489,330,022  
    Number of
Rights
       
RIGHTS – 0.0%(f)  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.0%(f)  

Rolls-Royce Holdings plc, expiring 11/11/2020, price 0.32 GBP*

    102,786       51,832  
Banks – 0.0%  

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA, expiring 11/21/2020, price1.34 EUR* ‡ (d)

    15,756        
Containers & Packaging – 0.0%(f)  

Vidrala SA, expiring 11/5/2020*

    1,239       5,910  
Electrical Equipment – 0.0%  

ITM Power plc, expiring 11/10/2020, price 2.35 GBP* ‡ (d)

    63        
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.0%(f)  

Mapletree Logistics Trust, expiring 11/10/2020, price 1.99 SGD* ‡ (d)

    1,390        
Investments   Number of
Rights
   

Value

 
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Shaftesbury plc, expiring 11/11/2020, price 4 GBP* (d)

    540     $ 384  
              384  
Insurance – 0.0%  

Societa Cattolica di Assicurazioni SC, expiring 11/26/2020, price 5.47 EUR*

    55,235        
Metals & Mining – 0.0%(f)  

Pan American Silver Corp., CVR*

    41,840       30,125  
Total Rights
(Cost $262,032)

 

    88,251  
    Shares        
CLOSED END FUNDS – 0.0%(f)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.0%(f)  

UK Commercial Property REIT Ltd.(a)
(Cost $21,348)

    18,880       16,649  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(g) – 1.0%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 1.0%  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $600,006, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $608,521

  $ 600,000       600,000  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      209  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(g) – (continued)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,433,496, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $1,458,600

  $ 1,433,487     $ 1,433,487  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,100,018, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $1,121,522

    1,100,000       1,100,000  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $2,000,030, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $2,201,446

    2,000,000       2,000,000  
        5,133,487  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $5,133,487)

 

    5,133,487  
Total Investments – 99.1%
(Cost $511,793,267)

 

    494,568,409  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.9%

 

    4,447,187  
Net Assets – 100.0%

 

  $ 499,015,596  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

Value determined using significant unobservable inputs.

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $44,229,345, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $5,133,487 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $16,626,346 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 12, 2020 – November 15, 2049 and $25,814,002 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 7.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $47,573,835.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

Securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The value of these securities is determined by valuations supplied by a pricing service or brokers, or, if not available, in accordance with procedures established by the Board of Trustees.

 

(d) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $724,854, which represents approximately 0.15% of net assets of the Fund.

 

(e) 

Amount represents less than one share.

 

(f) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(g) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $5,133,487.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

CHDI – Clearing House Electronic Subregister System (CHESS) Depository Interest

CVA – Dutch Certification

CVR – Contingent Value Rights

DI – Depositary Interest

EUR – Euro

FDR – Fiduciary Depositary Receipt

GBP – British Pound

OYJ – Public Limited Company

 

Preference A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

 

SCA – Limited partnership with share capital

SDR – Swedish Depositary Receipt

SGD – Singapore Dollar

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

210    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 87,288,313  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (108,310,199

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (21,021,886

Federal income tax cost

  $ 514,951,686  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional
Amount
    Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    101       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 3,481,259     $ (363,067

FTSE 100 Index

    28       12/18/2020       GBP       2,014,210       (143,258

Hang Seng Index

    2       11/27/2020       HKD       311,508       (7,921

S&P/TSX 60 Index

    9       12/17/2020       CAD       1,249,274       (40,030

SGX Nikkei 225 Index

    24       12/10/2020       JPY       2,626,363       (26,673

SPI 200 Index

    6       12/17/2020       AUD       620,438       2,541  
                                    $ (578,408

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      211  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

GBP

    1,250,336       Morgan Stanley   USD     1,601,200       12/16/2020     $ 16,028  

ILS

    796,970       Citibank NA   USD     233,317       12/16/2020       744  

JPY

    21,286,415       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     200,737       12/16/2020       3,009  

JPY

    46,610,677       Morgan Stanley   USD     439,632       12/16/2020       6,509  

USD

    269,217       UBS AG   AUD     370,130       12/16/2020       9,232  

USD

    380,218       Morgan Stanley   CAD     500,000       12/16/2020       5,142  

USD

    67,093       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CHF     60,788       12/16/2020       679  

USD

    440,785       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   CHF     400,000       12/16/2020       3,759  

USD

    1,319       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   DKK     8,253       12/16/2020       26  

USD

    710,874       Morgan Stanley   EUR     600,000       12/16/2020       11,224  

USD

    530,736       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   EUR     446,986       12/16/2020       9,514  

USD

    782,763       Morgan Stanley   GBP     600,000       12/16/2020       6,702  

USD

    389,682       UBS AG   HKD     3,022,021       12/16/2020       3  

USD

    40,737       JPMorgan Chase Bank   NZD     61,055       12/16/2020       384  

USD

    266,396       Morgan Stanley   NZD     400,000       12/16/2020       2,027  

USD

    354,408       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   SEK     3,100,000       12/16/2020       5,936  

USD

    32,798         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   SGD     44,756       12/16/2020       21  

Total unrealized appreciation

                      $ 80,939  

AUD

    938,893       Citibank NA   USD     684,614       12/16/2020     $ (25,120

CAD

    1,104,150       Morgan Stanley   USD     837,355       12/16/2020       (9,075

EUR

    2,340,947       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     2,776,946       12/16/2020       (47,205

EUR

    323,725       Morgan Stanley   USD     383,239       12/16/2020       (5,749

HKD

    1,314,619       UBS AG   USD     169,520       12/16/2020       (5

JPY

    363,790,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     3,490,710       12/16/2020       (8,641

NOK

    1,450,557       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     161,257       12/16/2020       (9,533

SEK

    3,654,576       Morgan Stanley   USD     418,115       12/16/2020       (7,303

USD

    852,708       JPMorgan Chase Bank   JPY     90,000,000       12/16/2020       (8,741

USD

    381,763       Morgan Stanley   JPY     40,000,000       12/16/2020       (1,102

USD

    2,077,384       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   JPY     218,866,203       12/16/2020       (17,526

USD

    164,291       JPMorgan Chase Bank   NZD     250,000       12/16/2020       (940

USD

    183,871         BNP Paribas SA   SGD     251,344       12/16/2020       (200

Total unrealized depreciation

                      $ (141,140

Net unrealized depreciation

                      $ (60,201

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

DKK – Danish Krone

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

ILS – Israeli Shekel

JPY – Japanese Yen

NOK – Norwegian Krone

NZD – New Zealand Dollar

SEK – Swedish Krona

SGD – Singapore Dollar

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

212    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    5.2

Austria

    0.2

Belgium

    1.0

Canada

    8.8

Denmark

    1.9

Finland

    0.9

France

    6.8

Germany

    6.5

Hong Kong

    2.8

Ireland

    0.6

Israel

    1.2

Italy

    2.5

Japan

    29.2

Netherlands

    3.0

New Zealand

    0.5

Norway

    1.0

Portugal

    0.2

Singapore

    1.3

Spain

    2.1

Sweden

    3.7

Switzerland

    5.6

United Kingdom

    13.1

Other1

    1.9  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      213  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.6%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.2%  

AECC Aviation Power Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700     $ 25,632  

Aselsan Elektronik Sanayi ve Ticaret A/S

    21,402       42,763  

AVIC Aircraft Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,983  

AviChina Industry & Technology Co. Ltd., Class H

    70,000       36,016  

Bharat Electronics Ltd.

    17,280       20,286  

China Aerospace Times Electronics Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       13,910  

China Spacesat Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       22,005  

Embraer SA*

    15,600       16,314  

Hanwha Aerospace Co. Ltd.*

    899       19,886  

Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd.

    1,458       28,011  

LIG Nex1 Co. Ltd.

    430       10,630  

United Aircraft Corp. PJSC*^

    25,155,036       121,998  
              374,434  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.2%  

Hyundai Glovis Co. Ltd.

    799       117,945  

Kerry TJ Logistics Co. Ltd.

    4,000       5,552  

SF Holding Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       58,082  

Sinotrans Ltd., Class A

    23,500       14,310  

Sinotrans Ltd., Class H

    83,000       24,510  

STO Express Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       9,884  

YTO Express Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       9,785  

ZTO Express Cayman, Inc., ADR

    6,439       186,602  
              426,670  
Airlines – 0.6%  

Aegean Airlines SA*

    11,379       34,993  

Aeroflot PJSC*

    470,799       337,015  

Air Arabia PJSC

    1,027,663       307,755  

Air China Ltd., Class A

    23,600       23,916  

Air China Ltd., Class H

    66,000       42,554  

AirAsia Group Bhd.*

    641,600       84,929  

Asiana Airlines, Inc.*

    49,989       157,496  

Azul SA (Preference)*

    5,400       21,119  

China Airlines Ltd.*

    87,000       26,614  

China Eastern Airlines Corp. Ltd., Class A

    14,300       9,796  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Airlines – (continued)  

China Southern Airlines Co. Ltd., Class A*

    14,100     $ 11,595  

China Southern Airlines Co. Ltd., Class H*(a)

    34,000       17,757  

Eva Airways Corp.

    74,798       28,242  

Hainan Airlines Holding Co. Ltd., Class A*

    47,000       10,873  

Hanjin Kal Corp.

    273       17,972  

InterGlobe Aviation Ltd.*(b)

    1,564       27,636  

Jeju Air Co. Ltd.*

    1,034       11,801  

Korean Air Lines Co. Ltd.*

    3,419       60,112  

Pegasus Hava Tasimaciligi A/S*

    15,845       74,660  

Spring Airlines Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,200       7,633  

Turk Hava Yollari AO*

    29,986       32,264  
              1,346,732  
Auto Components – 1.2%  

Balkrishna Industries Ltd.

    938       17,056  

Bharat Forge Ltd.

    5,654       34,432  

Bosch Ltd.

    208       32,587  

Cheng Shin Rubber Industry Co. Ltd.

    31,000       39,124  

Cub Elecparts, Inc.

    3,009       16,674  

Endurance Technologies Ltd.(b)

    1,456       20,790  

Exide Industries Ltd.

    5,676       12,182  

Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    8,400       35,583  

Hankook Technology Group Co. Ltd.

    11,247       147,687  

Hankook Tire & Technology Co. Ltd.

    2,392       66,720  

Hanon Systems

    2,546       25,130  

Hota Industrial Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    1,826       5,618  

Huayu Automotive Systems Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       43,659  

Hyundai Mobis Co. Ltd.

    2,209       438,997  

Hyundai Wia Corp.

    7,429       273,342  

Kenda Rubber Industrial Co. Ltd.

    12,799       14,073  

Kumho Tire Co., Inc.*

    3,552       11,144  

Mando Corp.

    1,363       42,883  

Minth Group Ltd.

    12,000       49,595  

Motherson Sumi Systems Ltd.

    24,184       34,461  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

214    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Auto Components – (continued)  

MRF Ltd.

    19     $ 16,743  

Nan Kang Rubber Tire Co. Ltd.

    7,000       10,156  

Nexen Tire Corp.

    16,183       74,590  

Nexteer Automotive Group Ltd.

    376,000       312,733  

Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp., Class A

    4,700       16,821  

S&T Motiv Co. Ltd.

    3,382       150,516  

Sebang Global Battery Co. Ltd.

    2,961       71,761  

SL Corp.

    1,545       19,743  

Sundram Fasteners Ltd.

    3,224       18,574  

Tianneng Power International Ltd.(a)

    330,000       537,032  

Weifu High-Technology Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       18,021  

Xinyi Glass Holdings Ltd.

    94,000       205,822  
              2,814,249  
Automobiles – 2.4%  

Astra International Tbk. PT

    639,200       237,105  

BAIC Motor Corp. Ltd., Class H(b)

    708,000       261,111  

Bajaj Auto Ltd.

    1,105       43,046  

Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd.

    94,000       81,092  

BYD Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,400       57,244  

BYD Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    9,500       188,779  

China Motor Corp.*

    5,400       8,401  

Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. Ltd., Class A*

    9,400       23,177  

Dongfeng Motor Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    100,000       70,279  

DRB-Hicom Bhd.

    380,900       174,178  

Eicher Motors Ltd.

    2,370       66,699  

Ford Otomotiv Sanayi A/S

    1,797       23,151  

Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd.

    188,000       385,947  

Great Wall Motor Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       33,278  

Great Wall Motor Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    117,500       190,004  

Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,842  

Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    94,000       96,366  

Hero MotoCorp Ltd.

    1,927       72,803  

Hyundai Motor Co.

    4,860       704,565  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Automobiles – (continued)  

Hyundai Motor Co. (2nd Preference)

    1,316     $ 92,666  

Hyundai Motor Co. (3rd Preference)

    54       3,612  

Hyundai Motor Co. (Preference)

    752       52,091  

Kia Motors Corp.

    9,083       404,240  

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

    14,852       119,044  

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.

    2,115       198,783  

NIO, Inc., ADR*

    17,061       521,725  

Oriental Holdings Bhd.

    130,900       160,041  

SAIC Motor Corp. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       81,195  

Sanyang Motor Co. Ltd.

    282,000       222,319  

Tata Motors Ltd.*

    68,055       121,816  

Tata Motors Ltd., Class A*

    13,101       9,820  

Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi A/S

    6,639       21,161  

TVS Motor Co. Ltd.

    3,564       21,906  

UMW Holdings Bhd.

    20,800       11,013  

Yadea Group Holdings Ltd.(b)

    444,000       633,235  

Yulon Motor Co. Ltd.*

    13,986       17,407  
              5,428,141  
Banks – 13.0%  

Absa Group Ltd.

    23,071       123,429  

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC(c)

    93,382       149,232  

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank PJSC

    19,571       23,177  

AFFIN Bank Bhd.

    134,710       44,417  

Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., Class A

    433,500       203,804  

Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    940,000       317,582  

Akbank T.A.S.*

    72,533       41,272  

Akbank T.A.S., ADR*

    20,016       23,419  

Al Khalij Commercial Bank PQSC

    790,000       390,335  

Al Rajhi Bank

    19,480       341,782  

Alinma Bank*

    17,860       72,768  

Alior Bank SA*

    35,464       101,416  

Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd.

    495,300       259,869  

Alpha Bank AE*

    41,378       20,870  

AMMB Holdings Bhd.

    70,500       48,357  

AU Small Finance Bank Ltd.*(b)

    2,288       23,938  

Axis Bank Ltd.*

    34,780       231,139  

Banco Bradesco SA

    42,551       134,088  

Banco Bradesco SA (Preference)

    148,600       519,559  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      215  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

Banco Davivienda SA (Preference)

    433     $ 2,823  

Banco de Bogota SA

    4,042       71,347  

Banco de Chile

    699,266       53,934  

Banco de Credito e Inversiones SA

    1,037       32,423  

Banco del Bajio SA*(b)

    303,100       249,859  

Banco do Brasil SA*

    48,600       251,176  

Banco do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul SA (Preference), Class B

    85,600       178,148  

Banco Inter SA*

    2,400       21,157  

Banco Santander Chile

    1,190,886       41,649  

Banco Santander Mexico SA Institucion de Banca Multiple Grupo Financiero Santand(a)

    228,000       167,805  

Bancolombia SA

    9,756       62,009  

Bancolombia SA (Preference)

    15,490       98,454  

Bandhan Bank Ltd.*(b)

    12,300       48,041  

Bangkok Bank PCL, NVDR

    18,800       58,359  

Bank Al Habib Ltd.

    446,500       186,934  

Bank AlBilad

    7,473       46,349  

Bank Alfalah Ltd.

    587,500       121,277  

Bank Al-Jazira

    12,573       43,650  

Bank BTPN Syariah Tbk. PT

    91,200       23,073  

Bank Central Asia Tbk. PT

    173,400       343,243  

Bank Handlowy w Warszawie SA*

    1,034       7,200  

Bank Mandiri Persero Tbk. PT

    611,000       241,267  

Bank Millennium SA*

    273,461       149,021  

Bank Negara Indonesia Persero Tbk. PT

    267,900       86,827  

Bank of Ayudhya PCL, NVDR

    56,400       34,201  

Bank of Baroda*

    41,116       23,136  

Bank of Beijing Co. Ltd., Class A

    65,800       45,862  

Bank of Changsha Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       12,641  

Bank of Chengdu Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       29,041  

Bank of China Ltd., Class A

    239,700       113,765  

Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    2,585,000       816,682  

Bank of Chongqing Co. Ltd., Class H

    235,000       131,518  

Bank of Communications Co. Ltd., Class A

    112,800       76,264  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Bank of Communications Co. Ltd., Class H

    729,000     $ 358,162  

Bank of Hangzhou Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       36,392  

Bank of Jiangsu Co. Ltd., Class A

    37,600       33,727  

Bank of Nanjing Co. Ltd., Class A

    37,600       42,930  

Bank of Ningbo Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       95,344  

Bank of Shanghai Co. Ltd., Class A

    42,300       49,559  

Bank of the Philippine Islands

    52,640       79,993  

Bank Pembangunan Daerah Jawa Timur Tbk. PT

    1,682,600       66,729  

Bank Polska Kasa Opieki SA*

    5,076       54,132  

Bank Rakyat Indonesia Persero Tbk. PT

    843,500       193,789  

Bank Tabungan Negara Persero Tbk. PT

    1,790,100       170,136  

Banque Saudi Fransi

    8,319       65,881  

BDO Unibank, Inc.

    33,840       62,157  

BIMB Holdings Bhd.

    15,380       11,623  

BNK Financial Group, Inc.

    11,562       56,144  

BOC Hong Kong Holdings Ltd.

    117,500       325,764  

Canara Bank*

    128,025       148,915  

Capitec Bank Holdings Ltd.*

    1,338       93,873  

Chang Hwa Commercial Bank Ltd.

    108,517       64,685  

China Banking Corp.

    481,174       217,224  

China CITIC Bank Corp. Ltd., Class H

    423,000       171,822  

China Construction Bank Corp., Class A

    28,200       26,474  

China Construction Bank Corp., Class H

    3,347,000       2,309,065  

China Everbright Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    112,800       65,994  

China Everbright Bank Co. Ltd., Class H

    141,000       48,728  

China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    56,400       335,107  

China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd., Class H

    129,000       670,380  

China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd., Class A

    108,100       85,187  

China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)

    188,000       102,790  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

216    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

Chong Hing Bank Ltd.

    76,000     $ 89,575  

Chongqing Rural Commercial Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       12,542  

Chongqing Rural Commercial Bank Co. Ltd., Class H

    94,000       37,455  

CIMB Group Holdings Bhd.

    233,200       165,569  

City Union Bank Ltd.

    9,675       19,283  

Commercial Bank PSQC (The)

    67,333       78,595  

Commercial International Bank Egypt SAE

    49,522       192,568  

Credicorp Ltd.

    2,115       242,548  

Credit Agricole Egypt SAE

    56,543       93,602  

Credit Bank of Moscow PJSC*

    394,190       27,102  

CTBC Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    658,000       415,225  

DGB Financial Group, Inc.

    75,751       412,568  

Doha Bank QPSC*

    681,573       454,881  

Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC

    70,500       79,844  

E.Sun Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    188,645       160,263  

Emirates NBD Bank PJSC

    42,894       110,938  

Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings SA*

    94,564       31,361  

Far Eastern International Bank

    57,000       20,625  

Federal Bank Ltd.*

    637,217       433,797  

First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC

    72,286       225,528  

First Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    149,473       104,775  

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores SA (Preference)

    143,679       33,174  

Grupo Bolivar SA

    15,198       240,509  

Grupo Elektra SAB de CV

    1,175       66,368  

Grupo Financiero Banorte SAB de CV, Class O*

    83,300       369,961  

Grupo Financiero Inbursa SAB de CV, Class O*

    61,100       45,112  

Grupo Security SA

    518,964       80,523  

Habib Bank Ltd.

    32,200       26,152  

Hana Financial Group, Inc.

    9,588       256,874  

Hong Leong Bank Bhd.

    14,100       50,224  

Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd.

    5,000       16,967  

Hua Nan Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    166,166       99,920  

Huaxia Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    47,000       42,509  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Huishang Bank Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)

    421,000     $ 138,436  

ICICI Bank Ltd.*

    81,143       429,872  

IDFC First Bank Ltd.*

    42,452       17,529  

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    2,535,000       1,425,250  

Industrial Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    61,100       162,321  

Industrial Bank of Korea

    9,353       67,343  

ING Bank Slaski SA*

    237       6,135  

Intercorp Financial Services, Inc.(b)

    1,040       21,632  

Itau CorpBanca Chile SA

    1,015,777       2,676  

Itau Unibanco Holding SA (Preference)

    164,500       669,868  

Itausa SA

    19,909       35,633  

Itausa SA (Preference)

    79,900       125,961  

JB Financial Group Co. Ltd.

    71,456       321,165  

Jiangsu Changshu Rural Commercial Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    6,700       6,770  

Kasikornbank PCL, NVDR

    40,000       97,858  

KB Financial Group, Inc.

    13,308       470,305  

Kiatnakin Phatra Bank PCL, NVDR

    20,800       26,361  

King’s Town Bank Co. Ltd.

    24,000       32,513  

Komercni banka A/S*

    2,394       48,450  

Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd.*

    17,343       362,130  

Krung Thai Bank PCL, NVDR

    136,300       37,828  

LH Financial Group PCL, NVDR

    2,213,700       63,213  

Malayan Banking Bhd.

    101,400       170,830  

Malaysia Building Society Bhd.

    100,217       11,819  

Masraf Al Rayan QSC

    54,081       63,795  

mBank SA*

    532       15,502  

MCB Bank Ltd.

    16,300       16,913  

Mega Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    188,000       181,076  

Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co.

    38,560       32,465  

Moneta Money Bank A/S(b)

    194,521       440,186  

National Bank of Greece SA*

    13,649       14,255  

National Commercial Bank

    22,936       238,821  

Nedbank Group Ltd.

    13,677       80,789  

OTP Bank Nyrt.*

    7,050       219,574  

Philippine National Bank*

    264,800       148,813  

Ping An Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    56,400       149,413  

Piraeus Bank SA*

    132,994       101,471  

Postal Savings Bank of China Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    329,000       161,215  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      217  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

Powszechna Kasa Oszczednosci Bank Polski SA*

    29,691     $ 141,987  

Public Bank Bhd.

    47,000       170,580  

Punjab National Bank*

    51,127       18,455  

Qatar International Islamic Bank QSC

    9,789       22,318  

Qatar Islamic Bank SAQ

    17,797       79,185  

Qatar National Bank QPSC

    70,867       344,506  

RBL Bank Ltd.(b)

    168,590       396,636  

Regional SAB de CV*(a)

    55,800       150,321  

RHB Bank Bhd.

    64,000       65,155  

Riyad Bank

    45,836       219,995  

Samba Financial Group

    13,813       101,656  

Santander Bank Polska SA*

    1,005       31,187  

Saudi Investment Bank (The)*

    5,844       25,057  

Sberbank of Russia PJSC

    362,370       916,462  

Sberbank of Russia PJSC (Preference)

    33,948       82,684  

Security Bank Corp.

    5,130       10,218  

Shanghai Commercial & Savings Bank Ltd. (The)

    73,568       95,292  

Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co. Ltd., Class A

    89,300       123,417  

Shinhan Financial Group Co. Ltd.

    15,257       408,081  

Siam Commercial Bank PCL (The), NVDR

    52,000       108,446  

SinoPac Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    188,000       70,327  

Standard Bank Group Ltd.

    43,962       286,979  

State Bank of India*

    61,053       155,912  

Taichung Commercial Bank Co. Ltd.

    79,952       30,328  

Taishin Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    404,422       178,150  

Taiwan Business Bank

    117,035       38,461  

Taiwan Cooperative Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    138,020       92,645  

Thanachart Capital PCL, NVDR

    20,200       17,823  

Tisco Financial Group PCL, NVDR

    9,900       22,473  

TMB Bank PCL, NVDR

    1,603,100       41,662  

Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A/S*

    76,563       60,279  

Turkiye Halk Bankasi A/S*

    28,578       16,022  

Turkiye Is Bankasi A/S, Class C*

    60,301       36,757  

Turkiye Vakiflar Bankasi TAO, Class D*

    51,728       23,510  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Union Bank of India*

    303,479     $ 98,488  

Union Bank of Taiwan

    116,946       41,090  

United Bank Ltd.

    186,000       127,286  

VTB Bank PJSC

    206,441,531       85,044  

Woori Financial Group, Inc.

    18,612       145,819  

Yapi ve Kredi Bankasi A/S*

    80,342       20,605  

Yes Bank Ltd.*

    47,953       8,024  
              29,444,739  
Beverages – 0.7%  

Ambev SA*

    65,800       138,995  

Anadolu Efes Biracilik ve Malt Sanayii A/S

    9,872       22,881  

Anhui Gujing Distillery Co. Ltd., Class B

    1,800       20,426  

Arca Continental SAB de CV

    9,700       42,101  

Becle SAB de CV

    10,700       22,393  

Carabao Group PCL, NVDR

    2,800       9,837  

Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd.

    1,100       4,887  

China Resources Beer Holdings Co. Ltd.

    21,107       130,781  

Cia Cervecerias Unidas SA

    1,212       6,733  

Coca-Cola Femsa SAB de CV(a)

    9,400       35,484  

Coca-Cola Icecek A/S*

    2,875       15,399  

Distell Group Holdings Ltd.

    3,420       17,114  

Embotelladora Andina SA (Preference), Class B

    9,513       19,787  

Emperador, Inc.

    55,200       11,428  

Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB de CV

    28,200       150,678  

Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd.

    3,700       28,140  

Heineken Malaysia Bhd.

    1,900       8,222  

Hey Song Corp.

    2,000       2,272  

Hite Jinro Co. Ltd.

    348       10,274  

Jiangsu King’s Luck Brewery JSC Ltd., Class A

    1,600       12,382  

Jiangsu Yanghe Brewery Joint-Stock Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,100       52,674  

Kweichow Moutai Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,600       398,799  

Lotte Chilsung Beverage Co. Ltd.

    150       11,355  

Luzhou Laojiao Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,400       61,789  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

218    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Beverages – (continued)  

Osotspa PCL, NVDR

    20,400     $ 20,945  

Shanxi Xinghuacun Fen Wine Factory Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,000       33,599  

Tsingtao Brewery Co. Ltd., Class H

    8,000       66,075  

United Breweries Ltd.

    1,379       17,235  

United Spirits Ltd.*

    5,911       40,224  

Varun Beverages Ltd.

    1,161       10,260  

Vina Concha y Toro SA

    1,616       2,576  

Wuliangye Yibin Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       171,405  
              1,597,150  
Biotechnology – 0.5%  

3SBio, Inc.*(a)(b)

    18,480       17,182  

ABLBio, Inc.*

    437       9,590  

Alteogen, Inc.*

    302       42,132  

Amicogen, Inc.*

    514       13,861  

BeiGene Ltd.*

    8,000       177,541  

Biocon Ltd.*

    6,644       36,184  

Celltrion, Inc.*

    1,546       328,356  

China Biologic Products Holdings, Inc.*

    228       26,496  

Genexine, Inc.*

    282       28,009  

Green Cross Cell Corp.

    258       8,617  

Green Cross Corp.

    145       38,336  

Green Cross Holdings Corp.

    631       12,512  

G-treeBNT Co. Ltd.*

    525       12,700  

Helixmith Co. Ltd.*

    432       7,043  

Hualan Biological Engineering, Inc., Class A

    1,900       14,519  

Hugel, Inc.*

    126       23,319  

Innovent Biologics, Inc.*(b)

    13,500       99,576  

Jinyu Bio-Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,597  

MedPacto, Inc.*

    235       21,994  

Medytox, Inc.

    110       17,915  

OBI Pharma, Inc.*

    2,584       10,028  

PharmaEssentia Corp.*

    5,364       15,002  

Seegene, Inc.

    326       75,416  

Shanghai RAAS Blood Products Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       11,953  

SillaJen, Inc.*‡(c)

    2,522       20,170  

TaiMed Biologics, Inc.*

    1,000       3,112  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Biotechnology – (continued)  

Tanvex BioPharma, Inc.*

    9,000     $ 11,768  

Zai Lab Ltd., ADR*(a)

    902       74,009  
              1,173,937  
Building Products – 0.1%  

Astral Poly Technik Ltd.

    237       3,594  

China Lesso Group Holdings Ltd.

    34,000       54,892  

Kajaria Ceramics Ltd.

    2,608       20,039  

Kyung Dong Navien Co. Ltd.

    208       9,715  

LG Hausys Ltd.

    2,538       147,847  

Taiwan Glass Industry Corp.*

    11,000       4,826  
              240,913  
Capital Markets – 1.9%  

Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones Habitat SA

    86,161       53,991  

B3 SA – Brasil Bolsa Balcao

    32,900       291,284  

Banco BTG Pactual SA*

    4,700       59,096  

Bangkok Commercial Asset Management PCL, NVDR

    25,000       16,203  

Bolsa Mexicana de Valores SAB de CV

    6,900       13,983  

Bursa Malaysia Bhd.

    8,000       15,519  

Caitong Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,014  

Capital Securities Corp.

    944,000       359,732  

Changjiang Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       15,846  

China Cinda Asset Management Co. Ltd., Class H

    282,000       52,728  

China Everbright Ltd.

    28,000       36,901  

China Galaxy Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    5,200       9,119  

China Galaxy Securities Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    61,000       33,352  

China Huarong Asset Management Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    208,000       21,726  

China International Capital Corp. Ltd., Class H*(b)

    28,400       66,067  

China Merchants Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    12,220       37,735  

China Merchants Securities Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    16,600       20,550  

CITIC Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       60,249  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      219  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

CITIC Securities Co. Ltd., Class H

    36,500     $ 78,697  

Coronation Fund Managers Ltd.

    7,009       16,189  

CSC Financial Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    356,000       429,687  

Daishin Securities Co. Ltd.

    14,523       171,506  

Daishin Securities Co. Ltd. (Preference)

    7,008       61,390  

Daou Technology, Inc.

    10,650       175,513  

Dubai Financial Market PJSC

    67,052       15,279  

Egyptian Financial Group-Hermes Holding Co.*

    258,166       203,244  

Everbright Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       25,239  

Founder Securities Co. Ltd., Class A*

    14,100       19,550  

GF Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       32,408  

GF Securities Co. Ltd., Class H

    9,400       12,109  

Guangzhou Yuexiu Financial Holdings Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,400       3,280  

Guosen Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       28,094  

Guotai Junan International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    1,163,000       148,471  

Guotai Junan Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       38,721  

Guotai Junan Securities Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    3,600       4,679  

Haitong Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       39,395  

Haitong Securities Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    37,600       31,710  

HDFC Asset Management Co. Ltd.(b)

    782       23,745  

Huatai Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       28,564  

Huatai Securities Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    28,200       45,528  

IBF Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    48,206       19,802  

ICICI Securities Ltd.(b)

    1,880       11,757  

Investec Ltd.

    144,411       264,937  

Jih Sun Financial Holdings Co. Ltd.

    39,037       14,330  

JSE Ltd.

    2,795       18,698  

KIWOOM Securities Co. Ltd.

    363       32,951  

Korea Investment Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,401       84,700  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

Macquarie Korea Infrastructure Fund

    5,397     $ 52,320  

Meritz Securities Co. Ltd.

    6,708       19,449  

Mirae Asset Daewoo Co. Ltd.

    12,408       91,526  

Mirae Asset Daewoo Co. Ltd. (2nd Preference)

    6,840       27,217  

Moscow Exchange MICEX-RTS PJSC

    25,591       43,141  

Nanjing Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       17,509  

NH Investment & Securities Co. Ltd.

    4,841       40,701  

Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd.(b)

    5,244       19,237  

Noah Holdings Ltd., ADR*(a)

    800       21,064  

Orient Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       15,068  

President Securities Corp.

    383,520       197,100  

PSG Konsult Ltd.

    3,256       1,583  

Reinet Investments SCA

    3,713       58,917  

Samsung Securities Co. Ltd.

    2,632       74,458  

SDIC Capital Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       19,599  

Shenwan Hongyuan Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       14,142  

Shenwan Hongyuan Group Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    75,200       19,006  

Shinyoung Securities Co. Ltd.

    1,739       70,191  

Sinolink Securities Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       20,960  

Warsaw Stock Exchange

    1,040       11,295  

Yuanta Securities Korea Co. Ltd.*

    37,916       89,886  
              4,186,637  
Chemicals – 4.1%  

Aarti Industries Ltd.

    893       12,057  

Advanced Petrochemical Co.

    1,686       25,985  

AECI Ltd.

    49,238       231,118  

Alpek SAB de CV

    172,400       128,505  

Asian Paints Ltd.

    6,674       199,164  

Atul Ltd.

    259       21,000  

Barito Pacific Tbk. PT*

    474,700       29,212  

Batu Kawan Bhd.

    6,300       22,926  

Bayer CropScience Ltd.

    141       10,366  

Berger Paints India Ltd.

    4,933       41,474  

Braskem SA (Preference), Class A*

    5,300       20,994  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

220    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Castrol India Ltd.

    9,090     $ 13,983  

Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk. PT*

    51,500       28,171  

China Lumena New Materials Corp.*‡(c)

    22,200        

China Man-Made Fiber Corp.*

    611,425       178,489  

China Petrochemical Development Corp.

    76,000       22,718  

China Risun Group Ltd.(b)

    440,000       128,797  

China Steel Chemical Corp.

    1,000       3,202  

Ciech SA*

    13,348       87,557  

Coromandel International Ltd.

    1,898       18,608  

D&L Industries, Inc.

    110,800       14,262  

Dongjin Semichem Co. Ltd.

    206       4,929  

Dongyue Group Ltd.(a)

    514,000       195,529  

Ecopro Co. Ltd.

    8,606       322,336  

Egypt Kuwait Holding Co. SAE

    30,919       32,063  

Engro Corp. Ltd.

    11,270       21,395  

Engro Fertilizers Ltd.

    229,500       92,230  

Eternal Materials Co. Ltd.

    19,010       22,364  

Fauji Fertilizer Co. Ltd.

    40,039       26,403  

Foosung Co. Ltd.

    1,768       13,883  

Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp.

    66,000       158,750  

Formosa Plastics Corp.

    72,000       199,109  

Fufeng Group Ltd.*

    517,000       163,336  

Grand Pacific Petrochemical*

    329,000       261,673  

Grupa Azoty SA*

    18,506       95,712  

Hansol Chemical Co. Ltd.

    224       27,835  

Hanwha Solutions Corp.

    3,419       131,674  

HDC Holdings Co. Ltd.

    15,786       138,842  

Hengli Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       40,615  

Hengyi Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       24,243  

Huabao International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    376,000       339,885  

Huchems Fine Chemical Corp.

    8,106       163,592  

Indorama Ventures PCL, NVDR

    84,600       59,988  

Jiangsu Eastern Shenghong Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       12,921  

Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd.

    2,196       15,250  

KCC Corp.

    170       22,922  

Kolon Industries, Inc.

    8,216       256,320  

Korea Petrochemical Ind Co. Ltd.

    2,015       344,505  

Kumho Petrochemical Co. Ltd.

    752       88,143  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – (continued)  

LG Chem Ltd.

    752     $ 404,928  

LG Chem Ltd. (Preference)

    152       41,526  

Lomon Billions Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       17,354  

Lotte Chemical Corp.

    564       115,812  

LOTTE Fine Chemical Co. Ltd.

    7,353       314,286  

Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding Co.

    76,751       39,103  

Misr Fertilizers Production Co. SAE

    17,443       51,607  

Nan Ya Plastics Corp.

    91,000       186,750  

National Industrialization Co.*

    5,584       16,825  

National Petrochemical Co.

    1,669       12,038  

Navin Fluorine International Ltd.

    517       15,638  

OCI Co. Ltd.*

    333       18,136  

Orbia Advance Corp. SAB de CV

    28,733       50,653  

Oriental Union Chemical Corp.

    273,000       156,526  

Petkim Petrokimya Holding A/S*

    47,514       23,295  

Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd.

    47,000       66,173  

PhosAgro PJSC

    1,097       38,919  

PI Advanced Materials Co. Ltd.

    520       13,107  

PI Industries Ltd.

    1,268       37,595  

Pidilite Industries Ltd.

    2,350       49,798  

PTT Global Chemical PCL, NVDR

    61,100       78,415  

Rongsheng Petro Chemical Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       26,740  

Sahara International Petrochemical Co.*

    5,715       22,218  

Sasa Polyester Sanayi A/S*

    2,128       3,884  

Sasol Ltd.*

    19,030       98,413  

Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co.

    3,525       70,870  

Saudi Basic Industries Corp.

    14,435       346,412  

Saudi Industrial Investment Group

    9,541       51,644  

Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co.*

    15,322       38,731  

Scientex Bhd.

    8,700       24,875  

Shandong Hualu Hengsheng Chemical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       19,831  

Shanghai Huayi Group Co. Ltd., Class B

    108,800       52,877  

Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Corp.

    611,000       246,720  

Sinoma Science & Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,800       5,155  

SK Chemicals Co. Ltd.

    3,478       1,060,534  

SK Materials Co. Ltd.

    65       12,723  

SKC Co. Ltd.

    279       17,998  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      221  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile SA (Preference), Class B

    2,021     $ 73,761  

Solar Industries India Ltd.

    1,040       14,172  

Soulbrain Holdings Co. Ltd.

    291       10,976  

SRF Ltd.

    401       23,900  

Sumitomo Chemical India Ltd.

    2,585       9,320  

Supreme Industries Ltd.

    1,204       23,504  

Taekwang Industrial Co. Ltd.

    124       77,589  

Taiwan Fertilizer Co. Ltd.

    12,000       21,480  

Tata Chemicals Ltd.

    1,541       6,703  

Tianqi Lithium Corp., Class A*

    4,700       13,889  

TOA Paint Thailand PCL, NVDR

    12,000       12,417  

Tongkun Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       21,227  

TSRC Corp.

    34,000       24,070  

UPL Ltd.

    10,811       66,121  

USI Corp.

    366,000       225,843  

Vinythai PCL, NVDR

    98,700       76,319  

Wanhua Chemical Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       55,059  

Yanbu National Petrochemical Co.

    5,217       79,988  

Zhejiang Huafeng Spandex Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       16,856  

Zhejiang Longsheng Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,645  

Zhejiang Satellite Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,700       5,620  
              9,240,603  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.2%  

A-Living Services Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    5,000       20,955  

China Everbright Environment Group Ltd.

    141,000       70,911  

Cleanaway Co. Ltd.

    1,000       5,506  

Country Garden Services Holdings Co. Ltd.

    20,887       131,034  

ECOVE Environment Corp.

    1,000       7,429  

Ever Sunshine Lifestyle Services Group Ltd.(b)

    10,000       17,202  

Greentown Service Group Co. Ltd.(b)

    30,000       32,844  

S-1 Corp.

    347       24,954  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Commercial Services & Supplies – (continued)  

Sunny Friend Environmental Technology Co. Ltd.

    1,000     $ 7,394  

Taiwan Secom Co. Ltd.

    3,165       9,704  

Taiwan Shin Kong Security Co. Ltd.

    8,322       10,605  
              338,538  
Communications Equipment – 0.2%  

Accton Technology Corp.

    10,000       72,544  

Advanced Ceramic X Corp.

    1,000       12,516  

BYD Electronic International Co. Ltd.(a)

    10,000       42,941  

Comba Telecom Systems Holdings Ltd.(a)

    48,000       15,350  

KMW Co. Ltd.*

    563       30,911  

Seojin System Co. Ltd.

    5,358       165,504  

Tianjin 712 Communication & Broadcasting Co. Ltd., Class A

    900       5,780  

Wistron NeWeb Corp.

    10,093       26,641  

ZTE Corp., Class A

    4,700       22,637  

ZTE Corp., Class H

    18,800       41,407  
              436,231  
Construction & Engineering – 1.2%  

BES Engineering Corp.

    55,000       14,094  

Budimex SA

    460       27,157  

CH Karnchang PCL, NVDR

    737       352  

China Communications Construction Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       15,552  

China Communications Construction Co. Ltd., Class H

    170,000       88,783  

China Communications Services Corp. Ltd., Class H

    1,056,000       612,778  

China Conch Venture Holdings Ltd.

    26,000       115,502  

China Energy Engineering Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)

    2,532,000       238,349  

China National Chemical Engineering Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       11,132  

China Railway Construction Corp. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       29,216  

China Railway Construction Corp. Ltd., Class H

    73,500       49,664  

China Railway Group Ltd., Class A

    47,000       37,669  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

222    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Construction & Engineering – (continued)  

China Railway Group Ltd., Class H

    141,000     $ 64,729  

China State Construction Engineering Corp. Ltd., Class A

    126,900       96,782  

China State Construction International Holdings Ltd.

    80,000       55,294  

CTCI Corp.

    11,000       14,979  

Daelim Industrial Co. Ltd.

    896       61,592  

Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd.*

    10,058       26,592  

Gamuda Bhd.

    47,221       37,845  

GEK Terna Holding Real Estate Construction SA*

    1,216       8,201  

GS Engineering & Construction Corp.

    1,786       42,025  

HDC Hyundai Development Co-Engineering & Construction, Class E

    1,236       21,568  

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd.

    2,658       71,797  

IJM Corp. Bhd.

    78,400       25,284  

IS Dongseo Co. Ltd.

    6,640       223,538  

KEPCO Engineering & Construction Co., Inc.

    602       8,250  

Larsen & Toubro Ltd.

    10,640       133,447  

Larsen & Toubro Ltd., GDR(b)

    296       3,611  

Malaysian Resources Corp. Bhd.

    83,200       7,509  

Metallurgical Corp. of China Ltd., Class A

    65,800       25,435  

Metallurgical Corp. of China Ltd., Class H

    118,000       19,020  

Power Construction Corp. of China Ltd., Class A

    37,600       21,549  

Samsung Engineering Co. Ltd.*

    5,394       55,856  

Shanghai Construction Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       10,662  

Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       11,743  

Sino-Thai Engineering & Construction PCL, NVDR

    11,571       3,750  

Suzhou Gold Mantis Construction Decoration Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       13,833  

Taeyoung Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd.

    1,328       11,668  

Tekfen Holding A/S

    81,263       128,637  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Construction & Engineering – (continued)  

United Integrated Services Co. Ltd.

    6,000     $ 41,638  

Voltas Ltd.

    2,990       28,467  

Waskita Karya Persero Tbk. PT

    1,734,500       87,763  

Wijaya Karya Persero Tbk. PT

    1,264,600       104,194  
              2,707,506  
Construction Materials – 1.5%  

ACC Ltd.

    1,404       31,241  

Ambuja Cements Ltd.

    11,177       39,168  

Anhui Conch Cement Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       71,326  

Anhui Conch Cement Co. Ltd., Class H

    39,000       243,157  

Asia Cement China Holdings Corp.

    189,000       172,796  

Asia Cement Corp.

    80,000       115,091  

BBMG Corp., Class A

    42,300       19,003  

BBMG Corp., Class H

    141,000       26,546  

Beijing Oriental Yuhong Waterproof Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    3,000       16,598  

Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd.

    298,300       77,536  

Cementos Argos SA

    5,520       6,523  

Cementos Argos SA (Preference)

    10,296       9,910  

Cemex SAB de CV

    514,000       211,615  

Chia Hsin Cement Corp.

    235,000       128,166  

China Jushi Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,500       9,369  

China National Building Material Co. Ltd., Class H

    130,050       149,087  

China Resources Cement Holdings Ltd.

    68,000       88,739  

China Shanshui Cement Group Ltd.*

    603,000       146,185  

Dalmia Bharat Ltd.

    1,648       18,743  

Gansu Shangfeng Cement Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,390  

Grasim Industries Ltd.

    7,614       79,970  

Grupo Argos SA

    7,752       21,358  

Grupo Argos SA (Preference)

    5,396       12,039  

Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua SAB de CV

    72,800       365,446  

Guangdong Tapai Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,421  

Huaxin Cement Co. Ltd., Class A

    3,700       13,353  

Huaxin Cement Co. Ltd., Class B

    10,400       21,632  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      223  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Construction Materials – (continued)  

Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa Tbk. PT

    32,900     $ 27,501  

Lucky Cement Ltd.*

    5,787       24,310  

POSCO Chemical Co. Ltd.

    308       20,005  

Ramco Cements Ltd. (The)

    2,289       24,616  

Saudi Cement Co.

    2,022       29,222  

Semen Indonesia Persero Tbk. PT

    56,400       36,925  

Shree Cement Ltd.

    188       55,036  

Siam Cement PCL (The), NVDR

    9,400       101,940  

Southern Province Cement Co.

    1,634       29,235  

Ssangyong Cement Industrial Co. Ltd.

    290       1,418  

Taiwan Cement Corp.

    170,452       241,643  

Tangshan Jidong Cement Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,515  

TPI Polene PCL, NVDR

    1,977,200       87,544  

UltraTech Cement Ltd.

    2,023       124,863  

Union Andina de Cementos SAA

    407,120       146,432  

West China Cement Ltd.

    1,222,000       181,216  

Yanbu Cement Co.

    2,888       25,412  
              3,296,241  
Consumer Finance – 0.8%  

360 DigiTech, Inc., ADR*(a)

    29,529       340,174  

AEON Credit Service M Bhd.

    37,300       81,871  

Aju Capital Co. Ltd.

    6,470       67,568  

Bajaj Finance Ltd.

    4,042       180,481  

Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Co. Ltd.

    4,975       18,344  

Krungthai Card PCL, NVDR

    4,300       5,450  

LexinFintech Holdings Ltd., ADR*(a)

    46,508       383,226  

Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Ltd.*

    258,078       425,907  

Manappuram Finance Ltd.

    6,929       14,530  

Muangthai Capital PCL, NVDR*

    20,600       36,187  

Muthoot Finance Ltd.

    2,622       43,547  

Samsung Card Co. Ltd.

    1,140       29,537  

SBI Cards & Payment Services Ltd.

    2,239       24,163  

Shriram Transport Finance Co. Ltd.

    5,358       50,137  

Srisawad Corp. PCL, NVDR

    15,203       24,145  

Sundaram Finance Ltd.

    1,310       25,590  

Transaction Capital Ltd.

    17,028       20,708  

Yixin Group Ltd.*(b)

    75,000       18,666  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Consumer Finance – (continued)  

Yulon Finance Corp.

    1,210     $ 4,086  
              1,794,317  
Containers & Packaging – 0.4%  

Cheng Loong Corp.

    437,000       518,683  

Klabin SA

    14,100       58,053  

Taiwan Hon Chuan Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    113,000       230,713  
              807,449  
Distributors – 0.1%  

Inter Cars SA*

    4,124       210,169  

Liaoning Cheng Da Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,000       6,731  

Wuchan Zhongda Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    13,800       9,104  

Zhejiang Orient Financial Holdings Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       14,605  
              240,609  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.5%  

Cairo Investment & Real Estate Development Co. SAE

    14,617       13,919  

China Education Group Holdings Ltd.(b)

    13,000       21,592  

China Maple Leaf Educational Systems Ltd.

    56,000       15,165  

China Yuhua Education Corp. Ltd.(b)

    28,000       22,133  

Cogna Educacao

    31,200       23,213  

Fu Shou Yuan International Group Ltd.

    21,000       21,610  

GSX Techedu, Inc., ADR*(a)

    1,596       106,006  

Koolearn Technology Holding Ltd.*(a)(b)

    5,000       16,151  

Lung Yen Life Service Corp.

    2,000       3,685  

MegaStudyEdu Co. Ltd.

    3,384       103,336  

New Oriental Education & Technology Group, Inc., ADR*

    2,193       351,713  

Offcn Education Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       27,722  

TAL Education Group, ADR*

    6,353       422,221  

Tianli Education International Holdings Ltd.*(b)

    20,000       15,835  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

224    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Consumer Services – (continued)  

Wisdom Education International Holdings Co. Ltd.(b)

    40,000     $ 12,998  

YDUQS Participacoes SA

    5,200       20,670  

Youdao, Inc., ADR*(a)

    376       9,472  
              1,207,441  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.9%  

Aditya Birla Capital Ltd.*

    205,390       179,456  

Avic Capital Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       15,327  

Bajaj Holdings & Investment Ltd.

    750       23,345  

Chailease Holding Co. Ltd.

    21,460       103,911  

Corp. Financiera Colombiana SA*

    41,191       277,837  

CSSC Hong Kong Shipping Co. Ltd.(b)

    420,000       61,200  

Far East Horizon Ltd.(a)

    71,000       69,674  

FirstRand Ltd.

    181,851       420,808  

Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana SA

    9,776       50,977  

Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana SA (Preference)

    4,992       21,640  

Haci Omer Sabanci Holding A/S

    48,316       47,434  

Haitong UniTrust International Leasing Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    470,000       71,517  

Inversiones La Construccion SA

    14,215       76,214  

L&T Finance Holdings Ltd.

    23,796       20,679  

Meritz Financial Group, Inc.

    947       7,862  

Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

    381,000       31,566  

NICE Holdings Co. Ltd.

    728       11,548  

Power Finance Corp. Ltd.

    34,352       40,375  

REC Ltd.

    33,417       46,378  

Remgro Ltd.

    19,975       106,177  

RMB Holdings Ltd.*

    39,805       2,621  

Turkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi A/S*

    595,490       181,140  

Yuanta Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    406,920       252,516  
              2,120,202  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.4%  

Asia Pacific Telecom Co. Ltd.*

    68,164       22,401  

Bharti Infratel Ltd.

    16,168       40,481  

China Telecom Corp. Ltd., Class H

    470,000       147,882  

China Tower Corp. Ltd., Class H(b)

    752,000       117,336  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd.

    188,000     $ 115,396  

Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd.

    56,000       209,485  

CITIC Telecom International Holdings Ltd.

    690,000       218,882  

Emirates Telecommunications Group Co. PJSC

    30,832       141,689  

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization SA

    3,602       47,916  

Jasmine International PCL, NVDR

    76,400       6,324  

LG Uplus Corp.

    7,161       69,736  

Link Net Tbk. PT

    289,700       41,598  

Magyar Telekom Telecommunications plc

    191,465       210,931  

O2 Czech Republic A/S*

    2,797       26,213  

Oi SA*

    2,491,000       669,624  

Ooredoo QPSC

    32,524       59,224  

Orange Polska SA*

    14,014       21,496  

Rostelecom PJSC

    45,672       53,298  

Rostelecom PJSC (Preference)

    15,392       15,879  

Sarana Menara Nusantara Tbk. PT

    315,700       21,370  

Saudi Telecom Co.

    9,489       252,261  

Tata Communications Ltd.

    1,646       20,730  

Telefonica Brasil SA (Preference)

    14,289       105,420  

Telekom Malaysia Bhd.

    41,600       41,950  

Telekomunikasi Indonesia Persero Tbk. PT

    822,500       147,347  

Telesites SAB de CV*

    22,200       20,429  

Telkom SA SOC Ltd.(a)

    137,346       216,558  

TIME dotCom Bhd.

    3,000       9,300  

Tower Bersama Infrastructure Tbk. PT

    121,300       12,441  

True Corp. PCL, NVDR

    305,900       26,696  

Turk Telekomunikasyon A/S

    19,746       15,146  
              3,125,439  
Electric Utilities – 1.5%  

Adani Transmission Ltd.*

    6,748       26,420  

Alupar Investimento SA

    3,500       13,846  

Celsia SA ESP

    11,648       12,710  

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA

    12,700       68,412  

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA (Preference), Class B

    9,400       50,521  

CESC Ltd.

    29,097       221,052  

CEZ A/S

    5,593       105,551  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      225  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electric Utilities – (continued)  

Cia de Transmissao de Energia Eletrica Paulista (Preference)

    5,200     $ 21,202  

Cia Energetica de Minas Gerais*

    6,455       13,009  

Cia Energetica de Minas Gerais (Preference)*

    31,194       55,452  

Cia Paranaense de Energia (Preference)*

    3,000       32,133  

CPFL Energia SA

    4,700       22,717  

EDP – Energias do Brasil SA

    9,400       27,714  

Enea SA*

    84,285       96,114  

Enel Americas SA

    955,833       126,699  

Enel Chile SA

    647,898       43,434  

Energa SA*

    37,088       77,709  

Energisa SA

    4,700       34,211  

Enerjisa Enerji A/S(b)

    7,676       8,232  

Engie Energia Chile SA

    14,045       14,770  

Equatorial Energia SA

    14,100       48,736  

Federal Grid Co. Unified Energy System PJSC

    12,705,298       30,354  

Holding Co. ADMIE IPTO SA

    50,911       125,724  

Inter RAO UES PJSC

    1,364,292       87,260  

Interconexion Electrica SA ESP

    7,661       41,459  

Korea Electric Power Corp.*

    4,465       78,502  

Light SA*

    104,800       350,606  

Manila Electric Co.

    6,110       37,872  

Mosenergo PJSC

    3,807,000       95,597  

Neoenergia SA*

    4,700       14,175  

PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna SA*

    34,874       39,681  

Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd.

    87,036       200,832  

ROSSETI PJSC

    1,466,436       26,824  

RusHydro PJSC

    4,496,324       40,841  

Saudi Electricity Co.

    14,899       75,164  

SJVN Ltd.

    217,657       64,321  

Tata Power Co. Ltd. (The)

    751,019       528,498  

Tauron Polska Energia SA*

    489,787       214,391  

Tenaga Nasional Bhd.

    44,200       101,484  

Torrent Power Ltd.

    2,350       9,900  

Transmissora Alianca de Energia Eletrica SA

    7,600       37,104  
              3,321,233  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electrical Equipment – 0.5%  

ABB India Ltd.

    427     $ 5,149  

AcBel Polytech, Inc.

    184,000       167,896  

Amara Raja Batteries Ltd.

    1,222       12,632  

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.*

    558,609       211,059  

Bizlink Holding, Inc.

    1,103       8,464  

China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group Co. Ltd.

    20,000       14,829  

Dongfang Electric Corp. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       14,871  

Doosan Fuel Cell Co. Ltd.*

    611       22,347  

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. Ltd.*

    4,283       51,900  

Ecopro BM Co. Ltd.

    198       21,707  

ElSewedy Electric Co.

    36,609       17,279  

Fangda Carbon New Material Co. Ltd., Class A*

    14,100       13,195  

Gunkul Engineering PCL, NVDR

    144,480       9,457  

Havells India Ltd.

    3,948       38,778  

Kung Long Batteries Industrial Co. Ltd.

    1,000       4,790  

LS Corp.

    1,128       51,494  

LS Electric Co. Ltd.

    456       19,933  

NARI Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       14,563  

Shanghai Electric Group Co. Ltd., Class H*

    94,000       26,667  

Taihan Electric Wire Co. Ltd.*

    7,800       5,987  

Teco Electric and Machinery Co. Ltd.

    22,000       22,997  

V-Guard Industries Ltd.

    1,032       2,364  

Voltronic Power Technology Corp.

    1,458       49,953  

Walsin Lihwa Corp.

    94,000       58,332  

WEG SA

    11,700       153,869  

Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    37,600       49,456  

Zhuzhou CRRC Times Electric Co. Ltd., Class H

    13,300       40,818  
              1,110,786  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 3.1%  

AAC Technologies Holdings, Inc.(a)

    14,000       73,747  

Asia Optical Co., Inc.

    8,000       17,788  

AU Optronics Corp.*

    304,000       122,754  

Aurora Corp.

    4,900       14,407  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

226    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components –
(continued)
 

Avary Holding Shenzhen Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,500     $ 18,264  

BH Co. Ltd.*

    10,152       181,621  

BOE Technology Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    61,100       43,134  

Camsing International Holding Ltd.*‡(c)

    22,000       1,645  

Career Technology MFG. Co. Ltd.

    11,556       11,656  

Chang Wah Electromaterials, Inc.

    110,000       84,797  

Cheng Uei Precision Industry Co. Ltd.

    156,000       220,337  

Chilisin Electronics Corp.

    3,490       12,872  

China Railway Signal & Communication Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    712,000       234,124  

Chroma ATE, Inc.

    8,000       38,037  

Compeq Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    20,000       30,451  

Concraft Holding Co. Ltd.

    4,038       12,225  

Coretronic Corp.

    171,000       204,458  

Daea TI Co. Ltd.

    1,964       9,935  

Daeduck Co. Ltd.

    226       1,221  

Delta Electronics Thailand PCL, NVDR

    7,000       40,202  

Delta Electronics, Inc.

    31,000       205,919  

E Ink Holdings, Inc.

    15,000       20,059  

Elite Material Co. Ltd.

    5,000       26,221  

Feelux Co. Ltd.*

    1,427       3,741  

FLEXium Interconnect, Inc.

    5,000       20,365  

Foxconn Technology Co. Ltd.

    32,000       56,049  

General Interface Solution Holding Ltd.

    5,000       19,840  

Genius Electronic Optical Co. Ltd.

    2,237       43,874  

GoerTek, Inc., Class A

    4,700       31,819  

Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,400       21,470  

Hana Microelectronics PCL, NVDR

    7,100       10,251  

Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       94,488  

Hannstar Board Corp.

    136,928       187,415  

HannStar Display Corp.*

    39,000       12,476  

Hollysys Automation Technologies Ltd.

    25,737       287,997  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components –
(continued)
 

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd.

    426,000     $ 1,154,229  

Honeywell Automation India Ltd.

    32       12,286  

Huagong Tech Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,330  

Inari Amertron Bhd.

    37,200       22,741  

Innolux Corp.*

    376,000       130,269  

ITEQ Corp.

    2,554       10,715  

KCE Electronics PCL, NVDR

    4,800       6,006  

Kingboard Holdings Ltd.

    24,000       81,085  

Kingboard Laminates Holdings Ltd.

    36,000       57,285  

L&F Co. Ltd.

    655       22,599  

Largan Precision Co. Ltd.

    1,000       105,756  

LG Display Co. Ltd.*

    7,238       89,622  

LG Innotek Co. Ltd.

    482       64,567  

Lingyi iTech Guangdong Co., Class A

    9,400       18,280  

Lotes Co. Ltd.

    1,256       19,167  

Luxshare Precision Industry Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       76,966  

Mcnex Co. Ltd.

    5,999       173,673  

Merry Electronics Co. Ltd.

    4,161       20,512  

OFILM Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,838  

Pan-International Industrial Corp.

    184,000       110,322  

Partron Co. Ltd.

    19,901       169,423  

Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. Ltd.

    893       105,063  

Samsung SDI Co. Ltd.

    893       347,851  

Shengyi Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,772  

Shennan Circuits Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,200       19,307  

Shenzhen Fastprint Circuit Tech Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       14,857  

Simplo Technology Co. Ltd.

    3,200       35,632  

Sinbon Electronics Co. Ltd.

    3,253       21,893  

Sunny Optical Technology Group Co. Ltd.

    11,500       190,113  

Supreme Electronics Co. Ltd.

    158,000       167,371  

Synnex Technology International Corp.

    53,000       78,657  

Taiwan Union Technology Corp.

    7,000       23,249  

Telcon RF Pharmaceutical, Inc.*

    2,328       12,330  

Tianma Microelectronics Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       20,006  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      227  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components –
(continued)
 

Tong Hsing Electronic Industries Ltd.

    4,000     $ 17,620  

Tripod Technology Corp.

    14,000       55,553  

Tunghsu Optoelectronic Technology Co. Ltd., Class A*

    28,200       11,490  

Unimicron Technology Corp.

    24,000       57,224  

Unisplendour Corp. Ltd., Class A

    6,580       21,605  

Unitech Printed Circuit Board Corp.

    255,000       187,661  

Universal Scientific Industrial Shanghai Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,327  

VS Industry Bhd.

    22,800       12,840  

Wah Lee Industrial Corp.

    68,000       151,436  

Walsin Technology Corp.

    6,378       36,457  

Wingtech Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,500       22,522  

Wintek Corp.*‡(c)

    64,000        

WPG Holdings Ltd.

    47,440       64,351  

WT Microelectronics Co. Ltd.

    168,182       216,082  

Wuhan Guide Infrared Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       23,752  

WUS Printed Circuit Kunshan Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       12,921  

Yageo Corp.

    6,575       81,718  

Zhejiang Crystal-Optech Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       8,937  

Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,900       9,786  

Zhen Ding Technology Holding Ltd.

    23,150       97,930  
              6,946,643  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.1%  

China Oilfield Services Ltd., Class A

    9,400       15,236  

China Oilfield Services Ltd., Class H

    24,000       14,422  

Dialog Group Bhd.

    51,700       46,038  

Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd.

    54,180       19,951  

TMK PJSC*

    60,310       42,535  
              138,182  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Entertainment – 0.7%  

Alibaba Pictures Group Ltd.*

    190,000     $ 24,746  

Bilibili, Inc., ADR*(a)

    2,491       111,273  

CD Projekt SA*

    1,206       102,049  

CJ CGV Co. Ltd.*

    1,023       18,121  

CMGE Technology Group Ltd.*(a)

    376,000       142,548  

Com2uSCorp

    133       13,081  

DouYu International Holdings Ltd., ADR*

    1,081       16,539  

HUYA, Inc., ADR*(a)

    611       13,686  

International Games System Co. Ltd.

    1,000       26,290  

iQIYI, Inc., ADR*(a)

    4,936       121,919  

Jcontentree Corp.*

    239       5,171  

JYP Entertainment Corp.

    423       11,389  

NCSoft Corp.

    253       173,022  

NetDragon Websoft Holdings Ltd.

    2,000       4,266  

NetEase, Inc., ADR

    6,345       550,683  

Netmarble Corp.*(b)

    410       42,275  

NHN Corp.*

    315       19,266  

Pearl Abyss Corp.*

    108       19,083  

Perfect World Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,100       17,177  

SM Entertainment Co. Ltd.*

    198       5,025  

SMI Holdings Group Ltd.*‡(c)

    72,000        

Soft-World International Corp.

    5,000       14,194  

Tencent Music Entertainment Group, ADR*

    6,612       98,387  

Webzen, Inc.*

    474       13,284  

Wemade Co. Ltd.

    299       10,422  

Wuhu Sanqi Interactive Entertainment Network Technology Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       20,764  

XPEC Entertainment, Inc.*‡(c)

    14,800        

Zhejiang Century Huatong Group Co. Ltd., Class A*

    11,280       14,361  
              1,609,021  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 1.0%  

Concentradora Fibra Danhos SA de CV(a)

    361,800       326,474  

CPN Retail Growth Leasehold REIT

    44,100       25,752  

Embassy Office Parks REIT

    4,600       21,372  

Emlak Konut Gayrimenkul Yatirim Ortakligi A/S

    899,580       184,573  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

228    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Equites Property Fund Ltd.

    11,527     $ 11,045  

Fibra Uno Administracion SA de CV(a)

    96,900       73,185  

Fortress REIT Ltd., Class A

    531,519       410,528  

Fortress REIT Ltd., Class B

    323,227       34,414  

Growthpoint Properties Ltd.

    97,707       63,800  

IGB REIT

    6,200       2,492  

KLCCP Stapled Group

    6,900       12,621  

Pavilion REIT

    15,000       5,018  

PLA Administradora Industrial S de RL de CV

    354,100       484,615  

Prologis Property Mexico SA de CV

    10,400       20,773  

Redefine Properties Ltd.

    2,360,179       289,053  

Resilient REIT Ltd.

    130,296       246,499  

Sunway REIT

    39,400       13,560  

YTL Hospitality REIT

    43,000       7,296  

Yuexiu REIT

    13,000       5,985  
              2,239,055  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.8%  

Abdullah Al Othaim Markets Co.

    944       32,974  

Al Meera Consumer Goods Co. QSC

    1,990       10,931  

Atacadao SA*

    7,700       24,638  

Avenue Supermarts Ltd.*(b)

    2,021       61,085  

Berli Jucker PCL

    500       461  

Berli Jucker PCL, NVDR

    27,700       25,552  

BGF retail Co. Ltd.

    239       24,854  

Bid Corp. Ltd.

    5,264       72,147  

BIM Birlesik Magazalar A/S

    6,517       51,931  

Cencosud SA

    17,813       24,739  

Clicks Group Ltd.

    3,995       58,012  

Cosco Capital, Inc.

    1,432,000       151,188  

CP ALL PCL, NVDR*

    75,200       129,686  

Dino Polska SA*(b)

    801       43,933  

Dis-Chem Pharmacies Ltd.(b)

    17,784       19,701  

Dongsuh Cos., Inc.

    859       21,916  

E-MART, Inc.

    752       94,108  

Eurocash SA*

    592       1,736  

Grupo Comercial Chedraui SA de CV

    10,400       13,109  

GS Retail Co. Ltd.

    575       16,266  

Hyundai Greenfood Co. Ltd.

    23,253       148,982  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food & Staples Retailing – (continued)  

InRetail Peru Corp.(b)

    848     $ 28,578  

Magnit PJSC

    1,216       72,207  

Migros Ticaret A/S*

    152       679  

Organizacion Soriana SAB de CV, Class B*(a)

    116,300       88,492  

Philippine Seven Corp.

    5,321       12,203  

Pick n Pay Stores Ltd.

    9,204       29,025  

President Chain Store Corp.

    8,000       72,159  

Puregold Price Club, Inc.

    26,060       22,210  

Raia Drogasil SA

    18,500       77,196  

Shoprite Holdings Ltd.

    8,554       67,863  

Sok Marketler Ticaret A/S*

    7,298       9,872  

SPAR Group Ltd. (The)

    3,102       32,960  

Sun Art Retail Group Ltd.

    47,000       50,789  

Taiwan TEA Corp.*

    8,000       4,601  

Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB de CV

    75,200       181,130  
              1,777,913  
Food Products – 1.9%  

Alicorp SAA

    7,591       14,702  

Almarai Co. JSC

    5,123       70,487  

Astra Agro Lestari Tbk. PT

    20,800       15,467  

Avanti Feeds Ltd.

    507       3,296  

AVI Ltd.

    6,909       31,274  

Binggrae Co. Ltd.

    321       15,757  

Bombay Burmah Trading Co.

    7,972       130,288  

BRF SA*

    14,700       42,779  

Britannia Industries Ltd.

    1,871       87,689  

Century Pacific Food, Inc.

    17,700       5,676  

Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL, NVDR

    61,100       49,499  

Charoen Pokphand Indonesia Tbk. PT

    145,900       58,360  

China Feihe Ltd.(b)

    47,000       106,548  

China Foods Ltd.

    46,789       15,989  

China Huiyuan Juice Group Ltd.*‡(c)

    24,000        

China Mengniu Dairy Co. Ltd.*

    42,000       197,412  

CJ CheilJedang Corp.

    301       95,762  

CJ CheilJedang Corp. (Preference)

    104       14,390  

CP Pokphand Co. Ltd.

    204,000       17,362  

Daesang Corp.

    8,790       186,304  

Dali Foods Group Co. Ltd.(b)

    45,500       28,163  

Dongwon F&B Co. Ltd.

    79       11,244  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      229  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Food Products – (continued)  

Dongwon Industries Co. Ltd.

    610     $ 108,324  

Edita Food Industries SAE

    17,343       9,975  

FGV Holdings Bhd.

    38,800       9,898  

Foshan Haitian Flavouring & Food Co. Ltd., Class A

    3,700       88,466  

Genting Plantations Bhd.

    10,400       24,580  

Great Wall Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    14,000       22,001  

Gruma SAB de CV, Class B

    4,465       47,343  

Grupo Bimbo SAB de CV, Series A

    28,200       54,326  

Grupo Lala SAB de CV

    16,800       10,312  

Grupo Nutresa SA

    3,592       19,886  

Guangdong Haid Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,200       20,223  

Harim Holdings Co. Ltd.

    15,495       88,625  

Health & Happiness H&H International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    5,500       21,844  

Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       35,074  

HUISHAN DAIRY*‡(c)

    158,000        

Indofood CBP Sukses Makmur Tbk. PT

    51,800       34,179  

Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk. PT

    98,700       47,241  

Industrias Bachoco SAB de CV, Series B

    3,000       9,365  

Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    8,200       48,623  

International Holdings Co. PJSC*

    5,000       52,217  

IOI Corp. Bhd.

    56,400       58,368  

Japfa Comfeed Indonesia Tbk. PT

    2,300,100       168,281  

JBS SA

    14,200       47,900  

Jiangxi Zhengbang Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       11,995  

Juhayna Food Industries

    30,264       12,645  

Kernel Holding SA

    22,956       222,975  

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd.

    9,631       49,186  

Lien Hwa Industrial Holdings Corp.

    18,521       25,868  

Lotte Confectionery Co. Ltd.

    658       56,887  

Lotte Food Co. Ltd.

    178       48,002  

Marfrig Global Foods SA*

    4,700       11,224  

Mayora Indah Tbk. PT

    83,900       13,424  

Minerva SA*

    106,900       184,841  

Muyuan Foods Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       49,720  

Namchow Holdings Co. Ltd.

    6,000       8,988  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – (continued)  

Naturecell Co. Ltd.*

    782     $ 6,285  

Nestle India Ltd.

    517       119,725  

Nestle Malaysia Bhd.

    900       30,195  

New Hope Liuhe Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       18,856  

NongShim Co. Ltd.

    56       14,213  

Oceana Group Ltd.

    2,143       7,834  

Orion Corp.

    470       44,941  

Orion Holdings Corp.

    10,964       119,815  

Ottogi Corp.

    15       7,033  

PPB Group Bhd.

    14,080       63,707  

Qianhe Condiment and Food Co. Ltd., Class A

    900       5,127  

QL Resources Bhd.

    25,395       38,505  

Samyang Corp.

    1,692       71,799  

Samyang Foods Co. Ltd.

    86       7,306  

Samyang Holdings Corp.

    2,680       146,435  

San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc.

    15,960       21,022  

Savola Group (The)

    5,311       64,860  

Sawit Sumbermas Sarana Tbk. PT*

    135,700       7,562  

Sime Darby Plantation Bhd.

    51,900       60,456  

SPC Samlip Co. Ltd.

    191       10,672  

Standard Foods Corp.

    7,652       16,345  

Tata Consumer Products Ltd.

    9,983       66,392  

Thai Union Group PCL, NVDR

    45,100       21,995  

Thai Vegetable Oil PCL, NVDR

    15,570       16,985  

Tiger Brands Ltd.

    1,924       23,858  

Tingyi Cayman Islands Holding Corp.

    28,000       51,127  

Tongwei Co. Ltd., Class A

    5,500       25,201  

Ulker Biskuvi Sanayi A/S*

    4,225       10,191  

Uni-President China Holdings Ltd.

    3,000       2,592  

Uni-President Enterprises Corp.

    74,000       158,589  

Universal Robina Corp.

    16,450       46,801  

Want Want China Holdings Ltd.

    94,000       62,062  

Yihai International Holding Ltd.*

    7,000       92,613  

Zhou Hei Ya International Holdings Co. Ltd.*(a)(b)

    14,000       13,576  
              4,395,929  
Gas Utilities – 0.5%  

Aygaz A/S

    41,454       52,219  

Beijing Enterprises Holdings Ltd.

    18,500       55,585  

China Gas Holdings Ltd.

    37,600       115,154  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

230    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Gas Utilities – (continued)  

China Resources Gas Group Ltd.

    12,000     $ 51,993  

China Tian Lun Gas Holdings Ltd.(a)

    141,000       118,366  

ENN Energy Holdings Ltd.

    12,500       157,885  

GAIL India Ltd.

    57,528       65,790  

Great Taipei Gas Co. Ltd.

    5,000       5,454  

Grupo Energia Bogota SA ESP

    54,757       34,093  

Gujarat Gas Ltd.

    2,679       10,722  

Gujarat State Petronet Ltd.

    2,352       6,132  

Indraprastha Gas Ltd.

    4,564       24,773  

Infraestructura Energetica Nova SAB de CV*(a)

    9,400       31,358  

Korea Gas Corp.

    999       23,991  

Kunlun Energy Co. Ltd.

    126,000       81,239  

Mahanagar Gas Ltd.(b)

    1,456       16,010  

Perusahaan Gas Negara Tbk. PT

    426,600       31,357  

Petronas Gas Bhd.

    14,100       53,414  

Promigas SA ESP

    10,792       18,800  

Towngas China Co. Ltd.*(a)

    423,000       191,458  

Zhongyu Gas Holdings Ltd.

    10,000       8,730  
              1,154,523  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.3%  

AK Medical Holdings Ltd.(b)

    6,000       13,370  

Blue Sail Medical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,660  

Dentium Co. Ltd.*

    344       11,293  

DIO Corp.*

    520       13,381  

Ginko International Co. Ltd.

    1,050       4,680  

Hartalega Holdings Bhd.

    28,200       122,166  

Kossan Rubber Industries

    22,800       41,155  

Lifetech Scientific Corp.*

    82,000       20,831  

Microport Scientific Corp.(a)

    11,098       38,998  

Pihsiang Machinery Manufacturing Co. Ltd.*‡(c)

    5,000        

Shandong Weigao Group Medical Polymer Co. Ltd., Class H

    36,000       69,541  

St Shine Optical Co. Ltd.

    1,000       9,037  

Supermax Corp. Bhd.*

    28,100       64,045  

Top Glove Corp. Bhd.

    70,400       145,205  

Venus MedTech Hangzhou, Inc., Class H*(b)

    2,000       19,227  
              589,589  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – 0.6%  

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd.

    1,544     $ 44,158  

Bangkok Chain Hospital PCL, NVDR

    4,800       2,125  

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services PCL, NVDR

    75,200       42,224  

Bumrungrad Hospital PCL, NVDR

    6,600       19,270  

Celltrion Healthcare Co. Ltd.*

    1,547       115,476  

Chabiotech Co. Ltd.*

    427       6,360  

Chularat Hospital PCL, NVDR

    183,100       14,804  

Cleopatra Hospital*

    33,041       10,018  

Dr Lal PathLabs Ltd.(b)

    430       13,327  

Fleury SA

    3,600       17,076  

Fortis Healthcare Ltd.*

    9,651       16,357  

Genertec Universal Medical Group Co. Ltd.(b)

    461,500       320,170  

Hapvida Participacoes e Investimentos SA(b)

    3,100       34,608  

HLB Life Science Co. Ltd.*

    1,132       26,138  

IHH Healthcare Bhd.

    56,400       67,463  

Jinxin Fertility Group Ltd.(b)

    12,000       14,546  

KPJ Healthcare Bhd.

    14,124       2,889  

Life Healthcare Group Holdings Ltd.

    30,687       30,765  

Medipost Co. Ltd.*

    446       11,693  

Meinian Onehealth Healthcare Holdings Co. Ltd., Class A*

    9,400       23,906  

Mitra Keluarga Karyasehat Tbk. PT(b)

    100,200       18,019  

Mouwasat Medical Services Co.

    688       23,482  

Netcare Ltd.

    31,067       24,664  

Notre Dame Intermedica Participacoes SA

    6,200       70,699  

Odontoprev SA

    4,900       10,716  

Qualicorp Consultoria e Corretora de Seguros SA

    4,100       22,633  

Selcuk Ecza Deposu Ticaret ve Sanayi A/S

    51,852       56,163  

Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       13,973  

Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co. Ltd., Class H

    23,500       36,364  

Sinopharm Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    46,000       105,111  

Topchoice Medical Corp., Class A*

    800       26,896  
              1,242,093  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      231  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Health Care Technology – 0.1%  

Alibaba Health Information Technology Ltd.*

    68,000     $ 177,566  

Ping An Healthcare and Technology Co. Ltd.*(a)(b)

    9,400       121,215  
              298,781  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.5%  

AmRest Holdings SE*

    994       3,451  

Ananti, Inc.*

    1,058       7,758  

Asset World Corp. PCL, NVDR

    164,900       15,449  

Berjaya Sports Toto Bhd.

    11,413       5,191  

Bloomberry Resorts Corp.

    1,743,100       254,982  

Central Plaza Hotel PCL*

    1,600       1,011  

Central Plaza Hotel PCL, NVDR*

    8,600       5,436  

DoubleUGames Co. Ltd.

    312       16,910  

Formosa International Hotels Corp.

    2,311       10,301  

Genting Bhd.

    84,600       60,269  

Genting Malaysia Bhd.

    61,100       29,410  

Gourmet Master Co. Ltd.

    4,868       17,785  

Grand Korea Leisure Co. Ltd.

    1,040       10,999  

Haidilao International Holding Ltd.(a)(b)

    13,164       86,913  

Hana Tour Service, Inc.

    403       13,745  

Huazhu Group Ltd., ADR(a)

    2,124       84,174  

Indian Hotels Co. Ltd. (The)

    9,131       11,755  

Jiumaojiu International Holdings Ltd.*(b)

    9,000       19,822  

Jollibee Foods Corp.

    10,380       36,459  

Jubilant Foodworks Ltd.

    987       28,964  

Kangwon Land, Inc.

    2,256       41,951  

Magnum Bhd.

    19,594       9,432  

Minor International PCL, NVDR*

    41,600       22,290  

MK Restaurants Group PCL, NVDR

    10,400       15,182  

OPAP SA

    3,754       30,282  

Paradise Co. Ltd.

    421       4,712  

Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town Co. Ltd., Class A

    22,200       21,735  

Travellers International Hotel Group, Inc.*‡(c)

    209,900       11,753  

Xiabuxiabu Catering Management China Holdings Co. Ltd.*(b)

    11,500       19,634  

Yum China Holdings, Inc.

    6,345       337,744  
              1,235,499  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Household Durables – 0.9%  

Arcelik A/S*

    11,215     $ 35,961  

Coway Co. Ltd.*

    894       54,678  

Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Ltd.*

    8,173       33,009  

Cyrela Brazil Realty SA Empreendimentos e Participacoes

    4,900       19,367  

Dom Development SA

    3,542       83,999  

Ez Tec Empreendimentos e Participacoes SA

    915       5,570  

Gree Electric Appliances, Inc. of Zhuhai, Class A

    16,600       144,763  

Haier Electronics Group Co. Ltd.

    23,000       87,197  

Haier Smart Home Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       52,316  

Hanssem Co. Ltd.

    303       25,154  

Hisense Home Appliances Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    141,000       201,458  

LG Electronics, Inc.

    3,668       271,536  

LG Electronics, Inc. (Preference)

    584       16,547  

Lock&Lock Co. Ltd.*

    728       6,672  

MRV Engenharia e Participacoes SA

    118,500       346,293  

NavInfo Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       9,961  

Nien Made Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    2,000       22,515  

PIK Group PJSC

    5,594       39,938  

Skyworth Group Ltd.*

    836,000       217,763  

Symphony Ltd.

    1,272       14,514  

Tatung Co. Ltd.*

    46,000       33,853  

TCL Electronics Holdings Ltd.

    343,000       231,767  

TCL Technology Group Corp., Class A

    28,200       25,379  

TTK Prestige Ltd.

    242       18,629  

Vestel Elektronik Sanayi ve Ticaret A/S*

    33,051       65,329  

Whirlpool of India Ltd.

    674       19,286  
              2,083,454  
Household Products – 0.2%  

Hindustan Unilever Ltd.

    13,776       385,038  

Kimberly-Clark de Mexico SAB de CV, Class A

    27,000       40,010  

Unilever Indonesia Tbk. PT

    75,200       40,235  

Vinda International Holdings Ltd.

    3,000       7,931  
              473,214  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

232    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 1.5%
 

Aboitiz Power Corp.

    34,200     $ 19,114  

Adani Green Energy Ltd.*

    5,541       64,033  

Adani Power Ltd.*

    320,320       154,525  

AES Gener SA

    71,335       11,059  

AES Tiete Energia SA*

    2,200       5,609  

B Grimm Power PCL, NVDR

    15,300       19,268  

Banpu Power PCL, NVDR

    11,700       4,993  

BCPG PCL, NVDR

    1,600       590  

CGN New Energy Holdings Co. Ltd.*

    564,000       74,183  

CGN Power Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    329,000       70,426  

China Everbright Greentech Ltd.(a)(b)

    282,000       111,275  

China Longyuan Power Group Corp. Ltd., Class H

    1,392,000       951,353  

China National Nuclear Power Co. Ltd., Class A

    42,300       27,968  

China Power International Development Ltd.

    208,000       39,965  

China Resources Power Holdings Co. Ltd.

    54,000       56,125  

China Yangtze Power Co. Ltd., Class A

    28,200       79,799  

Cia Energetica de Sao Paulo (Preference), Class B

    81,800       378,499  

Cikarang Listrindo Tbk. PT(b)

    714,400       29,309  

Colbun SA

    238,159       35,907  

Electricity Generating PCL, NVDR

    4,700       25,032  

Energy Absolute PCL, NVDR

    32,900       40,112  

Eneva SA*

    4,700       42,875  

Engie Brasil Energia SA

    3,150       21,792  

First Gen Corp.

    6,000       3,533  

GD Power Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    42,300       12,374  

Global Power Synergy PCL, NVDR

    9,968       16,551  

Gulf Energy Development PCL, NVDR

    73,180       66,917  

Huadian Power International Corp. Ltd., Class A

    51,700       25,926  

Huaneng Lancang River Hydropower, Inc., Class A

    23,500       14,415  

Huaneng Power International, Inc., Class A

    18,800       13,693  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers –
(continued)
 

Huaneng Power International, Inc., Class H

    112,000     $ 41,739  

Hub Power Co. Ltd. (The)*

    329,000       167,909  

Hubei Energy Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       13,889  

Inner Mongolia MengDian HuaNeng Thermal Power Corp. Ltd., Class A

    32,900       12,619  

JSW Energy Ltd.

    183,622       148,667  

NHPC Ltd.

    79,420       21,273  

NTPC Ltd.

    164,613       194,583  

OGK-2 PJSC

    13,911,280       119,481  

Ratch Group PCL, NVDR

    9,300       13,875  

SDIC Power Holdings Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       32,408  

Shanghai Electric Power Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       15,047  

Shenergy Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       10,985  

Shenzhen Energy Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       19,010  

Sichuan Chuantou Energy Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       14,128  

SPCG PCL, NVDR

    217,900       138,427  

Taiwan Cogeneration Corp.

    3,000       3,985  

Terna Energy SA

    933       12,433  

TPI Polene Power PCL, NVDR

    156,000       21,022  

Unipro PJSC

    284,000       9,236  
              3,427,936  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.6%  

3M India Ltd.*

    69       17,388  

Aamal Co.

    733,571       161,180  

Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc.

    72,230       66,484  

AG Anadolu Grubu Holding A/S

    59,220       122,424  

Alfa SAB de CV, Class A

    98,700       65,730  

Alliance Global Group, Inc.*

    1,625,500       266,663  

AntarChile SA

    5,533       45,999  

Ayala Corp.

    4,700       74,093  

Bidvest Group Ltd. (The)

    6,674       54,735  

CJ Corp.

    564       37,776  

DMCI Holdings, Inc.

    1,512,300       137,169  

Doosan Co. Ltd.

    5,476       224,889  

Dubai Investments PJSC

    933,080       289,591  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      233  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Industrial Conglomerates – (continued)  

Enka Insaat ve Sanayi A/S

    44,347     $ 38,142  

Far Eastern New Century Corp.

    119,000       107,129  

Fosun International Ltd.(a)

    83,000       99,966  

Godrej Industries Ltd.*

    3,377       16,683  

Grupo Carso SAB de CV, Series A1

    11,100       20,492  

GT Capital Holdings, Inc.

    2,280       20,256  

Hanwha Corp.

    1,692       35,862  

Hanwha Corp. (3rd Preference)

    1,425       16,138  

HAP Seng Consolidated Bhd.

    11,900       20,993  

Hong Leong Industries Bhd.

    29,400       52,786  

Hyosung Corp.

    201       13,108  

Industries Qatar QSC

    32,007       79,248  

JG Summit Holdings, Inc.

    56,511       75,017  

KOC Holding A/S

    42,958       72,562  

LG Corp.

    4,653       278,024  

Lotte Corp.

    598       14,967  

LT Group, Inc.

    131,600       31,377  

Mytilineos SA

    4,262       46,568  

PSG Group Ltd.(a)

    3,290       10,573  

Quinenco SA

    12,939       17,036  

Samsung C&T Corp.

    1,390       135,362  

San Miguel Corp.

    13,510       28,471  

Shanghai Industrial Holdings Ltd.

    183,000       244,005  

Siemens Ltd.

    1,416       24,223  

Sigdo Koppers SA

    125,172       118,262  

Sime Darby Bhd.

    21,700       12,587  

SK Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,171       188,338  

SM Investments Corp.

    8,460       166,054  

Turkiye Sise ve Cam Fabrikalari A/S

    44,744       32,719  
              3,581,069  
Insurance – 3.3%  

Allianz Malaysia Bhd.

    23,500       74,544  

Anadolu Anonim Turk Sigorta Sirketi

    85,122       67,525  

Bajaj Finserv Ltd.

    608       45,727  

Bangkok Life Assurance PCL, NVDR

    191,200       109,809  

BB Seguridade Participacoes SA

    14,100       57,906  

Bupa Arabia for Cooperative Insurance Co.*

    262       8,006  

Cathay Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    299,000       401,405  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Insurance – (continued)  

China Development Financial Holding Corp.

    470,000     $ 137,696  

China Life Insurance Co. Ltd.

    131,440       87,999  

China Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Class H

    119,000       258,414  

China Pacific Insurance Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,600       88,583  

China Pacific Insurance Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    94,000       292,733  

China Reinsurance Group Corp., Class H(a)

    2,914,000       278,066  

China Taiping Insurance Holdings Co. Ltd.

    56,400       84,802  

Co. for Cooperative Insurance (The)*

    974       21,037  

DB Insurance Co. Ltd.

    1,726       67,309  

Discovery Ltd.

    6,194       40,788  

Fanhua, Inc., ADR(a)

    280       4,197  

Fubon Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    249,000       354,303  

General Insurance Corp. of India*(b)

    8,949       14,231  

Hanwha Life Insurance Co. Ltd.

    5,271       7,131  

HDFC Life Insurance Co. Ltd.*(b)

    12,459       99,149  

Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance Co. Ltd.

    2,538       52,116  

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co. Ltd.*(b)

    3,465       57,791  

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. Ltd.*(b)

    5,812       31,633  

IRB Brasil Resseguros S/A

    31,951       34,023  

Korean Reinsurance Co.

    33,962       222,083  

Liberty Holdings Ltd.

    58,960       194,129  

Max Financial Services Ltd.*

    2,721       21,683  

Mercuries & Associates Holding Ltd.

    208,500       151,253  

Mercuries Life Insurance Co. Ltd.*

    443,268       131,724  

Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance Co. Ltd.

    2,444       29,831  

Mirae Asset Life Insurance Co. Ltd.

    26,162       87,268  

Momentum Metropolitan Holdings

    32,712       26,172  

New China Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       45,035  

New China Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Class H

    27,100       107,808  

Old Mutual Ltd.

    147,078       84,905  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

234    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

People’s Insurance Co. Group of China Ltd. (The), Class H

    123,000     $ 36,480  

PICC Property & Casualty Co. Ltd., Class H

    214,000       144,601  

Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China Ltd., Class A

    28,300       328,735  

Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China Ltd., Class H(a)

    187,000       1,918,264  

Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen SA*

    20,821       113,463  

Qatar Insurance Co. SAQ

    64,626       40,824  

Qualitas Controladora SAB de CV

    2,600       10,351  

Rand Merchant Investment Holdings Ltd.

    19,693       34,372  

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co. Ltd.

    1,096       172,895  

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co. Ltd. (Preference)

    194       24,278  

Samsung Life Insurance Co. Ltd.

    2,883       160,576  

Sanlam Ltd.

    61,912       180,111  

Santam Ltd.

    723       10,902  

SBI Life Insurance Co. Ltd.*(b)

    4,822       50,047  

Shin Kong Financial Holding Co. Ltd.

    436,007       121,335  

Shinkong Insurance Co. Ltd.

    103,000       129,635  

Sul America SA*

    4,700       32,597  

Tongyang Life Insurance Co. Ltd.

    21,197       58,844  

ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance Co. Ltd., Class H*(a)(b)

    8,100       42,094  
              7,489,218  
Interactive Media & Services – 3.9%  

9F, Inc., ADR*(a)

    21,248       28,047  

Autohome, Inc., ADR

    846       80,835  

Baidu, Inc., ADR*

    4,395       584,755  

Bitauto Holdings Ltd., ADR*(a)

    942       15,016  

Info Edge India Ltd.

    1,266       60,628  

JOYY, Inc., ADR

    987       90,192  

Kakao Corp.

    951       276,575  

Momo, Inc., ADR

    5,746       86,190  

NAVER Corp.

    2,256       576,575  

SINA Corp.*

    676       28,967  

Tencent Holdings Ltd.

    91,400       6,965,628  

Weibo Corp., ADR*

    1,269       52,727  
              8,846,135  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 6.7%  

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.*

    232,000     $ 8,771,595  

B2W Cia Digital*

    3,500       45,671  

Baozun, Inc., ADR*(a)

    235       8,599  

CJ ENM Co. Ltd.

    140       16,224  

GS Home Shopping, Inc.

    1,446       176,752  

HengTen Networks Group Ltd.*(a)

    308,000       13,305  

Hyundai Home Shopping Network Corp.

    2,633       164,055  

JD.com, Inc., ADR*

    14,006       1,141,769  

Maoyan Entertainment*(b)

    1,800       2,535  

Meituan, Class B*(b)

    66,300       2,463,963  

momo.com, Inc.

    1,000       23,913  

Naspers Ltd., Class N*

    7,003       1,362,488  

PChome Online, Inc.

    2,763       9,273  

Pinduoduo, Inc., ADR*

    5,377       483,822  

Tongcheng-Elong Holdings Ltd.*(a)(b)

    9,600       15,920  

Trip.com Group Ltd., ADR*

    7,309       210,207  

Vipshop Holdings Ltd., ADR*

    6,956       148,858  
              15,058,949  
IT Services – 1.1%  

21Vianet Group, Inc., ADR*

    1,418       32,557  

Cafe24 Corp.*

    360       17,735  

China TransInfo Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,566  

Chinasoft International Ltd.*

    32,000       23,108  

Cielo SA*

    35,700       20,865  

Coforge Ltd.

    245       7,292  

DHC Software Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       12,809  

GDS Holdings Ltd., ADR*(a)

    1,385       116,396  

HCL Technologies Ltd.

    17,255       196,038  

Infosys Ltd.

    58,610       838,805  

Kginicis Co. Ltd.

    7,362       121,651  

Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd.(b)

    721       28,395  

Mindtree Ltd.

    610       10,928  

Mphasis Ltd.

    2,042       37,990  

My EG Services Bhd.

    41,900       13,816  

Posco ICT Co. Ltd.

    2,080       12,208  

Samsung SDS Co. Ltd.

    658       97,711  

Systex Corp.

    9,000       25,486  

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.

    16,685       599,980  

Tech Mahindra Ltd.

    9,400       103,161  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      235  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – (continued)  

TravelSky Technology Ltd., Class H

    13,000     $ 27,291  

Wipro Ltd.

    24,481       112,548  
              2,472,336  
Leisure Products – 0.1%  

Giant Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    5,000       49,120  

HLB, Inc.*

    659       53,431  

KMC Kuei Meng International, Inc.

    3,315       24,048  

Merida Industry Co. Ltd.

    5,350       51,810  
              178,409  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.4%  

Divi’s Laboratories Ltd.

    2,246       95,227  

Genscript Biotech Corp.*

    16,000       22,159  

LegoChem Biosciences, Inc.*

    270       12,587  

Pharmaron Beijing Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    1,900       27,416  

Samsung Biologics Co. Ltd.*(b)

    271       162,882  

ST Pharm Co. Ltd.*

    344       18,129  

Viva Biotech Holdings(b)

    23,500       22,364  

WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,300       38,694  

WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    4,099       65,279  

Wuxi Biologics Cayman, Inc.*(b)

    15,000       418,964  
              883,701  
Machinery – 0.9%  

AIA Engineering Ltd.

    972       22,287  

Airtac International Group

    1,784       47,900  

Ashok Leyland Ltd.

    29,880       31,832  

China International Marine Containers Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    5,880       7,977  

China Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd., Class A*

    18,800       11,672  

CIMC Enric Holdings Ltd.(a)

    274,000       128,611  

CNHTC Jinan Truck Co. Ltd., Class A

    900       4,701  

CRRC Corp. Ltd., Class A

    66,700       53,657  

CRRC Corp. Ltd., Class H

    178,000       68,860  

Cummins India Ltd.

    2,280       13,356  

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. Ltd.*

    705       13,265  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

Doosan Bobcat, Inc.

    1,692     $ 43,019  

Doosan Infracore Co. Ltd.*

    59,403       435,563  

Escorts Ltd.

    930       15,071  

Haitian International Holdings Ltd.

    16,000       39,614  

Hiwin Technologies Corp.

    5,064       44,083  

Hyundai Elevator Co. Ltd.

    208       6,819  

Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co. Ltd.

    376       71,078  

Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. Ltd.

    602       14,855  

Hyundai Rotem Co. Ltd.*

    1,766       23,190  

Infore Environment Technology Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       11,392  

Jiangsu Hengli Hydraulic Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,900       21,455  

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. Ltd.*

    893       61,700  

Lonking Holdings Ltd.

    893,000       237,217  

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd.*

    5,565       24,767  

Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings Co. Ltd.

    12,000       6,592  

Sany Heavy Industry Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       36,406  

SFA Engineering Corp.

    1,089       34,838  

Shin Zu Shing Co. Ltd.

    4,165       20,677  

Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd.

    27,500       70,072  

SKF India Ltd.

    624       12,430  

Weichai Power Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       21,227  

Weichai Power Co. Ltd., Class H

    66,000       124,598  

XCMG Construction Machinery Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       15,040  

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Holdings Ltd.

    89,300       60,166  

Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       34,302  

Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    17,700       19,549  

Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Class H

    45,600       40,162  
              1,950,000  
Marine – 0.5%  

Cia Sud Americana de Vapores SA*

    7,628,616       221,753  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

236    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Marine – (continued)  

COSCO SHIPPING Holdings Co. Ltd., Class A*

    32,900     $ 32,113  

COSCO SHIPPING Holdings Co. Ltd., Class H*

    43,500       27,766  

Evergreen Marine Corp. Taiwan Ltd.*

    45,558       30,103  

HMM Co. Ltd.*

    9,450       74,704  

Korea Line Corp.*

    55,800       78,190  

MISC Bhd.

    28,200       44,726  

Pan Ocean Co. Ltd.*

    5,613       17,734  

Qatar Navigation QSC

    252,011       415,289  

Transcoal Pacific Tbk. PT

    32,900       13,722  

U-Ming Marine Transport Corp.

    2,000       2,028  

Wan Hai Lines Ltd.

    39,000       35,723  

Wisdom Marine Lines Co. Ltd.*

    168,898       125,182  

Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp.*

    53,000       21,309  
              1,140,342  
Media – 0.3%  

Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd.

    90,700       15,935  

Cheil Worldwide, Inc.

    1,074       19,735  

China Literature Ltd.*(a)(b)

    6,200       50,768  

Cyfrowy Polsat SA

    5,640       35,117  

Focus Media Information Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       32,759  

Grupo Televisa SAB, Series CPO*(a)

    47,000       59,265  

Innocean Worldwide, Inc.

    71       3,698  

Leo Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       8,895  

Media Nusantara Citra Tbk. PT*

    1,918,100       108,856  

MultiChoice Group

    11,891       98,041  

NanJi E-Commerce Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       12,935  

Plan B Media PCL, NVDR

    72,800       12,613  

Saudi Research & Marketing Group*

    1,030       18,813  

Sun TV Network Ltd.

    1,889       10,757  

Surya Citra Media Tbk. PT

    85,400       8,730  

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.

    32,609       82,680  
              579,597  
Metals & Mining – 4.3%  

African Rainbow Minerals Ltd.

    3,666       51,341  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Alrosa PJSC

    90,240     $ 81,081  

Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd., Class H*

    114,000       24,844  

Aneka Tambang Tbk.

    3,766,710       271,718  

Anglo American Platinum Ltd.(a)

    987       64,716  

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd.

    6,533       148,292  

Baoshan Iron & Steel Co. Ltd., Class A

    75,200       59,934  

Beijing Shougang Co. Ltd., Class A*

    28,200       15,446  

Bradespar SA (Preference)*

    4,700       38,099  

CAP SA

    32,796       270,323  

Century Iron & Steel Industrial Co. Ltd.

    3,000       13,635  

China Hongqiao Group Ltd.

    70,500       50,910  

China Metal Recycling Holdings Ltd.*‡(c)

    51,000        

China Metal Resources Utilization Ltd.*(b)

    56,000       1,444  

China Molybdenum Co. Ltd., Class A

    22,500       13,265  

China Molybdenum Co. Ltd., Class H

    57,000       20,654  

China Northern Rare Earth Group High-Tech Co. Ltd., Class A*

    9,400       14,128  

China Oriental Group Co. Ltd.(a)

    484,000       109,222  

China Steel Corp.

    188,000       133,424  

China Zhongwang Holdings Ltd.*

    551,200       112,303  

Chung Hung Steel Corp.*

    423,000       145,666  

Cia Siderurgica Nacional SA

    23,500       83,713  

Citic Pacific Special Steel Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       11,308  

Dongkuk Steel Mill Co. Ltd.*

    28,059       149,852  

Eregli Demir ve Celik Fabrikalari TAS

    52,311       59,468  

Gerdau SA (Preference)

    16,800       63,546  

Gold Fields Ltd.

    13,565       144,134  

Grupa Kety SA

    151       15,619  

Grupo Mexico SAB de CV, Series B

    112,800       319,408  

Harmony Gold Mining Co. Ltd.*

    8,695       42,676  

Hesteel Co. Ltd., Class A*

    37,600       11,560  

Hindalco Industries Ltd.

    50,055       115,263  

Hunan Valin Steel Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       17,817  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      237  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Hyundai Steel Co.

    2,303     $ 58,656  

Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd.

    26,538       233,177  

Industrias Penoles SAB de CV

    1,770       28,097  

Inner Mongolia BaoTou Steel Union Co. Ltd., Class A*

    70,500       11,995  

Inner Mongolia Eerduosi Resources Co. Ltd., Class B

    103,400       88,821  

Jastrzebska Spolka Weglowa SA*

    21,526       82,494  

Jiangsu Shagang Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,168  

Jiangxi Copper Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       20,764  

Jiangxi Copper Co. Ltd., Class H

    47,000       55,880  

Jinchuan Group International Resources Co. Ltd.

    44,000       4,142  

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd.*

    177,633       459,019  

JSW Steel Ltd.

    32,853       136,984  

Kardemir Karabuk Demir Celik Sanayi ve Ticaret A/S, Class D

    349,420       129,214  

KGHM Polska Miedz SA*

    4,794       142,900  

Korea Zinc Co. Ltd.

    235       79,217  

Koza Altin Isletmeleri A/S*

    2,182       19,157  

Koza Anadolu Metal Madencilik Isletmeleri A/S*

    82,297       118,395  

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd.(a)

    2,115       62,519  

Maanshan Iron & Steel Co. Ltd., Class A

    51,700       19,908  

Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works PJSC

    80,024       37,914  

Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk. PT*

    295,800       37,013  

Metalurgica Gerdau SA (Preference)

    11,600       19,716  

MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC

    2,021       479,574  

National Aluminium Co. Ltd.

    373,791       153,082  

NMDC Ltd.

    31,067       34,564  

Northam Platinum Ltd.*

    4,859       46,294  

Novolipetsk Steel PJSC

    44,732       104,672  

Polyus PJSC

    470       92,004  

Poongsan Corp.

    8,016       172,725  

POSCO

    2,723       499,149  

Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Bhd.

    37,600       49,681  

Qatar Aluminum Manufacturing Co.

    42,858       10,170  

Raspadskaya OJSC

    37,798       52,802  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Royal Bafokeng Platinum Ltd.*

    67,119     $ 242,391  

Sansteel Minguang Co. Ltd. Fujian, Class A

    14,100       13,847  

Saudi Arabian Mining Co.*

    6,410       63,753  

Severstal PAO

    7,661       104,707  

Shandong Gold Mining Co. Ltd., Class A

    5,100       18,101  

Shandong Gold Mining Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    13,650       32,071  

Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       12,276  

Shougang Fushan Resources Group Ltd.

    1,510,000       352,438  

Sibanye Stillwater Ltd.

    77,318       223,312  

Steel Authority of India Ltd.*

    462,459       214,357  

TA Chen Stainless Pipe

    56,793       43,483  

Tata Steel Ltd.

    25,050       138,775  

Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais SA

    38,000       77,700  

Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais SA (Preference), Class A

    181,600       343,295  

Vale Indonesia Tbk. PT*

    6,000       1,662  

Vale SA

    116,600       1,224,442  

Vedanta Ltd.

    69,325       89,571  

Volcan Cia Minera SAA, Class B*

    1,094,156       113,825  

Xiamen Tungsten Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,828  

Young Poong Corp.

    300       127,831  

Yunnan Copper Co. Ltd., Class A*

    9,400       17,382  

Zhaojin Mining Industry Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    21,000       26,944  

Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       19,613  

Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    94,000       68,001  
              9,822,281  
Multiline Retail – 0.3%  

Aeon Co. M Bhd.

    28,000       4,650  

CCOOP Group Co. Ltd., Class A*

    18,800       8,305  

Central Retail Corp. PCL, NVDR*

    42,275       36,283  

El Puerto de Liverpool SAB de CV, Class C1*

    2,700       7,244  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

238    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Multiline Retail – 0.3%  

Falabella SA

    12,080     $ 33,086  

Golden Eagle Retail Group Ltd.

    5,000       4,578  

Hyundai Department Store Co. Ltd.

    690       35,999  

Lojas Americanas SA*

    5,300       18,540  

Lojas Americanas SA (Preference)*

    14,339       57,769  

Lojas Renner SA*

    14,100       91,579  

Lotte Shopping Co. Ltd.

    211       15,508  

Magazine Luiza SA

    42,000       179,407  

Mitra Adiperkasa Tbk. PT*

    3,284,800       147,114  

Poya International Co. Ltd.

    1,000       21,536  

Shinsegae, Inc.

    282       51,569  

Woolworths Holdings Ltd.

    19,364       41,627  
              754,794  
Multi-Utilities – 0.0%(d)  

Qatar Electricity & Water Co. QSC

    9,483       43,495  

YTL Corp. Bhd.*

    78,870       13,762  

YTL Power International Bhd.*

    128,031       19,721  
              76,978  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 4.8%  

Adaro Energy Tbk. PT

    419,400       32,262  

Bangchak Corp. PCL, NVDR

    151,600       70,529  

Banpu PCL, NVDR

    943,500       198,281  

Bashneft PJSC

    1,305       24,922  

Bashneft PJSC (Preference)

    1,163       16,738  

Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd.

    27,252       130,344  

Bukit Asam Tbk. PT

    206,000       27,607  

China Coal Energy Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       13,784  

China Coal Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    83,000       20,229  

China Merchants Energy Shipping Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       12,185  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Class A

    100,700       58,615  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Class H

    890,000       345,448  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class A

    27,300       67,840  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    113,000       195,258  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

CNOOC Ltd.

    544,000     $ 493,854  

Coal India Ltd.

    71,657       110,424  

Cosan SA

    1,923       21,675  

Dana Gas PJSC

    16,893       3,127  

Ecopetrol SA

    185,133       86,019  

Empresas COPEC SA

    7,050       53,738  

Esso Thailand PCL, NVDR*

    499,000       96,862  

Exxaro Resources Ltd.

    8,231       55,230  

Formosa Petrochemical Corp.

    29,000       79,690  

Gazprom PJSC

    412,088       803,568  

Grupa Lotos SA

    3,713       26,117  

GS Holdings Corp.

    1,364       39,669  

Hellenic Petroleum SA

    3,199       15,651  

Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd.

    22,607       57,244  

Indian Oil Corp. Ltd.

    88,736       95,253  

Indo Tambangraya Megah Tbk. PT

    174,800       97,111  

Inner Mongolia Yitai Coal Co. Ltd., Class B

    470,000       294,220  

LUKOIL PJSC

    12,233       622,519  

Mari Petroleum Co. Ltd.

    1,984       15,401  

Medco Energi Internasional Tbk. PT*

    3,019,840       78,877  

MOL Hungarian Oil & Gas plc*

    17,437       84,534  

Motor Oil Hellas Corinth Refineries SA

    2,820       26,279  

Novatek PJSC

    14,711       176,745  

Oil & Gas Development Co. Ltd.

    38,500       22,454  

Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd.

    128,102       112,186  

Oil India Ltd.

    160,263       185,873  

Pakistan Oilfields Ltd.

    54,140       107,662  

Pakistan Petroleum Ltd.

    29,830       15,427  

Pakistan State Oil Co. Ltd.*

    112,800       138,296  

PetroChina Co. Ltd., Class H

    348,000       97,379  

Petroleo Brasileiro SA

    126,300       416,181  

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Preference)

    155,900       512,096  

Petronas Dagangan Bhd.

    6,600       27,385  

Petronet LNG Ltd.

    10,434       32,517  

Polski Koncern Naftowy ORLEN SA

    10,810       103,908  

Polskie Gornictwo Naftowe i Gazownictwo SA

    48,927       51,473  

PTT Exploration & Production PCL

    469       1,185  

PTT Exploration & Production PCL, NVDR

    45,131       114,031  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      239  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

PTT PCL, NVDR

    292,300     $ 290,729  

Qatar Fuel QSC

    8,930       42,185  

Qatar Gas Transport Co. Ltd.

    13,819       10,210  

Reliance Industries Ltd.

    51,362       1,423,921  

Rosneft Oil Co. PJSC

    73,640       325,271  

Rosneft Oil Co. PJSC, GDR(b)

    1,920       8,390  

RussNeft PJSC*

    44,630       162,827  

Saudi Arabian Oil Co.(b)

    31,804       285,789  

Semirara Mining & Power Corp.

    497,200       108,891  

Shaanxi Coal Industry Co. Ltd., Class A

    30,300       39,570  

Sinopec Kantons Holdings Ltd.

    470,000       169,700  

SK Discovery Co. Ltd.

    228       12,639  

SK Gas Ltd.

    1,447       134,536  

SK Innovation Co. Ltd.

    1,790       197,977  

S-Oil Corp.

    706       33,785  

S-Oil Corp. (Preference)

    208       5,765  

Star Petroleum Refining PCL, NVDR

    751,900       127,860  

Surgutneftegas PJSC

    272,600       113,001  

Surgutneftegas PJSC (Preference)

    239,700       109,329  

Tatneft PJSC

    26,164       135,120  

Tatneft PJSC, ADR

    4,806       149,563  

Tatneft PJSC (Preference)

    6,345       31,714  

Thai Oil PCL, NVDR

    32,900       36,154  

Transneft PJSC (Preference)

    54       89,742  

Tupras Turkiye Petrol Rafinerileri A/S*

    3,666       32,689  

Ultrapar Participacoes SA

    14,100       40,055  

United Tractors Tbk. PT

    56,400       81,467  

Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd., Class A

    15,000       20,171  

Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd., Class H

    52,000       37,752  
              10,842,704  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.6%  

Duratex SA*

    8,874       29,503  

Empresas CMPC SA

    22,983       47,749  

Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper Corp. Tbk. PT

    80,200       50,039  

Lee & Man Paper Manufacturing Ltd.

    47,000       35,455  

Longchen Paper & Packaging Co. Ltd.

    23,991       13,504  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Paper & Forest Products – (continued)  

Nine Dragons Paper Holdings Ltd.

    47,000     $ 62,425  

Pabrik Kertas Tjiwi Kimia Tbk. PT

    517,800       215,971  

Sappi Ltd.*

    245,443       350,142  

Shandong Sun Paper Industry JSC Ltd., Class A

    9,400       19,515  

Suzano SA*

    9,400       81,594  

YFY, Inc.

    564,000       382,527  
              1,288,424  
Personal Products – 0.4%  

Amorepacific Corp.

    519       72,268  

Amorepacific Corp. (Preference)

    380       17,548  

AMOREPACIFIC Group

    611       23,450  

AMOREPACIFIC Group (Preference)

    312       4,674  

Chlitina Holding Ltd.

    2,000       12,201  

Colgate-Palmolive India Ltd.

    1,366       27,957  

Cosmax, Inc.

    96       8,883  

Dabur India Ltd.

    10,387       71,685  

Emami Ltd.

    4,766       23,275  

Gillette India Ltd.

    103       7,347  

Godrej Consumer Products Ltd.

    7,426       66,617  

Grape King Bio Ltd.

    2,000       11,607  

Hengan International Group Co. Ltd.

    13,000       90,105  

Kolmar Korea Co. Ltd.

    142       5,513  

LG Household & Health Care Ltd.

    141       186,393  

LG Household & Health Care Ltd. (Preference)

    43       26,186  

Marico Ltd.

    8,460       40,715  

Natura & Co. Holding SA*

    9,958       79,616  

TCI Co. Ltd.

    3,186       25,340  
              801,380  
Pharmaceuticals – 1.5%  

Adcock Ingram Holdings Ltd.

    5,074       12,616  

Ajanta Pharma Ltd.

    384       8,152  

Alkem Laboratories Ltd.

    516       18,342  

Apeloa Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       14,310  

Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd.*

    12,314       79,990  

AstraZeneca Pharma India Ltd.

    235       13,636  

Aurobindo Pharma Ltd.

    4,954       51,651  

Beijing Tong Ren Tang Chinese Medicine Co. Ltd.(a)

    10,000       10,368  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

240    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Bukwang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    569     $ 11,684  

Cadila Healthcare Ltd.

    4,844       27,303  

CanSino Biologics, Inc., Class H*(a)(b)

    1,000       19,459  

Celltrion Pharm, Inc.*

    178       17,067  

Center Laboratories, Inc.*

    4,264       9,392  

Changchun High & New Technology Industry Group, Inc., Class A

    600       33,538  

China Grand Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Holdings Ltd.

    32,000       25,997  

China Medical System Holdings Ltd.

    21,000       21,989  

China Resources Pharmaceutical Group Ltd.(a)(b)

    74,000       36,929  

China Traditional Chinese Medicine Holdings Co. Ltd.

    108,000       43,034  

Cipla Ltd.

    7,742       78,822  

CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd.

    142,080       149,686  

Daewoong Co. Ltd.

    339       7,021  

Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    49       3,938  

Dong-A Socio Holdings Co. Ltd.

    104       9,761  

Dong-A ST Co. Ltd.

    94       6,959  

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd.

    1,880       124,018  

Genomma Lab Internacional SAB de CV, Class B*

    12,000       10,608  

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

    1,140       22,532  

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

    990       6,343  

Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Holdings Co. Ltd., Class H

    6,000       14,205  

Hanall Biopharma Co. Ltd.*

    919       22,353  

Hanmi Pharm Co. Ltd.

    97       22,440  

Hanmi Science Co. Ltd.

    218       10,221  

Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd.*(b)

    16,000       71,284  

Hua Han Health Industry Holdings Ltd.*‡(c)

    3,780,000        

Hubei Jumpcan Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,503  

Hypera SA*

    8,900       43,065  

Ilyang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    231       14,474  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Ipca Laboratories Ltd.

    752     $ 23,472  

Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co. Ltd., Class A

    7,000       92,815  

Jiangsu Nhwa Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,999  

Joincare Pharmaceutical Group Industry Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,564  

Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd.

    34,953       343,575  

JW Pharmaceutical Corp.

    230       6,243  

Kalbe Farma Tbk. PT

    435,900       45,453  

Komipharm International Co. Ltd.*

    1,425       15,698  

Livzon Pharmaceutical Group, Inc., Class H

    3,930       17,332  

Lotus Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.*

    5,000       13,984  

Lupin Ltd.

    3,948       48,439  

Luye Pharma Group Ltd.(a)(b)

    768,000       443,676  

Mega Lifesciences PCL, NVDR

    5,500       6,132  

Mezzion Pharma Co. Ltd.*

    198       30,833  

Natco Pharma Ltd.

    2,480       30,132  

Oneness Biotech Co. Ltd.*

    3,000       30,730  

Oscotec, Inc.*

    808       29,302  

Pfizer Ltd.

    341       22,938  

Pharmally International Holding Co. Ltd.(c)

    2,564       5,074  

Piramal Enterprises Ltd.

    2,028       34,542  

Richter Gedeon Nyrt.

    2,303       46,977  

Sam Chun Dang Pharm Co. Ltd.

    307       14,339  

Sanofi India Ltd.

    163       17,597  

ScinoPharm Taiwan Ltd.

    6,000       5,915  

Shandong Buchang Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,983  

Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       38,146  

Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd., Class H

    8,000       32,857  

Shin Poong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.*

    423       46,785  

Sihuan Pharmaceutical Holdings Group Ltd.(a)

    1,644,000       188,677  

Sino Biopharmaceutical Ltd.

    155,999       157,310  

SSY Group Ltd.

    34,000       18,546  

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

    17,249       108,406  

Tonghua Dongbao Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,045  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      241  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

    717     $ 24,835  

United Laboratories International Holdings Ltd. (The)

    14,000       11,987  

YiChang HEC ChangJiang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    112,800       138,912  

Yifan Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,930  

Yuhan Corp.

    895       46,931  

Yungjin Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.*

    1,602       10,010  

Yunnan Baiyao Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,600       24,587  

Zhangzhou Pientzehuang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    700       23,956  

Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       23,633  

Zhejiang Medicine Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       10,003  

Zhejiang NHU Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       20,378  
              3,404,368  
Professional Services – 0.0%(d)  

51job, Inc., ADR*

    286       20,049  

Benefit Systems SA*

    33       4,637  

L&T Technology Services Ltd.(b)

    103       2,317  

Sporton International, Inc.

    2,386       19,019  
              46,022  
Real Estate Management & Development – 5.1%  

8990 Holdings, Inc.*

    40,000       6,347  

Agile Group Holdings Ltd.

    46,000       62,877  

Aldar Properties PJSC

    118,075       88,078  

Arabian Centres Co. Ltd.

    1,662       10,716  

Ayala Land, Inc.

    79,900       54,477  

Bangkok Land PCL, NVDR

    3,800,100       118,267  

Barwa Real Estate Co.

    74,730       68,408  

Beijing North Star Co. Ltd., Class H

    282,000       56,365  

BR Malls Participacoes SA*

    15,600       22,077  

BR Properties SA

    4,577       6,882  

Bumi Serpong Damai Tbk. PT*

    168,600       10,260  

C&D International Investment Group Ltd.(a)

    119,000       193,043  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Cathay Real Estate Development Co. Ltd.

    221,100     $ 147,253  

Cencosud Shopping SA

    11,704       15,453  

Central China Real Estate Ltd.

    329,000       176,488  

Central Pattana PCL, NVDR

    18,800       23,223  

China Aoyuan Group Ltd.

    47,000       44,001  

China Dili Group*

    42,600       9,778  

China Evergrande Group(a)

    63,000       125,109  

China Fortune Land Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    6,110       12,831  

China Jinmao Holdings Group Ltd.

    188,000       94,790  

China Logistics Property Holdings Co. Ltd.*(b)

    59,000       30,813  

China Merchants Land Ltd.

    658,000       95,032  

China Merchants Property Operation & Service Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       17,852  

China Merchants Shekou Industrial Zone Holdings Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       39,451  

China Overseas Grand Oceans Group Ltd.

    71,000       41,292  

China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd.

    121,500       303,952  

China Overseas Property Holdings Ltd.(a)

    25,000       18,085  

China Resources Land Ltd.

    97,777       397,798  

China SCE Group Holdings Ltd.

    734,000       314,239  

China South City Holdings Ltd.

    1,922,000       193,319  

China Vanke Co. Ltd., Class A

    28,200       115,953  

China Vanke Co. Ltd., Class H

    64,200       198,689  

Chong Hong Construction Co. Ltd.

    2,000       5,566  

CIFI Holdings Group Co. Ltd.

    127,144       87,715  

Ciputra Development Tbk. PT

    179,449       10,123  

Corp. Inmobiliaria Vesta SAB de CV

    2,000       3,203  

Country Garden Holdings Co. Ltd.

    249,832       307,343  

DAMAC Properties Dubai Co. PJSC*

    26,553       7,880  

Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development Co.*

    8,271       17,621  

Dexin China Holdings Co. Ltd.*(a)(b)

    376,000       148,366  

DLF Ltd.

    13,288       28,384  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

242    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

DoubleDragon Properties Corp.*

    342,420     $ 99,472  

Echo Investment SA*

    61,758       58,428  

E-House China Enterprise Holdings Ltd.(b)

    285,600       291,314  

Emaar Development PJSC*

    39,052       24,240  

Emaar Economic City*

    7,389       17,535  

Emaar Malls PJSC*

    46,896       18,895  

Emaar Misr for Development SAE*

    263,780       38,643  

Emaar Properties PJSC*

    130,425       94,805  

Fantasia Holdings Group Co. Ltd.*(a)

    634,500       119,457  

Farglory Land Development Co. Ltd.

    6,000       9,230  

Gemdale Corp., Class A

    14,100       28,094  

Gemdale Properties & Investment Corp. Ltd.

    186,000       28,782  

Globe Trade Centre SA*

    103       141  

Godrej Properties Ltd.*

    1,507       21,036  

Greenland Holdings Corp. Ltd., Class A

    28,200       26,053  

Greenland Hong Kong Holdings Ltd.

    376,000       121,699  

Greentown China Holdings Ltd.

    26,500       42,852  

Guangzhou R&F Properties Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    582,800       738,002  

Guorui Properties Ltd.(b)

    423,000       46,365  

Hanson International Tbk. PT*‡(c)

    2,409,275       6,178  

Highwealth Construction Corp.

    16,500       23,939  

Hopson Development Holdings Ltd.

    22,000       56,171  

Huang Hsiang Construction Corp.

    15,000       20,295  

Hung Sheng Construction Ltd.*

    192,600       115,142  

IOI Properties Group Bhd.

    52,800       10,928  

Jiangsu Zhongnan Construction Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       18,982  

Jiayuan International Group Ltd.

    587,243       250,653  

Jinke Properties Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       16,309  

Joy City Property Ltd.

    1,566,000       95,921  

Kaisa Group Holdings Ltd.

    94,000       43,637  

Kindom Development Co. Ltd.

    156,000       189,795  

Korea Real Estate Investment & Trust Co. Ltd.

    65,585       103,750  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

KWG Group Holdings Ltd.

    47,000     $ 62,062  

KWG Living Group Holdings Ltd.*(a)(b)

    23,500       18,425  

LAMDA Development SA*

    1,368       8,047  

Logan Group Co. Ltd.

    29,000       45,324  

Longfor Group Holdings Ltd.(b)

    54,500       297,630  

LSR Group PJSC

    22,147       253,435  

LVGEM China Real Estate Investment Co. Ltd.

    564,000       180,367  

MAS Real Estate, Inc.

    190,484       119,575  

MBK PCL, NVDR

    299,800       103,885  

Megaworld Corp.*

    444,200       27,808  

Midea Real Estate Holding Ltd.(b)

    14,000       31,521  

Mingfa Group International Co. Ltd.*‡(c)

    36,000        

Multiplan Empreendimentos Imobiliarios SA*

    500       1,645  

NEPI Rockcastle plc

    13,871       49,146  

Oberoi Realty Ltd.*

    4,021       24,045  

OSK Holdings Bhd.

    377,400       67,669  

Pakuwon Jati Tbk. PT*

    534,400       15,128  

Parque Arauco SA

    15,651       20,060  

Phoenix Mills Ltd. (The)*

    1,316       10,232  

Poly Developments and Holdings Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    32,900       75,422  

Poly Property Group Co. Ltd.

    893,000       256,793  

Poly Property Services Co. Ltd.(a)(b)

    2,400       17,254  

Powerlong Real Estate Holdings Ltd.

    41,000       27,545  

Prestige Estates Projects Ltd.

    652       2,205  

Pruksa Holding PCL, NVDR

    279,700       87,946  

Quality Houses PCL, NVDR

    2,034,600       135,781  

Redco Properties Group Ltd.(a)(b)

    26,000       11,500  

Redsun Properties Group Ltd.

    412,000       149,290  

RiseSun Real Estate Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       9,863  

Road King Infrastructure Ltd.(a)

    106,000       125,754  

Robinsons Land Corp.

    56,106       17,388  

Ronshine China Holdings Ltd.*(a)(b)

    250,000       169,894  

Ruentex Development Co. Ltd.

    39,600       54,686  

Sakura Development Co. Ltd.

    83,591       87,672  

Seazen Group Ltd.*

    80,000       59,834  

Seazen Holdings Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       22,805  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      243  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Shanghai Industrial Urban Development Group Ltd.

    36,600     $ 3,398  

Shanghai Lingang Holdings Corp. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       15,888  

Shanghai Lujiazui Finance & Trade Zone Development Co. Ltd., Class B

    17,540       14,418  

Shanghai Shimao Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       16,246  

Shanghai Zhangjiang High-Tech Park Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       13,265  

Shenzhen Investment Ltd.

    99,930       30,411  

Shimao Group Holdings Ltd.

    39,000       137,546  

Shoucheng Holdings Ltd.

    30,400       10,898  

Shui On Land Ltd.

    1,460,500       192,100  

Sichuan Languang Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       10,375  

Sime Darby Property Bhd.

    73,800       9,591  

Sinic Holdings Group Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    282,000       151,639  

Sino-Ocean Group Holding Ltd.

    81,267       15,510  

SK D&D Co. Ltd.

    3,317       119,122  

Skyfame Realty Holdings Ltd.

    1,410,000       185,458  

SM Prime Holdings, Inc.

    192,700       134,173  

SOHO China Ltd.*(a)

    48,500       12,946  

SP Setia Bhd. Group

    490,294       81,421  

Sunac China Holdings Ltd.

    85,000       313,481  

Sunway Bhd.

    50,749       16,367  

Supalai PCL, NVDR

    29,000       14,608  

Talaat Moustafa Group

    434,353       168,761  

Times China Holdings Ltd.

    29,000       38,593  

UEM Sunrise Bhd.*

    71,900       6,403  

United Development Co. QSC

    793,783       323,312  

UOA Development Bhd.

    18,800       6,742  

Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc.

    1,134,400       78,986  

WHA Corp. PCL, NVDR

    113,390       8,659  

Yango Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    14,100       14,436  

Yuexiu Property Co. Ltd.

    282,000       54,546  

Yuzhou Group Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    57,102       22,017  

Zhenro Properties Group Ltd.(b)

    67,000       38,620  

Zhongliang Holdings Group Co. Ltd.(a)(b)

    38,000       25,579  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

Zhongtian Financial Group Co. Ltd., Class A*

    28,200     $ 12,795  

Zhuguang Holdings Group Co. Ltd.*

    792,000       122,556  
              11,574,644  
Road & Rail – 0.2%  

BTS Group Holdings PCL, NVDR

    103,040       29,424  

Cia de Locacao das Americas*

    4,500       19,620  

CJ Logistics Corp.*

    150       21,085  

Container Corp. of India Ltd.

    4,571       24,111  

Cosan Logistica SA*

    4,018       11,421  

Daqin Railway Co. Ltd., Class A

    47,000       44,964  

Dazhong Transportation Group Co. Ltd., Class B

    286,900       90,087  

GMexico Transportes SAB de CV(b)

    10,500       12,386  

Guangshen Railway Co. Ltd., Class A

    32,900       11,097  

Localiza Rent a Car SA*

    9,250       97,345  

Rumo SA*

    18,800       59,797  
              421,337  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 3.7%  

A-DATA Technology Co. Ltd.

    96,000       184,593  

Ardentec Corp.

    179,000       208,703  

ASE Technology Holding Co. Ltd.

    114,000       251,885  

ASMedia Technology, Inc.

    1,000       50,169  

Chipbond Technology Corp.

    15,000       32,776  

DB HiTek Co. Ltd.

    1,176       33,113  

Elan Microelectronics Corp.

    4,400       20,767  

Elite Advanced Laser Corp.

    3,960       8,764  

Elite Semiconductor Microelectronics Technology, Inc.

    12,000       17,599  

Eo Technics Co. Ltd.

    134       10,357  

Epistar Corp.*

    17,000       19,910  

Faraday Technology Corp.

    6,000       8,737  

GemVax & Kael Co. Ltd.*

    920       17,351  

Gigadevice Semiconductor Beijing, Inc., Class A

    800       23,247  

Global Unichip Corp.

    2,000       18,110  

Globalwafers Co. Ltd.

    3,000       43,526  

Greatek Electronics, Inc.

    13,000       22,611  

Holtek Semiconductor, Inc.

    1,000       2,465  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

244    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

Hua Hong Semiconductor Ltd.*(b)

    11,000     $ 40,355  

King Yuan Electronics Co. Ltd.

    19,000       19,894  

LandMark Optoelectronics Corp.

    2,000       18,529  

LEENO Industrial, Inc.

    180       19,274  

LONGi Green Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       53,305  

Machvision, Inc.

    1,039       10,280  

Macronix International

    37,000       41,394  

MediaTek, Inc.

    25,000       592,585  

MLS Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,100       1,995  

Nanya Technology Corp.

    21,000       42,435  

NAURA Technology Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    900       22,969  

Novatek Microelectronics Corp.

    10,000       93,345  

Parade Technologies Ltd.

    1,400       53,350  

Phison Electronics Corp.

    3,000       31,098  

Pixart Imaging, Inc.

    1,000       5,943  

Powertech Technology, Inc.

    21,000       61,964  

Radiant Opto-Electronics Corp.

    14,330       56,361  

Realtek Semiconductor Corp.

    7,070       87,870  

Sanan Optoelectronics Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       31,187  

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp.*

    66,500       195,088  

Seoul Semiconductor Co. Ltd.

    1,370       21,069  

Shenzhen Goodix Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    900       23,077  

Sigurd Microelectronics Corp.

    12,552       16,544  

Silergy Corp.

    1,000       61,531  

Silicon Works Co. Ltd.

    416       16,681  

Sino-American Silicon Products, Inc.

    17,000       59,196  

Sitronix Technology Corp.

    5,000       22,025  

SK Hynix, Inc.

    8,460       595,712  

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    301,000       4,546,017  

Tianjin Zhonghuan Semiconductor Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       16,372  

Tokai Carbon Korea Co. Ltd.

    86       7,003  

TongFu Microelectronics Co. Ltd., Class A*

    4,700       17,474  

Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,300       20,823  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

United Microelectronics Corp.

    188,000     $ 201,779  

United Renewable Energy Co. Ltd.*

    44,003       23,306  

Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp.

    13,000       42,358  

Visual Photonics Epitaxy Co. Ltd.

    6,000       16,907  

Wafer Works Corp.

    16,798       18,587  

Will Semiconductor Ltd., Class A

    800       23,643  

Win Semiconductors Corp.

    6,961       75,685  

Winbond Electronics Corp.

    52,000       30,814  

WONIK IPS Co. Ltd.*

    824       23,274  

XinTec, Inc.*

    6,000       25,172  

Xinyi Solar Holdings Ltd.(a)

    54,457       99,015  
              8,457,968  
Software – 0.2%  

Ahnlab, Inc.

    190       10,532  

Asseco Poland SA

    2,144       34,672  

China Youzan Ltd.*

    232,000       54,748  

Douzone Bizon Co. Ltd.

    214       18,803  

Glodon Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,000       21,184  

Hundsun Technologies, Inc., Class A

    1,400       19,420  

Iflytek Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       26,684  

Kingdee International Software Group Co. Ltd.*

    35,000       91,846  

Kingsoft Corp. Ltd.

    16,000       85,417  

Linx SA

    3,300       20,541  

Oracle Financial Services Software Ltd.

    632       26,809  

Shanghai Baosight Software Co. Ltd., Class A

    2,000       18,964  

Shanghai Baosight Software Co. Ltd., Class B

    6,100       23,772  

TOTVS SA

    9,500       44,485  

Weimob, Inc.*(b)

    25,000       31,980  

Yonyou Network Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       30,268  
              560,125  
Specialty Retail – 1.6%  

Ace Hardware Indonesia Tbk. PT

    206,000       22,044  

Bermaz Auto Bhd.

    447,900       125,046  

China Harmony Auto Holding Ltd.(a)

    338,000       132,500  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      245  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Specialty Retail – (continued)  

China Meidong Auto Holdings Ltd.

    8,000     $ 32,651  

China Tourism Group Duty Free Corp. Ltd., Class A

    2,500       74,401  

China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings Ltd.

    617,500       872,718  

Detsky Mir PJSC(b)

    330,956       457,999  

Foschini Group Ltd. (The)

    148,442       785,935  

GOME Retail Holdings Ltd.*(a)

    254,447       28,218  

Home Product Center PCL, NVDR

    63,300       28,433  

Hotai Motor Co. Ltd.

    6,000       126,278  

Hotel Shilla Co. Ltd.

    396       25,895  

Italtile Ltd.

    10,931       8,779  

Jarir Marketing Co.

    839       38,748  

JUMBO SA

    2,397       33,506  

LOTTE Himart Co. Ltd.

    3,942       106,306  

M.Video PJSC

    8,862       75,868  

Mr Price Group Ltd.

    4,982       37,673  

Padini Holdings Bhd.

    17,200       8,610  

Petrobras Distribuidora SA

    9,400       31,268  

Pou Sheng International Holdings Ltd.*

    97,000       22,140  

PTG Energy PCL, NVDR

    26,300       16,033  

Shanghai Yuyuan Tourist Mart Group Co. Ltd.

    18,800       24,411  

Shinsegae International, Inc.

    81       10,101  

Siam Global House PCL, NVDR

    15,900       8,111  

Suning.com Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       33,986  

Topsports International Holdings Ltd.(b)

    20,000       27,338  

Truworths International Ltd.

    198,583       382,164  

Via Varejo S/A*

    22,800       67,854  

Zhongsheng Group Holdings Ltd.(a)

    9,000       63,947  
              3,708,961  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 5.7%  

Acer, Inc.*

    63,858       53,246  

Advantech Co. Ltd.

    7,941       80,233  

Asustek Computer, Inc.

    24,000       203,472  

Catcher Technology Co. Ltd.

    24,000       151,450  

Chicony Electronics Co. Ltd.

    15,992       48,138  

Compal Electronics, Inc.

    141,000       91,688  

Darfon Electronics Corp.

    94,000       129,974  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

Dawning Information Industry Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,200     $ 6,408  

Getac Technology Corp.

    3,000       4,930  

Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd.

    20,000       50,204  

HTC Corp.*

    9,000       9,030  

Innodisk Corp.

    2,733       14,284  

Inventec Corp.

    90,000       71,110  

King Slide Works Co. Ltd.

    2,000       20,137  

Legend Holdings Corp., Class H(a)(b)

    267,700       360,392  

Lenovo Group Ltd.

    212,000       132,588  

Lite-On Technology Corp.

    75,000       122,057  

Micro-Star International Co. Ltd.

    13,000       52,266  

Mitac Holdings Corp.

    33,600       33,126  

Ninestar Corp., Class A

    4,700       20,448  

Pegatron Corp.

    73,000       156,956  

Primax Electronics Ltd.

    188,000       291,825  

Qisda Corp.

    55,000       35,957  

Quanta Computer, Inc.

    47,000       118,307  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

    174,314       8,694,961  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Preference)

    27,918       1,232,653  

Shenzhen Kaifa Technology Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       14,864  

Transcend Information, Inc.*

    7,000       15,589  

Wistron Corp.

    94,000       93,660  

Wiwynn Corp.

    2,000       50,833  

Xiaomi Corp., Class B*(b)

    213,400       605,402  
              12,966,188  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.9%  

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd.*

    6,536       13,520  

Alpargatas SA (Preference)

    875       6,149  

ANTA Sports Products Ltd.

    15,000       164,994  

Arezzo Industria e Comercio SA

    1,600       16,733  

Bata India Ltd.

    122       2,160  

Bosideng International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    40,000       17,486  

CCC SA*

    1,067       10,431  

China Lilang Ltd.

    215,000       135,850  

Eclat Textile Co. Ltd.

    2,698       35,702  

F&F Co. Ltd.

    206       16,503  

Feng TAY Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    10,600       64,111  

FF Group*‡(c)

    3,536        
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

246    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – (continued)  

Fila Holdings Corp.

    1,143     $ 38,580  

Formosa Taffeta Co. Ltd.

    10,000       10,925  

Fuguiniao Group Ltd.*‡(c)

    334,800        

Grendene SA

    8,264       11,494  

Guararapes Confeccoes SA*

    2,400       5,669  

Handsome Co. Ltd.

    6,066       148,883  

Hansae Co. Ltd.

    9,315       145,303  

HS Industries Co. Ltd.

    13,298       82,505  

Hwaseung Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    331       3,763  

Hyosung TNC Co. Ltd.

    940       118,463  

Lao Feng Xiang Co. Ltd., Class B

    2,500       7,415  

Li Ning Co. Ltd.

    29,500       152,163  

LPP SA*

    24       31,728  

Makalot Industrial Co. Ltd.

    2,032       13,462  

Nan Liu Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    2,000       16,222  

Page Industries Ltd.

    130       35,210  

Pou Chen Corp.

    94,000       82,815  

Quang Viet Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    4,000       14,684  

Rajesh Exports Ltd.*

    3,055       19,031  

Ruentex Industries Ltd.

    15,800       36,568  

Shenzhou International Group Holdings Ltd.

    11,900       205,473  

Tainan Spinning Co. Ltd.

    48,555       20,879  

Taiwan Paiho Ltd.

    7,000       17,327  

Titan Co. Ltd.

    5,734       90,199  

Xtep International Holdings Ltd.(a)

    552,134       185,828  

Youngone Corp.

    890       22,275  

Youngone Holdings Co. Ltd.

    2,316       72,662  
              2,073,165  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – 0.5%  

Aavas Financiers Ltd.*

    611       11,801  

Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd.

    27,777       720,986  

Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd.

    142,543       269,285  

LIC Housing Finance Ltd.

    9,611       36,696  

Sangsangin Co. Ltd.

    17,487       89,847  
              1,128,615  
Tobacco – 0.2%  

British American Tobacco Malaysia Bhd.

    5,900       14,342  

Eastern Co. SAE

    29,100       22,186  

Gudang Garam Tbk. PT*

    14,900       41,746  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Tobacco – (continued)  

ITC Ltd.

    49,491     $ 110,358  

KT&G Corp.

    4,322       308,524  
              497,156  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.4%  

Adani Enterprises Ltd.

    3,355       15,379  

AKR Corporindo Tbk. PT

    71,700       13,139  

Barloworld Ltd.

    90,028       314,984  

BOC Aviation Ltd.(a)(b)

    6,800       41,958  

Bohai Leasing Co. Ltd., Class A*

    32,900       12,472  

Brighton-Best International Taiwan, Inc.*

    16,000       14,264  

COSCO SHIPPING Development Co. Ltd., Class A

    37,600       11,728  

LG International Corp.

    13,160       179,186  

Posco International Corp.

    2,165       25,376  

SK Networks Co. Ltd.

    2,415       9,652  

Xiamen C & D, Inc., Class A

    9,400       11,729  

Zall Smart Commerce Group Ltd.*(a)

    1,900,000       173,956  
              823,823  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.8%  

Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd.

    11,142       54,103  

Airports of Thailand PCL

    54,000       89,661  

Airports of Thailand PCL, NVDR

    21,200       35,200  

Bangkok Expressway & Metro PCL, NVDR

    136,300       35,860  

Beijing Capital International Airport Co. Ltd., Class H

    36,000       21,958  

CCR SA

    14,100       27,290  

China Merchants Port Holdings Co. Ltd.

    55,407       58,730  

COSCO SHIPPING Ports Ltd.(a)

    760,749       444,392  

EcoRodovias Infraestrutura e Logistica SA*

    4,700       8,143  

GMR Infrastructure Ltd.*

    48,418       15,288  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte SAB de CV*

    4,105       18,467  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SAB de CV, Class B

    4,700       38,994  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV, Class B*(a)

    3,280       37,771  

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       8,803  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      247  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Transportation Infrastructure – (continued)  

International Container Terminal Services, Inc.

    18,470     $ 43,885  

Jasa Marga Persero Tbk. PT

    39,723       9,669  

Jiangsu Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

    30,000       29,981  

Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd.

    27,900       28,068  

MMC Corp. Bhd.

    408,900       70,856  

Ningbo Zhoushan Port Co. Ltd., Class A

    23,500       12,767  

Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port PJSC

    190,696       18,821  

Promotora y Operadora de Infraestructura SAB de CV

    2,160       14,107  

Promotora y Operadora de Infraestructura SAB de CV, Class L

    2,300       11,182  

Qingdao Port International Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    47,000       26,667  

Shanghai International Airport Co. Ltd., Class A

    3,100       30,583  

Shanghai International Port Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    61,100       38,118  

Shenzhen Airport Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       11,196  

Shenzhen Expressway Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       12,262  

Shenzhen International Holdings Ltd.

    38,745       60,155  

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp.

    48,000       50,763  

TAV Havalimanlari Holding A/S

    6,386       10,505  

Westports Holdings Bhd.

    17,500       16,426  

Zhejiang Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

    628,000       427,583  
              1,818,254  
Water Utilities – 0.5%  

Aguas Andinas SA, Class A

    36,828       9,557  

Beijing Enterprises Water Group Ltd.*

    210,000       79,614  

China Water Affairs Group Ltd.(a)

    376,000       269,096  

Chongqing Water Group Co. Ltd., Class A

    18,800       14,647  

Cia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo*

    4,700       34,643  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Water Utilities – (continued)  

Cia de Saneamento do Parana*

    107,104     $ 440,044  

Grandblue Environment Co. Ltd., Class A

    4,700       17,523  

Guangdong Investment Ltd.

    36,000       53,293  

Inversiones Aguas Metropolitanas SA

    227,522       153,145  

Luenmei Quantum Co. Ltd., Class A

    9,400       18,519  
              1,090,081  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 1.8%  

Advanced Info Service PCL, NVDR

    18,000       99,623  

America Movil SAB de CV, Series L(a)

    374,900       227,468  

Axiata Group Bhd.

    74,304       52,397  

Bharti Airtel Ltd.

    39,243       229,689  

China Mobile Ltd.

    188,000       1,143,052  

China United Network Communications Ltd., Class A

    18,800       13,384  

DiGi.Com Bhd.

    61,100       55,439  

Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones SA

    1,467       8,261  

Etihad Etisalat Co.*

    5,160       38,525  

Far EasTone Telecommunications Co. Ltd.

    30,000       62,929  

Globe Telecom, Inc.

    580       24,326  

Indosat Tbk. PT*

    417,600       57,393  

Intouch Holdings PCL, NVDR

    23,500       40,338  

Maxis Bhd.

    32,900       38,007  

Mobile Telecommunications Co. Saudi Arabia*

    13,386       43,974  

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC

    26,796       104,841  

MTN Group Ltd.

    54,191       192,735  

PLAY Communications SA(b)

    5,507       53,879  

PLDT, Inc.

    2,960       81,217  

Sistema PJSFC

    1,469,443       466,950  

SK Telecom Co. Ltd.

    1,343       253,285  

Taiwan Mobile Co. Ltd.

    30,000       102,470  

TIM SA*

    14,100       28,978  

Total Access Communication PCL, NVDR

    15,200       14,996  

Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A/S*

    36,425       63,439  

Vodacom Group Ltd.

    10,340       77,973  

Vodafone Idea Ltd.*

    3,524,849       416,185  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

248    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

XL Axiata Tbk. PT

    149,675     $ 20,775  
              4,012,528  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $196,134,681)
            222,741,581  
    Principal
Amount
       
CORPORATE BONDS – 0.0%(d)  
Food Products – 0.0%(d)  

Britannia Industries Ltd.

   

8.00%, 8/28/2022

    INR       2,231       32  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.0%(d)
 

NTPC Ltd.

 

 

Series 54, 8.49%, 3/25/2025

    INR     49,126       9,731  
Total Corporate Bonds
(Cost $31)

 

    9,763  
    Number of
Rights
       
RIGHTS – 0.0%(d)  
Electrical Equipment – 0.0%(d)  

Doosan Fuel Cell Co. Ltd., expiring 12/8/2020, price 33,600.00 KRW*(c)

    79       550  

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. Ltd., expiring 12/4/2020, price 9,640.00 KRW*(c)

    1,644       5,955  
              6,505  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.0%
 

BCPG PCL, expiring 11/9/2020, price 11.50 THB*‡(c)

    200        
Investments   Number of
Rights
    Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.0%  

Jiayuan International Group Ltd., expiring 1/31/2021*‡(c)

    7,161     $  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 0.0%  

Legend Holdings Corp., expiring 12/31/2020*‡(c)

    4,192        
Total Rights
(Cost $—)

 

    6,505  
    Number of
Warrants
       
WARRANTS – 0.0%(d)  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.0%(d)  

MBK PCL, expiring 12/31/2023, price 3.00 THB*(c)
(Cost $—)

    11,992       3,001  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(e) – 0.8%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.8%  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $300,003, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% –1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 –3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 –12/15/2025; total market value $304,261

  $ 300,000       300,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $350,630, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $356,770

    350,628       350,628  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      249  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(e) – (continued)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $500,008, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 –10/28/2025; total market value $509,783

  $ 500,000     $ 500,000  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $600,009, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $660,434

    600,000       600,000  
        1,750,628  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $1,750,628)

 

    1,750,628  
Total Investments – 99.4%
(Cost $197,885,340)

 

    224,511,478  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.6%

 

    1,335,324  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 225,846,802  

 

*  

Non-income producing security.

 

^

Security subject to restrictions on resale.

 

 

Value determined using significant unobservable inputs.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $8,317,509, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $1,750,628 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $1,901,357 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government

  Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050 and $5,285,271 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 7.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $8,937,256.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $203,558, which represents approximately 0.09% of net assets of the Fund.

 

(d) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(e) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $1,750,628.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ADR – American Depositary Receipt

GDR – Global Depositary Receipt

INR – Indian Rupee

KRW – Korean Won

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OJSC – Open Joint Stock Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

SCA – Limited partnership with share capital

THB – Thai Baht

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 54,434,646  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (31,344,410

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 23,090,236  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 201,488,327  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

250    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount    

Value and

Unrealized
Appreciation*

 

Long Contracts

 

 

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    59       12/18/2020       USD     $ 3,250,605     $ 54,869  

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

HKD

    4,500,000       Morgan Stanley   USD     580,131       12/16/2020     $ 128  

KRW*

    229,863,410       Citibank NA   USD     193,783       12/16/2020       8,791  

TWD*

    19,230,000       Goldman Sachs & Co.   USD     668,986       12/16/2020       3,419  

USD

    112,236       Goldman Sachs & Co.   BRL*     599,553       12/16/2020       8,443  

USD

    1,099,445       UBS AG   HKD     8,526,137       12/16/2020       30  

USD

    100,639       Citibank NA   INR*     7,400,000       12/16/2020       1,175  

USD

    82,987       Citibank NA   RUB*     6,343,045       12/16/2020       3,563  

USD

    103,506         Goldman Sachs & Co.   RUB*     8,020,000       12/16/2020       3,084  

Total unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 28,633  

INR*

    7,061,500       Citibank NA   USD     95,138       12/16/2020     $ (224

USD

    193,613       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   KRW*     225,820,000       12/16/2020       (5,398

USD

    790,553       Citibank NA   TWD*     22,906,120       12/16/2020       (10,393

USD

    10,006         Goldman Sachs & Co.   ZAR     170,000       12/17/2020       (402

Total unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (16,417

Net unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 12,216  

 

*

Non-deliverable forward. See Note 2 in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Abbreviations:

 

BRL – Brazilian Real

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

INR – Indian Rupee

KRW – Korean Won

RUB – Russian Ruble

TWD – Taiwan Dollar

USD – US Dollar

ZAR – South African Rand

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      251  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Brazil

    4.5

Chile

    0.8  

China

    35.3  

Colombia

    0.5  

Czech Republic

    0.3  

Egypt

    0.4  

Greece

    0.2  

Hungary

    0.2  

India

    8.2  

Indonesia

    1.7  

Malaysia

    1.8  

Mexico

    1.9  

Pakistan

    0.5  

Peru

    0.2  

Philippines

    1.2  

Poland

    1.2  

Qatar

    1.2  

Russia

    3.3  

Saudi Arabia

    1.3  

South Africa

    4.2  

South Korea

    15.4  

Taiwan

    11.0  

Thailand

    1.7  

Turkey

    0.9  

United Arab Emirates

    0.7  

Other1

    1.4  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

252    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


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Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS – 99.8%  

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund(a)
(Cost $7,296,293)

    113,020     $ 6,119,717  
Total Investments – 99.8%
(Cost $7,296,293)

 

    6,119,717  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.2%

 

    9,599  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 6,129,316  

 

(a)  

Investment in affiliated Fund. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. is the Investment Adviser to both the Fund and the affiliated Fund.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

        

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

   $ 24,207  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

     (1,223,941

Net unrealized depreciation

   $ (1,199,734

Federal income tax cost

   $ 7,328,921  

 

The FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund currently seeks its investment objective by investing a substantial portion of its assets in an affiliated FlexShares® Fund. The Schedule of Investments of the affiliated FlexShares® Fund is located elsewhere in this Report.

 

 

Investment in a company which was affiliated for the period ended October 31, 2020, was as follows:

 

Security  

Value
October 31,

2019

    Purchases at
Cost
    Sales
Proceeds
   

Shares
October 31,

2020

   

Value
October 31,

2020

    Change in
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)
    Dividend
Income
    Realized
Loss
 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

  $ 8,481,240     $ 745,976     $ 1,815,439       113,020     $ 6,119,717     $ (882,986   $ 237,262     $ (409,074

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    354,110       Morgan Stanley   AUD     500,000       11/24/2020     $ 2,945  

USD

    575,883       Morgan Stanley   CAD     760,000       11/24/2020       5,848  

USD

    361,185       Morgan Stanley   CHF     330,000       11/24/2020       918  

USD

    122,941       Morgan Stanley   DKK     780,000       11/24/2020       846  

USD

    1,618,461       Morgan Stanley   EUR     1,380,000       11/24/2020       10,224  

USD

    184,478       Morgan Stanley   HKD     1,430,000       11/24/2020       81  

USD

    76,986       Morgan Stanley   ILS     260,000       11/24/2020       650  

USD

    66,263       Morgan Stanley   NOK     620,000       11/24/2020       1,409  

USD

    244,338       Morgan Stanley   SEK     2,160,000       11/24/2020       1,617  

USD

    66,246         Morgan Stanley   SGD     90,000       11/24/2020       336  

Total unrealized appreciation

                      $ 24,874  

USD

    840,487       Morgan Stanley   GBP     650,000       11/24/2020     $ (73

USD

    1,859,461       Morgan Stanley   JPY     195,940,000       11/24/2020       (15,309

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      253  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts(cont.)

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    33,023         Morgan Stanley   NZD     50,000       11/24/2020     $ (22

Total unrealized depreciation

                      $ (15,404

Net unrealized appreciation

                      $ 9,470  

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

DKK – Danish Krone

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

ILS – Israeli Shekel

JPY – Japanese Yen

NOK – Norwegian Krone

NZD – New Zealand Dollar

SEK – Swedish Krona

SGD – Singapore Dollar

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

254    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS – 98.0%  

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund(a)
(Cost $3,834,940)

    69,705     $ 3,331,202  
Total Investments – 98.0%
(Cost $3,834,940)

 

    3,331,202  

Other assets less liabilities – 2.0%

 

    68,160  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 3,399,362  

 

(a)  

Investment in affiliated Fund. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. is the Investment Adviser to both the Fund and the affiliated Fund.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

        

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

   $ 12,940  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

     (526,613

Net unrealized depreciation

   $ (513,673

Federal income tax cost

   $ 3,850,234  

 

The FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund currently seeks its investment objective by investing a substantial portion of its assets in an affiliated FlexShares® Fund. The Schedule of Investments of the affiliated FlexShares® Fund is located elsewhere in this Report.

 

 

Investment in a company which was affiliated for the period ended October 31, 2020, was as follows:

 

Security  

Value
October 31,

2019

    Purchases at
Cost
   

Sales

Proceeds

   

Shares
October 31,

2020

   

Value
October 31,

2020

    Change in
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)
    Dividend
Income
    Realized
Loss
 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

  $ 5,409,036     $ 140,253     $ 2,146,129       69,705     $ 3,331,202     $ (53,855   $ 118,819     $ (18,103

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following open futures contract as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation*
 

Long Contracts

         

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    1       12/18/2020       USD     $ 55,095     $ 618  

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      255  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    168,225       Citibank NA   BRL*     950,000       11/25/2020     $ 3,645  

USD

    11,729       Morgan Stanley   EUR     10,000       11/25/2020       74  

USD

    959,798       Morgan Stanley   HKD     7,440,000       11/25/2020       417  

USD

    282,906       Citibank NA   INR*     20,830,000       11/25/2020       2,368  

USD

    68,191       Morgan Stanley   MXN     1,450,000       11/25/2020       215  

USD

    65,107       Goldman Sachs & Co.   MYR*     270,000       11/25/2020       185  

USD

    43,858       Morgan Stanley   PLN     170,000       11/25/2020       966  

USD

    114,519       Goldman Sachs & Co.   RUB*     8,970,000       11/25/2020       1,921  

USD

    34,956       Morgan Stanley   TRY     280,000       11/25/2020       1,921  

USD

    387,339         JPMorgan Chase Bank   TWD*     11,050,000       11/25/2020       998  

Total unrealized appreciation

                      $ 12,710  

USD

    26,415       Citibank NA   CLP*     21,030,000       11/25/2020     $ (749

USD

    56,576       Morgan Stanley   IDR*     836,800,000       11/25/2020       (524

USD

    549,642       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   KRW*     627,730,000       11/25/2020       (3,528

USD

    40,375       JPMorgan Chase Bank   PHP*     1,970,000       11/25/2020       (344

USD

    60,868       Citibank NA   THB     1,900,000       11/25/2020       (83

USD

    147,041         Morgan Stanley   ZAR     2,440,000       11/25/2020       (2,741

Total unrealized depreciation

                      $ (7,969

Net unrealized appreciation

                      $ 4,741  

 

*

Non-deliverable forward. See Note 2 in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Abbreviations:

 

BRL – Brazilian Real

CLP – Chilean Peso

EUR – Euro

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

IDR – Indonesian Rupiah

INR – Indian Rupee

KRW – Korean Won

MXN – Mexican Peso

MYR – Malaysian Ringgit

PHP – Philippine Peso

PLN – Polish Zloty

RUB – Russian Ruble

THB – Thai Baht

TRY – Turkish Lira

TWD – Taiwan Dollar

USD – US Dollar

ZAR – South African Rand

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

256    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.9%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.4%  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    729     $ 255,245  
Air Freight & Logistics – 1.1%  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.(a)

    4,293       379,630  

Expeditors International of Washington, Inc.

    4,698       415,162  
              794,792  
Automobiles – 0.3%  

Tesla, Inc.*(a)

    600       232,824  
Banks – 3.8%  

Bank of America Corp.

    14,661       347,466  

Citigroup, Inc.

    23,571       976,311  

Citizens Financial Group, Inc.

    15,552       423,792  

M&T Bank Corp.

    2,106       218,139  

Wells Fargo & Co.

    37,341       800,964  
              2,766,672  
Beverages – 0.6%  

Monster Beverage Corp.*

    5,508       421,748  
Biotechnology – 3.6%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    3,564       303,330  

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    891       102,590  

Amgen, Inc.

    5,184       1,124,617  

Biogen, Inc.*

    1,944       490,024  

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.*

    405       39,961  

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    201       109,256  

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    2,025       421,929  
              2,591,707  
Building Products – 1.0%  

Masco Corp.

    7,047       377,719  

Trane Technologies plc

    2,430       322,583  
              700,302  
Capital Markets – 2.0%  

Ameriprise Financial, Inc.

    324       52,109  

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (The)

    9,639       331,196  

Morgan Stanley

    22,684       1,092,235  
              1,475,540  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – 2.2%  

Celanese Corp.

    3,240     $ 367,772  

Dow, Inc.

    10,044       456,902  

Ecolab, Inc.

    486       89,225  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    1,010       694,860  
              1,608,759  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.1%  

Cintas Corp.

    243       76,436  

Rollins, Inc.

    324       18,743  
              95,179  
Communications Equipment – 1.5%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    29,322       1,052,660  
Consumer Finance – 1.8%  

American Express Co.

    1,863       169,980  

Capital One Financial Corp.

    5,994       438,042  

Discover Financial Services

    5,184       337,012  

Synchrony Financial

    13,608       340,472  
              1,285,506  
Distributors – 0.6%  

Pool Corp.

    1,215       425,043  
Diversified Financial Services – 1.7%  

Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., Class B*

    6,075       1,226,543  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.2%  

AT&T, Inc.

    14,418       389,575  

Liberty Global plc, Class C*

    567       10,580  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    7,776       443,154  
              843,309  
Electric Utilities – 2.2%  

Exelon Corp.

    12,231       487,895  

Pinnacle West Capital Corp.

    4,050       330,358  

Southern Co. (The)

    12,960       744,552  
              1,562,805  
Electrical Equipment – 0.8%  

Eaton Corp. plc

    2,673       277,431  

Emerson Electric Co.

    891       57,728  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    1,053       249,687  
              584,846  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      257  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.8%  

Baker Hughes Co.(a)

    24,462     $ 361,304  

Halliburton Co.

    5,994       72,287  

Schlumberger NV

    8,100       121,014  
              554,605  
Entertainment – 2.3%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

    9,558       723,827  

Electronic Arts, Inc.*

    2,268       271,775  

Spotify Technology SA*

    1,053       252,604  

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.*

    2,430       376,456  
              1,624,662  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 3.1%  

American Tower Corp.

    2,997       688,261  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    2,106       293,008  

Equity Residential

    6,156       289,209  

Essex Property Trust, Inc.

    81       16,572  

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc.

    162       18,894  

Prologis, Inc.

    4,131       409,795  

Public Storage

    2,106       482,421  
              2,198,160  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.3%  

Walmart, Inc.

    1,377       191,059  
Food Products – 0.8%  

Campbell Soup Co.

    2,673       124,749  

General Mills, Inc.

    2,106       124,507  

Kraft Heinz Co. (The)

    11,745       359,279  
              608,535  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 1.9%  

Dentsply Sirona, Inc.

    2,916       137,606  

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.*

    972       412,925  

Medtronic plc

    3,078       309,554  

Quidel Corp.*

    1,620       434,630  

ResMed, Inc.

    405       77,736  
              1,372,451  
Health Care Providers & Services – 4.2%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    2,997       287,922  

Anthem, Inc.

    1,053       287,258  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

Cardinal Health, Inc.

    7,290     $ 333,809  

Cigna Corp.

    1,782       297,541  

Henry Schein, Inc.*

    3,159       200,849  

Humana, Inc.

    1,620       646,834  

McKesson Corp.

    2,754       406,187  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    1,863       568,476  
              3,028,876  
Health Care Technology – 0.6%  

Cerner Corp.

    5,832       408,765  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.4%  

Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

    3,645       320,067  
Household Durables – 0.9%  

Lennar Corp., Class A

    3,807       267,366  

PulteGroup, Inc.

    8,829       359,870  
              627,236  
Household Products – 2.9%  

Colgate-Palmolive Co.

    7,614       600,669  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    10,854       1,488,083  
              2,088,752  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.4%
 

Vistra Corp.

    18,063       313,754  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.6%  

Honeywell International, Inc.

    2,835       467,633  
Insurance – 1.8%  

Allstate Corp. (The)

    4,293       381,004  

American International Group, Inc.

    5,994       188,751  

Aon plc, Class A(a)

    1,863       342,811  

Loews Corp.

    486       16,854  

MetLife, Inc.

    10,611       401,626  
              1,331,046  
Interactive Media & Services – 5.6%  

Alphabet, Inc., Class A*

    693       1,119,964  

Alphabet, Inc., Class C*

    692       1,121,739  

Facebook, Inc., Class A*

    6,804       1,790,201  
              4,031,904  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

258    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 5.1%  

Amazon.com, Inc.*

    772     $ 2,343,908  

Booking Holdings, Inc.*

    501       812,872  

eBay, Inc.

    8,748       416,667  

Etsy, Inc.*

    567       68,942  
              3,642,389  
IT Services – 3.7%  

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Class A

    2,997       214,046  

FleetCor Technologies, Inc.*(a)

    405       89,468  

GoDaddy, Inc., Class A*

    1,134       80,219  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    1,053       303,938  

VeriSign, Inc.*

    1,863       355,274  

Visa, Inc., Class A(a)

    8,829       1,604,318  
              2,647,263  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 1.0%  

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.*

    299       298,375  

Waters Corp.*

    1,782       397,065  
              695,440  
Machinery – 1.1%  

Dover Corp.

    324       35,870  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

    3,726       729,849  
              765,719  
Media – 2.1%  

Charter Communications, Inc., Class A*(a)

    1,782       1,076,007  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    5,346       225,815  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    5,184       244,685  
              1,546,507  
Multiline Retail – 1.1%  

Target Corp.

    5,103       776,779  
Multi-Utilities – 1.3%  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

    8,100       471,015  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    4,779       480,528  
              951,543  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 1.6%  

Chevron Corp.

    7,857     $ 546,062  

Concho Resources, Inc.

    324       13,449  

ConocoPhillips

    11,583       331,505  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

    20,169       240,011  
              1,131,027  
Pharmaceuticals – 4.6%  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    7,533       982,755  

Johnson & Johnson

    12,555       1,721,416  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    4,293       322,877  

Mylan NV*

    13,041       189,616  

Pfizer, Inc.

    1,701       60,351  
              3,277,015  
Professional Services – 0.2%  

TransUnion

    1,701       135,502  
Road & Rail – 0.4%  

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.

    1,377       262,139  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 4.8%  

Broadcom, Inc.

    1,215       424,800  

Intel Corp.

    15,714       695,816  

KLA Corp.

    486       95,830  

Lam Research Corp.

    1,782       609,587  

Qorvo, Inc.*

    243       30,948  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    2,106       259,796  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    8,991       1,300,009  
              3,416,786  
Software – 10.2%  

Adobe, Inc.*

    2,349       1,050,238  

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.*(a)

    3,240       367,934  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    2,916       330,295  

Fair Isaac Corp.*

    162       63,415  

Fortinet, Inc.*

    3,240       357,599  

Intuit, Inc.

    3,240       1,019,563  

Microsoft Corp.

    14,499       2,935,613  

Oracle Corp.

    21,789       1,222,581  

SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc.

    243       14,390  
              7,361,628  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      259  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Specialty Retail – 1.5%  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    1,620     $ 180,711  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    2,349       626,502  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    1,701       268,928  
              1,076,141  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 7.7%  

Apple, Inc.

    50,402       5,486,761  

NetApp, Inc.

    729       31,996  
              5,518,757  
Tobacco – 0.6%  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    6,561       465,962  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.4%  

United Rentals, Inc.*(a)

    567       101,090  

Watsco, Inc.

    81       18,155  

WW Grainger, Inc.

    523       183,061  
        302,306  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $65,852,244)

 

    71,063,888  
Total Investments – 98.9%
(Cost $65,852,244)

 

    71,063,888  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.1%

 

    778,552  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 71,842,440  
*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $4,003,994, collateralized in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050; a total value of $4,095,655.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

   $ 8,837,389  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

     (3,651,115

Net unrealized appreciation

   $ 5,186,274  

Federal income tax cost

   $ 65,864,632  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    4       12/18/2020       USD     $ 652,940     $ (12,982

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

260    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.0%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.0%(a)  

Teledyne Technologies, Inc.*

    135     $ 41,735  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.3%  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.

    360       31,835  

FedEx Corp.

    900       233,523  
              265,358  
Airlines – 0.0%(a)  

United Airlines Holdings, Inc.*

    855       28,950  
Auto Components – 0.0%(a)  

BorgWarner, Inc.

    585       20,463  
Automobiles – 2.2%  

General Motors Co.

    8,595       296,786  

Tesla, Inc.*(b)

    4,230       1,641,409  
              1,938,195  
Banks – 5.2%  

Bank of America Corp.

    52,425       1,242,473  

Citigroup, Inc.

    13,770       570,353  

Fifth Third Bancorp

    2,835       65,829  

Huntington Bancshares, Inc.

    3,105       32,416  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    21,240       2,082,370  

KeyCorp

    7,740       100,465  

PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    2,655       297,041  

US Bancorp

    7,065       275,182  
              4,666,129  
Beverages – 2.9%  

Brown-Forman Corp., Class B

    450       31,369  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    21,960       1,055,398  

Coca-Cola European Partners plc

    1,170       41,781  

Constellation Brands, Inc., Class A

    900       148,707  

PepsiCo, Inc.

    9,720       1,295,579  
              2,572,834  
Biotechnology – 2.2%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    8,010       681,651  

Amgen, Inc.

    2,790       605,263  

Biogen, Inc.*

    495       124,775  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Biotechnology – (continued)  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

    7,155     $ 416,063  

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*

    540       112,514  
              1,940,266  
Building Products – 0.5%  

Allegion plc

    315       31,027  

Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc.

    315       25,474  

Johnson Controls International plc

    3,465       146,258  

Lennox International, Inc.(b)

    225       61,124  

Trane Technologies plc

    1,035       137,396  
              401,279  
Capital Markets – 2.6%  

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (The)

    3,825       131,427  

BlackRock, Inc.

    1,035       620,182  

CME Group, Inc.

    675       101,736  

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

    2,250       425,340  

Morgan Stanley

    9,810       472,351  

S&P Global, Inc.

    1,350       435,686  

State Street Corp.

    2,430       143,127  
              2,329,849  
Chemicals – 1.5%  

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

    945       261,047  

Celanese Corp.

    810       91,943  

Eastman Chemical Co.

    945       76,394  

Ecolab, Inc.

    1,935       355,246  

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc.(b)

    450       46,197  

LyondellBasell Industries NV, Class A

    1,485       101,648  

PPG Industries, Inc.

    900       116,748  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    405       278,632  
              1,327,855  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.1%  

Cintas Corp.

    315       99,083  
Communications Equipment – 0.8%  

Arista Networks, Inc.*

    225       47,002  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    13,860       497,574  

Juniper Networks, Inc.

    3,060       60,343  

Motorola Solutions, Inc.

    630       99,578  
              704,497  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      261  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)              
Construction Materials – 0.0%(a)  

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.(b)

    90     $ 23,972  
Consumer Finance – 0.3%  

Capital One Financial Corp.

    3,285       240,068  

Synchrony Financial

    2,160       54,043  
              294,111  
Containers & Packaging – 0.5%  

Avery Dennison Corp.

    360       49,820  

Ball Corp.

    1,890       168,210  

International Paper Co.

    1,800       78,750  

Packaging Corp. of America

    675       77,281  

Westrock Co.

    1,260       47,313  
              421,374  
Distributors – 0.0%(a)  

Genuine Parts Co.

    180       16,277  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 2.5%  

AT&T, Inc.

    31,770       858,425  

CenturyLink, Inc.

    3,330       28,705  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    24,165       1,377,163  
              2,264,293  
Electric Utilities – 1.4%  

Alliant Energy Corp.

    1,935       106,967  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

    855       76,890  

Duke Energy Corp.(b)

    3,510       323,306  

Entergy Corp.

    900       91,098  

Eversource Energy

    2,070       180,649  

FirstEnergy Corp.

    360       10,699  

NextEra Energy, Inc.

    4,860       355,801  

PPL Corp.

    2,700       74,250  
              1,219,660  
Electrical Equipment – 0.7%  

Eaton Corp. plc

    2,115       219,516  

Emerson Electric Co.

    3,825       247,822  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    630       149,385  
              616,723  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.3%  

CDW Corp.

    540       66,204  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components –
(continued)
 

Keysight Technologies, Inc.*

    720     $ 75,507  

TE Connectivity Ltd.

    675       65,394  

Trimble, Inc.*

    1,440       69,307  
              276,412  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.3%  

Halliburton Co.

    6,525       78,692  

Schlumberger NV

    9,810       146,561  
              225,253  
Entertainment – 1.6%  

Spotify Technology SA*

    270       64,770  

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.*

    315       48,800  

Walt Disney Co. (The)

    10,530       1,276,763  
              1,390,333  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 1.4%  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    675       93,913  

Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

    540       77,922  

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc.

    810       47,944  

Essex Property Trust, Inc.

    135       27,620  

Healthpeak Properties, Inc.

    4,635       125,006  

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

    4,455       46,688  

Iron Mountain, Inc.(b)

    1,170       30,490  

Prologis, Inc.

    2,790       276,768  

Public Storage

    450       103,082  

Ventas, Inc.

    1,260       49,732  

Welltower, Inc.

    2,835       152,438  

Weyerhaeuser Co.

    4,050       110,524  

WP Carey, Inc.

    1,125       70,436  
              1,212,563  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.4%  

Costco Wholesale Corp.

    2,610       933,388  

Kroger Co. (The)

    3,375       108,709  

Sysco Corp.

    3,105       171,738  

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.

    1,755       59,740  
              1,273,575  
Food Products – 1.3%  

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.

    2,160       99,879  

Campbell Soup Co.

    360       16,801  

Conagra Brands, Inc.

    1,935       67,899  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

262    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)              
Food Products – (continued)  

General Mills, Inc.

    3,735     $ 220,813  

Hershey Co. (The)

    1,035       142,271  

J M Smucker Co. (The)

    495       55,539  

Kellogg Co.

    1,845       116,032  

McCormick & Co., Inc. (Non-Voting)(b)

    495       89,353  

Mondelez International, Inc., Class A

    4,635       246,211  

Tyson Foods, Inc., Class A

    1,260       72,110  
              1,126,908  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 4.1%  

Abbott Laboratories

    10,395       1,092,619  

ABIOMED, Inc.*

    180       45,339  

Align Technology, Inc.*

    225       95,868  

Baxter International, Inc.

    2,025       157,079  

Becton Dickinson and Co.

    1,755       405,633  

Boston Scientific Corp.*

    4,590       157,299  

Danaher Corp.(b)

    2,295       526,794  

Edwards Lifesciences Corp.*

    1,215       87,103  

Hologic, Inc.*

    1,665       114,585  

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.*

    180       76,468  

Intuitive Surgical, Inc.*

    270       180,112  

Medtronic plc

    3,330       334,898  

ResMed, Inc.

    630       120,922  

STERIS plc

    90       15,947  

Varian Medical Systems, Inc.*

    630       108,864  

Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.

    900       118,890  
              3,638,420  
Health Care Providers & Services – 3.0%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    900       86,463  

Anthem, Inc.

    1,665       454,212  

Cigna Corp.

    990       165,300  

CVS Health Corp.

    4,050       227,164  

Humana, Inc.

    315       125,773  

Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings*

    360       71,917  

McKesson Corp.

    585       86,282  

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

    990       120,919  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    4,320       1,318,205  
              2,656,235  
Health Care Technology – 0.3%  

Cerner Corp.

    360       25,232  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Technology – (continued)  

Veeva Systems, Inc., Class A*

    855     $ 230,893  
              256,125  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.9%  

Domino’s Pizza, Inc.

    45       17,025  

Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

    1,620       142,252  

Marriott International, Inc., Class A

    1,755       163,004  

McDonald’s Corp.

    1,800       383,400  

MGM Resorts International

    2,565       52,762  

Yum! Brands, Inc.

    900       83,997  
              842,440  
Household Durables – 0.2%  

Garmin Ltd.

    1,035       107,661  

Lennar Corp., Class A

    720       50,565  
              158,226  
Household Products – 3.3%  

Church & Dwight Co., Inc.

    495       43,753  

Clorox Co. (The)

    720       149,220  

Colgate-Palmolive Co.

    2,790       220,103  

Kimberly-Clark Corp.

    1,260       167,063  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    16,875       2,313,563  
              2,893,702  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.4%  

3M Co.

    3,915       626,244  

General Electric Co.

    56,205       417,041  

Roper Technologies, Inc.

    495       183,813  
              1,227,098  
Insurance – 1.6%  

Aflac, Inc.

    3,105       105,415  

Alleghany Corp.

    90       49,224  

Allstate Corp. (The)

    1,530       135,787  

Aon plc, Class A(b)

    1,035       190,450  

Arthur J Gallagher & Co.

    405       42,003  

Chubb Ltd.

    1,755       227,992  

Globe Life, Inc.

    990       80,279  

Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    1,755       67,603  

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

    2,115       82,950  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    3,105       285,350  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      263  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)              
Insurance – (continued)  

Travelers Cos., Inc. (The)

    1,530     $ 184,686  
              1,451,739  
Interactive Media & Services – 8.7%  

Alphabet, Inc., Class C*

    2,025       3,282,545  

Facebook, Inc., Class A*

    16,560       4,357,102  

Snap, Inc., Class A*

    3,645       143,576  
              7,783,223  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 5.0%  

Amazon.com, Inc.*

    1,440       4,372,056  

Etsy, Inc.*

    540       65,659  
              4,437,715  
IT Services – 3.8%  

Accenture plc, Class A(b)

    4,455       966,334  

Akamai Technologies, Inc.*

    675       64,206  

Amdocs Ltd.

    315       17,760  

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp.

    1,035       81,247  

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Class A

    2,475       176,765  

EPAM Systems, Inc.*

    135       41,708  

International Business Machines Corp.

    6,345       708,483  

Leidos Holdings, Inc.

    450       37,350  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    4,095       1,181,981  

Okta, Inc.*

    180       37,769  

Western Union Co. (The)(b)

    1,980       38,491  

Wix.com Ltd.*

    90       22,259  
              3,374,353  
Leisure Products – 0.0%(a)  

Hasbro, Inc.

    315       26,057  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.9%  

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

    1,665       169,980  

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., Class A*

    90       52,778  

Bio-Techne Corp.

    135       34,075  

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.*

    90       20,493  

Illumina, Inc.*

    1,035       302,944  

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.*

    180       179,624  

PerkinElmer, Inc.

    405       52,468  
              812,362  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – 1.6%  

Caterpillar, Inc.

    3,645     $ 572,447  

Cummins, Inc.

    765       168,216  

Deere & Co.

    630       142,323  

Dover Corp.

    720       79,711  

PACCAR, Inc.

    2,115       180,579  

Parker-Hannifin Corp.

    585       121,891  

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

    495       82,269  

Xylem, Inc.(b)

    360       31,370  
              1,378,806  
Media – 0.8%  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    15,120       638,669  

DISH Network Corp., Class A*

    765       19,500  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    1,935       91,332  
              749,501  
Metals & Mining – 0.5%  

Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.

    4,635       80,371  

Newmont Corp.

    5,220       328,025  

Nucor Corp.

    1,260       60,177  
              468,573  
Mortgage Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.0%(a)  

AGNC Investment Corp.

    1,845       25,775  
Multiline Retail – 0.5%  

Dollar General Corp.

    675       140,879  

Target Corp.

    1,890       287,696  
              428,575  
Multi-Utilities – 0.5%  

Ameren Corp.

    1,170       94,911  

CMS Energy Corp.

    1,125       71,246  

NiSource, Inc.

    1,890       43,413  

Sempra Energy

    1,215       152,313  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    675       67,871  
              429,754  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 2.5%  

Chevron Corp.

    12,510       869,445  

ConocoPhillips

    6,615       189,321  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    28,395       926,245  

Hess Corp.

    1,080       40,198  

Phillips 66

    1,935       90,287  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

264    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)              
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Valero Energy Corp.

    1,935     $ 74,710  
              2,190,206  
Personal Products – 0.3%  

Estee Lauder Cos., Inc. (The), Class A

    1,125       247,117  
Pharmaceuticals – 2.6%  

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

    13,050       762,772  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    4,725       616,424  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    11,880       893,495  

Mylan NV*

    1,575       22,900  
              2,295,591  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.1%  

CBRE Group, Inc., Class A*

    2,430       122,472  
Road & Rail – 0.2%  

Norfolk Southern Corp.

    675       141,156  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 6.4%  

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.*

    5,310       399,790  

Analog Devices, Inc.(b)

    1,350       160,015  

Broadcom, Inc.

    1,800       629,334  

Intel Corp.

    29,340       1,299,175  

Lam Research Corp.

    810       277,085  

Marvell Technology Group Ltd.

    1,935       72,582  

Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.

    1,080       75,222  

Micron Technology, Inc.*

    5,625       283,162  

NVIDIA Corp.

    2,160       1,082,938  

ON Semiconductor Corp.*

    1,845       46,291  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    3,825       471,852  

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

    585       82,655  

Teradyne, Inc.

    495       43,486  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    5,220       754,760  
              5,678,347  
Software – 9.6%  

Adobe, Inc.*

    2,700       1,207,170  

ANSYS, Inc.*

    405       123,270  

Autodesk, Inc.*

    1,575       370,975  

Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc., Class A*(b)

    585       72,446  

Fortinet, Inc.*

    90       9,933  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Software – (continued)  

Intuit, Inc.

    1,260     $ 396,497  

Microsoft Corp.

    21,780       4,409,797  

NortonLifeLock, Inc.

    2,745       56,465  

Oracle Corp.

    13,725       770,110  

salesforce.com, Inc.*

    4,050       940,693  

Splunk, Inc.*(b)

    720       142,589  

VMware, Inc., Class A*

    270       34,757  
              8,534,702  
Specialty Retail – 3.5%  

AutoZone, Inc.*

    45       50,804  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    1,575       175,691  

Burlington Stores, Inc.*

    360       69,689  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    7,335       1,956,318  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    3,600       569,160  

Tiffany & Co.

    270       35,327  

TJX Cos., Inc. (The)

    5,940       301,752  
              3,158,741  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 5.2%  

Apple, Inc.

    39,870       4,340,248  

Dell Technologies, Inc., Class C*

    450       27,117  

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

    5,985       51,711  

HP, Inc.

    9,945       178,612  

NetApp, Inc.

    1,125       49,376  

Western Digital Corp.

    360       13,583  
              4,660,647  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.3%  

Lululemon Athletica, Inc.*

    675       215,521  

VF Corp.

    585       39,312  
              254,833  
Tobacco – 0.8%  

Altria Group, Inc.

    8,730       314,978  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    5,355       380,312  
              695,290  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.2%  

Fastenal Co.

    2,880       124,502  

WW Grainger, Inc.

    180       63,004  
              187,506  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      265  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS –(continued)              
Water Utilities – 0.2%  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    1,215     $ 182,870  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $72,567,842)

 

    88,086,104  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 0.0%(a)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.0%(a)  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $41,799, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $42,531
(Cost $41,799)

  $ 41,799       41,799  
Total Investments – 99.0%
(Cost $72,609,641)

 

    88,127,903  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.0%

 

    923,668  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 89,051,571  
*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(b) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $3,686,774, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $41,799 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments and $3,824,090 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050; a total value of $3,865,889.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $41,799.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

   $ 18,341,120  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

     (2,837,761

Net unrealized appreciation

   $ 15,503,359  

Federal income tax cost

   $ 72,609,336  
 

 

Futures Contracts

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    5       12/18/2020       USD     $ 816,175     $ (15,208

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

266    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.8%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.1%  

Meggitt plc

    9,891     $ 34,953  

MTU Aero Engines AG

    210       35,849  

Saab AB, Class B*

    399       9,167  

Teledyne Technologies, Inc.*

    63       19,476  
              99,445  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.3%  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.

    357       31,570  

Deutsche Post AG (Registered)

    2,667       118,177  

FedEx Corp.

    567       147,119  
              296,866  
Airlines – 0.0%(a)  

Deutsche Lufthansa AG (Registered)*

    147       1,262  

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

    5,733       7,149  

Qantas Airways Ltd.

    3,307       9,731  

Singapore Airlines Ltd.

    6,300       15,640  

United Airlines Holdings, Inc.*

    63       2,133  
              35,915  
Auto Components – 0.4%  

Bridgestone Corp.

    10,500       340,492  

Cie Generale des Etablissements Michelin SCA

    777       83,847  

Continental AG

    189       20,096  

Nokian Renkaat OYJ

    63       1,936  

Valeo SA

    1,512       45,740  
              492,111  
Automobiles – 1.7%  

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG

    1,470       100,479  

Daimler AG (Registered)

    3,066       158,571  

Ferrari NV

    420       74,927  

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV*

    1,365       16,762  

Ford Motor Co.

    11,382       87,983  

General Motors Co.

    5,985       206,662  

Peugeot SA*

    3,318       59,637  

Renault SA*

    798       19,758  

Subaru Corp.

    6,300       114,833  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Automobiles – (continued)  

Tesla, Inc.*

    2,835     $ 1,100,093  
              1,939,705  
Banks – 6.0%  

ABN AMRO Bank NV, CVA(b)

    462       3,792  

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

    7,686       101,527  

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA

    11,928       34,208  

Banco de Sabadell SA

    79,569       24,284  

Banco Santander SA

    63,609       126,762  

Bank of America Corp.

    46,515       1,102,405  

Bank of Ireland Group plc*

    16,422       40,324  

Bank of Montreal

    1,533       91,209  

Bank of Nova Scotia (The)

    6,174       256,295  

Bank Polska Kasa Opieki SA*

    441       4,703  

Bankinter SA

    231       866  

Barclays plc

    98,385       135,557  

BAWAG Group AG(b)

    966       35,333  

BNP Paribas SA*

    4,242       147,522  

CaixaBank SA

    13,377       24,339  

Citigroup, Inc.

    11,613       481,010  

Commerzbank AG*

    4,473       21,076  

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

    8,652       419,356  

DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

    4,200       62,592  

DNB ASA

    1,743       23,468  

Erste Group Bank AG

    273       5,590  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.(c)

    2,100       32,279  

HSBC Holdings plc

    105,987       444,767  

Huntington Bancshares, Inc.

    2,583       26,967  

ING Groep NV

    15,099       103,048  

Intesa Sanpaolo SpA*

    95,487       157,899  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    12,138       1,190,010  

KBC Group NV

    525       25,887  

KeyCorp

    3,549       46,066  

Lloyds Banking Group plc

    207,039       75,023  

National Australia Bank Ltd.

    5,439       71,043  

Natwest Group plc

    15,099       24,248  

Nordea Bank Abp

    5,271       39,486  

PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    1,491       166,813  

Royal Bank of Canada

    4,011       280,245  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      267  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Class A*

    10,059     $ 86,225  

Societe Generale SA*

    1,869       25,341  

Standard Chartered plc

    5,271       23,977  

Svenska Handelsbanken AB, Class A*

    5,943       48,152  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

    4,956       218,483  

UniCredit SpA*

    7,413       55,273  

United Overseas Bank Ltd.

    2,100       29,205  

US Bancorp

    4,599       179,131  

Westpac Banking Corp.

    15,015       188,848  
              6,680,634  
Beverages – 2.2%  

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV

    3,675       190,753  

Carlsberg A/S, Class B

    252       31,897  

Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd.

    2,499       21,814  

Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan Holdings, Inc.

    2,100       29,590  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    11,151       535,917  

Coca-Cola European Partners plc

    798       28,496  

Coca-Cola HBC AG, DI

    189       4,289  

Constellation Brands, Inc., Class A

    609       100,625  

Diageo plc

    8,274       267,350  

Heineken Holding NV

    294       22,723  

Heineken NV

    1,071       95,064  

Kirin Holdings Co. Ltd.

    8,400       150,981  

PepsiCo, Inc.

    5,586       744,558  

Pernod Ricard SA

    987       159,119  

Remy Cointreau SA

    42       7,094  

Thai Beverage PCL

    4,200       1,784  

Treasury Wine Estates Ltd.

    336       2,164  
              2,394,218  
Biotechnology – 1.4%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    4,978       423,617  

Amgen, Inc.

    1,743       378,126  

Biogen, Inc.*

    462       116,456  

CSL Ltd.

    1,407       284,128  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

    4,935       286,970  

Grifols SA(c)

    1,050       28,364  
              1,517,661  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Building Products – 0.7%  

AGC, Inc.

    4,200     $ 130,371  

Assa Abloy AB, Class B

    4,200       90,123  

Carrier Global Corp.

    2,541       84,844  

Cie de Saint-Gobain*

    2,898       113,087  

Geberit AG (Registered)

    147       83,721  

Johnson Controls International plc

    1,995       84,209  

Lennox International, Inc.

    105       28,525  

LIXIL Group Corp.

    4,200       90,637  

Trane Technologies plc

    903       119,873  
              825,390  
Capital Markets – 2.5%  

3i Group plc

    3,003       37,314  

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (The)

    2,373       81,536  

BlackRock, Inc.

    693       415,253  

Brookfield Asset Management, Inc., Class A

    3,150       93,530  

Credit Suisse Group AG (Registered)

    11,529       108,479  

Deutsche Bank AG (Registered)*

    8,883       81,754  

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

    2,142       404,924  

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd.

    4,227       201,788  

Intermediate Capital Group plc

    2,793       42,289  

Julius Baer Group Ltd.

    588       26,264  

London Stock Exchange Group plc

    1,407       150,598  

Macquarie Group Ltd.

    1,953       173,837  

Morgan Stanley

    6,972       335,702  

Natixis SA*(c)

    84       195  

S&P Global, Inc.

    1,008       325,312  

Standard Life Aberdeen plc

    12,369       35,905  

State Street Corp.

    1,449       85,346  

UBS Group AG (Registered)

    19,110       221,947  
              2,821,973  
Chemicals – 1.7%  

Air Liquide SA

    1,246       182,151  

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

    441       121,822  

Air Water, Inc.

    4,200       59,862  

Akzo Nobel NV

    966       93,058  

Arkema SA

    525       51,419  

BASF SE

    2,058       112,839  

Celanese Corp.

    420       47,674  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

268    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Chr Hansen Holding A/S

    567     $ 57,113  

Clariant AG (Registered)

    903       15,488  

Croda International plc

    448       34,953  

Eastman Chemical Co.

    714       57,720  

Ecolab, Inc.

    1,071       196,625  

Evonik Industries AG

    1,533       36,911  

Givaudan SA (Registered)

    42       171,198  

Hexpol AB

    1,470       12,948  

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc.

    294       30,182  

Johnson Matthey plc

    126       3,501  

Koninklijke DSM NV

    924       147,940  

LyondellBasell Industries NV, Class A

    168       11,500  

Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.

    2,200       56,105  

Novozymes A/S, Class B

    777       46,694  

Orica Ltd.

    3,969       42,533  

PPG Industries, Inc.

    588       76,275  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    210       144,476  

Solvay SA

    63       5,115  

Symrise AG

    231       28,482  
              1,844,584  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.3%  

Brambles Ltd.

    5,250       35,357  

Cintas Corp.

    315       99,083  

Downer EDI Ltd.

    1,237       3,822  

Elis SA*

    168       1,840  

G4S plc*

    18,606       49,101  

ISS A/S*

    63       818  

Rentokil Initial plc

    9,744       66,271  

Securitas AB, Class B*

    2,079       29,418  

SPIE SA

    693       10,930  
              296,640  
Communications Equipment – 0.3%  

Arista Networks, Inc.*

    126       26,321  

Juniper Networks, Inc.

    1,344       26,504  

Motorola Solutions, Inc.

    420       66,385  

Nokia OYJ*

    15,939       53,843  

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Class B

    11,781       131,401  
              304,454  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Construction & Engineering – 0.3%  

Bouygues SA

    1,302     $ 42,693  

Eiffage SA*

    714       51,832  

Ferrovial SA

    1,178       25,488  

Shimizu Corp.

    10,500       72,719  

Skanska AB, Class B(c)

    2,310       43,417  

Vinci SA

    1,599       126,321  
              362,470  
Construction Materials – 0.3%  

Boral Ltd.

    14,133       45,258  

CRH plc

    2,919       102,924  

HeidelbergCement AG

    735       42,055  

LafargeHolcim Ltd. (Registered)*

    1,791       76,892  

Wienerberger AG

    399       10,067  
              277,196  
Consumer Finance – 0.2%  

Capital One Financial Corp.

    2,163       158,072  

Synchrony Financial

    1,596       39,932  
              198,004  
Containers & Packaging – 0.3%  

Ball Corp.

    1,470       130,830  

DS Smith plc

    567       2,076  

International Paper Co.

    819       35,831  

Orora Ltd.(c)

    4,267       7,731  

Packaging Corp. of America

    441       50,490  

Smurfit Kappa Group plc

    735       27,671  

Westrock Co.

    1,470       55,199  
              309,828  
Distributors – 0.0%(a)  

Genuine Parts Co.

    462       41,779  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.1%  

EXOR NV

    525       27,275  

Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA

    546       44,698  

Kinnevik AB, Class B

    966       39,628  

L E Lundbergforetagen AB, Class B*

    693       31,189  

Wendel SE

    42       3,640  
              146,430  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 2.0%  

AT&T, Inc.

    20,685       558,909  

BCE, Inc.

    1,743       69,989  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      269  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

BT Group plc

    24,927     $ 32,682  

Cellnex Telecom SA(b)

    1,764       113,260  

CenturyLink, Inc.

    3,381       29,144  

Deutsche Telekom AG (Registered)

    15,729       239,468  

Elisa OYJ

    567       27,898  

Koninklijke KPN NV

    19,341       52,268  

Orange SA

    4,641       52,060  

Proximus SADP

    84       1,634  

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd.

    16,800       24,976  

Spark New Zealand Ltd.

    10,234       30,369  

Swisscom AG (Registered)(c)

    126       64,103  

Telecom Italia SpA

    6,132       2,081  

Telefonica SA

    819       2,677  

Telenor ASA

    3,381       52,065  

Telia Co. AB(c)

    2,877       11,028  

Telstra Corp. Ltd.

    37,485       70,548  

TELUS Corp.

    2,611       44,608  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    12,537       714,484  
              2,194,251  
Electric Utilities – 1.3%  

Alliant Energy Corp.

    567       31,344  

CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd.

    4,500       21,180  

CLP Holdings Ltd.

    5,000       45,971  

Duke Energy Corp.

    2,457       226,314  

EDP – Energias de Portugal SA

    7,014       34,577  

Electricite de France SA

    4,746       55,107  

Endesa SA

    546       14,635  

Enel SpA

    18,501       147,279  

Entergy Corp.

    651       65,894  

Eversource Energy

    1,596       139,283  

Fortum OYJ

    1,890       35,555  

Iberdrola SA

    28,643       337,819  

Orsted A/S(b)

    861       136,665  

PPL Corp.

    1,365       37,537  

Red Electrica Corp. SA

    819       14,429  

SSE plc

    5,267       85,468  

Terna Rete Elettrica Nazionale SpA

    7,203       48,698  
              1,477,755  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Electrical Equipment – 1.5%  

ABB Ltd. (Registered)(c)

    8,568     $ 207,995  

Eaton Corp. plc

    1,659       172,188  

Legrand SA

    1,134       83,853  

Nidec Corp.

    8,400       843,696  

Prysmian SpA

    1,323       35,969  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    168       39,836  

Schneider Electric SE

    1,743       211,561  

Signify NV*(b)

    231       8,231  

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

    693       118,293  
              1,721,622  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.7%  

Alps Alpine Co. Ltd.

    2,100       29,991  

Azbil Corp.

    1,300       52,540  

CDW Corp.

    84       10,298  

Halma plc

    1,344       41,151  

Hexagon AB, Class B

    1,113       81,326  

Hitachi Ltd.

    9,500       318,242  

Keysight Technologies, Inc.*

    798       83,686  

TE Connectivity Ltd.

    1,218       118,000  

Trimble, Inc.*

    861       41,440  
              776,674  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.1%  

Halliburton Co.

    4,032       48,626  

Schlumberger NV

    6,783       101,338  

Worley Ltd.

    252       1,665  
              151,629  
Entertainment – 1.0%  

Square Enix Holdings Co. Ltd.

    800       46,834  

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.*

    126       19,520  

Ubisoft Entertainment SA*

    462       40,760  

Vivendi SA

    3,276       94,600  

Walt Disney Co. (The)

    7,245       878,456  
              1,080,170  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 1.3%  

Activia Properties, Inc.(c)

    14       50,488  

Advance Residence Investment Corp.

    21       61,268  

alstria office REIT-AG

    2,415       30,747  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    399       55,513  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

270    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

British Land Co. plc (The)

    9,975     $ 44,961  

Cofinimmo SA

    86       11,681  

Covivio

    165       9,821  

Derwent London plc

    1,176       40,417  

Dexus

    8,127       49,139  

Gecina SA

    336       41,722  

GLP J-REIT

    42       64,683  

GPT Group (The)

    630       1,783  

Healthpeak Properties, Inc.

    1,743       47,009  

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

    567       5,942  

Iron Mountain, Inc.

    1,743       45,423  

Japan Logistics Fund, Inc.

    21       58,878  

Klepierre SA(c)

    42       532  

Land Securities Group plc

    630       4,149  

Link REIT

    8,400       63,963  

Merlin Properties Socimi SA

    4,221       28,395  

Mirvac Group

    12,285       18,203  

Nippon Accommodations Fund, Inc.

    9       51,483  

Nippon Prologis REIT, Inc.

    21       69,103  

Orix JREIT, Inc.

    42       58,858  

Prologis, Inc.

    1,701       168,739  

Scentre Group

    27,825       41,034  

Segro plc

    1,869       21,798  

Sekisui House Reit, Inc.(c)

    63       43,993  

Stockland

    14,007       37,870  

Suntec REIT

    8,400       8,243  

Welltower, Inc.

    2,478       133,242  

Weyerhaeuser Co.

    2,457       67,051  

WP Carey, Inc.

    693       43,389  
              1,479,520  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.3%  

Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc., Class B

    2,121       65,268  

Carrefour SA

    903       14,053  

Coles Group Ltd.

    5,670       70,676  

Costco Wholesale Corp.

    2,079       743,492  

Etablissements Franz Colruyt NV

    105       6,216  

J Sainsbury plc(c)

    1,722       4,489  

Jeronimo Martins SGPS SA

    903       14,347  

Kesko OYJ, Class B

    924       23,744  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food & Staples Retailing – (continued)  

Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV

    4,683     $ 128,683  

Lawson, Inc.

    800       36,771  

Loblaw Cos. Ltd.

    861       42,825  

Sysco Corp.

    2,436       134,735  

Woolworths Group Ltd.

    5,103       136,749  
              1,422,048  
Food Products – 1.7%  

AAK AB

    504       9,818  

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.

    1,638       75,741  

Associated British Foods plc

    210       4,609  

Danone SA

    2,373       131,023  

General Mills, Inc.

    2,121       125,393  

Hershey Co. (The)

    567       77,940  

Kellogg Co.

    567       35,659  

Kerry Group plc, Class A

    399       47,732  

McCormick & Co., Inc. (Non-Voting)

    252       45,489  

Mowi ASA

    1,869       29,456  

Nestle SA (Registered)

    11,319       1,273,241  

Orkla ASA

    4,956       46,704  

Vitasoy International Holdings Ltd.

    2,000       8,072  
              1,910,877  
Gas Utilities – 0.1%  

Enagas SA

    714       15,412  

Italgas SpA

    441       2,549  

Rubis SCA

    84       2,757  

Snam SpA

    9,555       46,635  
              67,353  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 3.2%  

Abbott Laboratories

    7,119       748,278  

ABIOMED, Inc.*

    126       31,737  

Alcon, Inc.*

    2,394       136,084  

Align Technology, Inc.*

    126       53,686  

Ansell Ltd.

    1,407       39,710  

Baxter International, Inc.

    1,323       102,625  

Becton Dickinson and Co.

    1,155       266,955  

BioMerieux

    189       28,136  

Boston Scientific Corp.*

    3,423       117,306  

Cochlear Ltd.

    273       40,678  

Coloplast A/S, Class B

    357       52,102  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      271  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – (continued)  

Danaher Corp.

    1,911     $ 438,651  

DiaSorin SpA

    105       23,055  

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd.

    2,331       53,920  

Getinge AB, Class B

    651       12,751  

Hologic, Inc.*

    1,428       98,275  

Hoya Corp.

    5,600       632,103  

Koninklijke Philips NV*

    4,027       187,048  

ResMed, Inc.

    399       76,584  

Sartorius AG (Preference)

    210       88,894  

Smith & Nephew plc

    2,079       35,927  

Sonova Holding AG (Registered)*

    317       75,225  

STERIS plc

    189       33,489  

Straumann Holding AG (Registered)

    63       65,712  

Varian Medical Systems, Inc.*

    273       47,175  

Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.

    672       88,771  
              3,574,877  
Health Care Providers & Services – 1.6%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    588       56,489  

Anthem, Inc.

    1,176       320,813  

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA

    819       62,564  

Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA

    1,764       65,425  

Humana, Inc.

    294       117,388  

Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings*

    357       71,318  

Orpea*

    147       14,682  

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

    798       97,468  

Ramsay Health Care Ltd.

    315       13,792  

Sonic Healthcare Ltd.

    2,751       67,268  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    2,751       839,440  
              1,726,647  
Health Care Technology – 0.1%  

Veeva Systems, Inc., Class A*

    315       85,066  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.1%  

Accor SA*

    168       4,278  

Aristocrat Leisure Ltd.

    4,284       86,132  

Carnival plc

    168       1,843  

Compass Group plc

    10,143       138,362  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd.

    315     $ 18,743  

DraftKings, Inc., Class A*

    588       20,815  

Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd.

    6,000       39,536  

Genting Singapore Ltd.

    14,700       6,944  

Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

    1,155       101,421  

InterContinental Hotels Group plc

    636       32,203  

Marriott International, Inc., Class A

    1,554       144,335  

McDonald’s Corp.

    2,289       487,557  

MGM Resorts International

    882       18,143  

Restaurant Brands International, Inc.

    420       21,807  

Sands China Ltd.

    8,400       29,409  

Sodexo SA

    42       2,696  

Star Entertainment Grp Ltd. (The)

    15,036       34,634  

Whitbread plc

    126       3,498  

Yum! Brands, Inc.

    861       80,357  
              1,272,713  
Household Durables – 1.2%  

Barratt Developments plc

    945       5,896  

Berkeley Group Holdings plc

    609       31,946  

Garmin Ltd.

    525       54,611  

Husqvarna AB, Class B

    2,373       24,527  

Lennar Corp., Class A

    861       60,468  

Persimmon plc

    1,386       41,863  

SEB SA

    126       20,489  

Sony Corp.

    13,400       1,111,839  

Taylor Wimpey plc

    504       689  
              1,352,328  
Household Products – 2.5%  

Clorox Co. (The)

    357       73,988  

Essity AB, Class B(c)

    2,541       73,623  

Henkel AG & Co. KGaA (Preference)

    504       49,033  

Kimberly-Clark Corp.

    1,008       133,651  

Pigeon Corp.

    1,000       45,963  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    14,322       1,963,546  

Reckitt Benckiser Group plc

    2,688       236,340  

Unicharm Corp.

    4,200       194,452  
              2,770,596  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

272    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.3%  

3M Co.

    3,276     $ 524,029  

CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd.

    10,500       63,231  

General Electric Co.

    47,313       351,063  

Rheinmetall AG

    168       12,270  

Roper Technologies, Inc.

    462       171,559  

Siemens AG (Registered)

    2,205       258,647  

Smiths Group plc

    1,659       28,519  
              1,409,318  
Insurance – 2.4%  

Admiral Group plc

    609       21,655  

Aegon NV

    14,049       37,885  

Aflac, Inc.

    1,890       64,165  

AIA Group Ltd.

    25,200       237,382  

Alleghany Corp.

    63       34,457  

Allstate Corp. (The)

    651       57,776  

Aon plc, Class A

    672       123,655  

ASR Nederland NV

    1,029       31,284  

Assicurazioni Generali SpA

    4,704       63,069  

Aviva plc

    8,967       29,855  

AXA SA

    7,413       119,163  

Chubb Ltd.

    1,092       141,862  

CNP Assurances*

    126       1,419  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

    693       2,361  

Globe Life, Inc.

    483       39,166  

Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    1,218       46,917  

Insurance Australia Group Ltd.

    2,877       9,637  

Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd.

    33,600       229,775  

Japan Post Insurance Co. Ltd.

    4,200       66,290  

Legal & General Group plc

    18,396       43,957  

Medibank Pvt Ltd.

    9,261       17,364  

Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG in Muenchen (Registered)

    462       108,063  

Phoenix Group Holdings plc

    2,457       21,044  

Poste Italiane SpA(b)

    2,646       21,575  

Power Corp. of Canada

    2,184       41,556  

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

    441       17,296  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    1,575       144,742  

Prudential plc

    12,180       148,479  

QBE Insurance Group Ltd.

    9,534       55,236  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Insurance – (continued)  

RSA Insurance Group plc

    4,158     $ 22,774  

Sampo OYJ, Class A

    1,848       69,746  

Sompo Holdings, Inc.

    4,200       156,325  

Storebrand ASA*

    693       3,632  

Suncorp Group Ltd.

    21       121  

Swiss Life Holding AG (Registered)*

    126       42,369  

Swiss Re AG

    777       55,731  

Travelers Cos., Inc. (The)

    987       119,141  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

    777       257,714  
              2,704,638  
Interactive Media & Services – 5.2%  

Alphabet, Inc., Class C*

    1,449       2,348,844  

Facebook, Inc., Class A*

    11,655       3,066,547  

Match Group, Inc.*

    504       58,857  

Rightmove plc

    3,843       30,708  

SEEK Ltd.(c)(d)

    777       11,737  

Snap, Inc., Class A*

    3,423       134,832  

Z Holdings Corp.

    27,300       189,356  
              5,840,881  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 5.2%  

Amazon.com, Inc.*

    1,806       5,483,287  

Delivery Hero SE*(b)

    756       86,989  

Etsy, Inc.*

    336       40,854  

Prosus NV*

    945       94,425  

Zalando SE*(b)

    1,092       101,990  
              5,807,545  
IT Services – 3.3%  

Accenture plc, Class A

    3,822       829,030  

Akamai Technologies, Inc.*

    504       47,941  

Alten SA*

    63       5,038  

Amadeus IT Group SA

    1,407       67,180  

Amdocs Ltd.

    399       22,496  

Atos SE*

    742       50,649  

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp.

    567       44,510  

Capgemini SE

    546       63,054  

CGI, Inc.*

    672       41,665  

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Class A

    2,478       176,979  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      273  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – (continued)  

Computershare Ltd.

    756     $ 6,450  

Edenred

    1,157       53,963  

EPAM Systems, Inc.*

    168       51,904  

Fujitsu Ltd.

    3,200       374,211  

International Business Machines Corp.

    5,355       597,939  

Itochu Techno-Solutions Corp.

    2,100       71,413  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    2,646       763,741  

NEC Corp.

    2,900       145,638  

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

    4,200       124,345  

Okta, Inc.*

    147       30,845  

SCSK Corp.

    700       34,752  

Sopra Steria Group*

    42       4,990  

Western Union Co. (The)

    273       5,307  

Worldline SA*(b)

    1,100       81,544  
              3,695,584  
Leisure Products – 0.2%  

Hasbro, Inc.

    357       29,531  

Peloton Interactive, Inc., Class A*

    462       50,917  

Yamaha Corp.(c)

    3,000       141,190  
              221,638  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.6%  

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

    756       77,180  

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., Class A*

    42       24,630  

Bio-Techne Corp.

    84       21,202  

Eurofins Scientific SE*(c)

    42       33,454  

Illumina, Inc.*

    819       239,721  

Lonza Group AG (Registered)

    210       127,208  

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.*

    105       104,781  

PerkinElmer, Inc.

    252       32,647  

Sartorius Stedim Biotech

    147       55,753  
              716,576  
Machinery – 2.2%  

Alfa Laval AB*

    1,449       29,383  

Alstom SA*(c)

    630       28,239  

Atlas Copco AB, Class A

    2,478       109,380  

Caterpillar, Inc.

    2,751       432,044  

CNH Industrial NV*

    1,323       10,264  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

Cummins, Inc.

    336     $ 73,883  

Deere & Co.

    546       123,347  

Dover Corp.

    441       48,823  

Ebara Corp.

    2,100       58,034  

Epiroc AB, Class A

    3,150       47,067  

GEA Group AG

    546       18,171  

Georg Fischer AG (Registered)

    21       21,194  

IMI plc

    1,134       15,161  

KION Group AG

    273       21,255  

Komatsu Ltd.

    14,700       329,182  

Kone OYJ, Class B

    1,575       125,379  

Kurita Water Industries Ltd.

    1,500       44,481  

Metso Outotec OYJ

    6,678       47,023  

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

    4,200       89,773  

Nabtesco Corp.

    2,100       78,142  

Otis Worldwide Corp.

    1,281       78,500  

PACCAR, Inc.

    1,449       123,716  

Parker-Hannifin Corp.

    357       74,384  

Rotork plc

    4,452       16,176  

Sandvik AB*

    2,961       52,726  

Schindler Holding AG

    210       53,729  

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

    273       45,373  

Techtronic Industries Co. Ltd.

    4,500       60,001  

Trelleborg AB, Class B*

    2,331       38,731  

Valmet OYJ

    336       8,016  

Volvo AB, Class B*

    5,376       104,577  

Wartsila OYJ Abp

    3,024       24,030  

Xylem, Inc.

    294       25,619  
              2,455,803  
Marine – 0.1%  

AP Moller – Maersk A/S, Class B(c)

    21       33,546  

Kuehne + Nagel International AG (Registered)

    189       37,757  

Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd.

    2,100       46,986  
              118,289  
Media – 0.2%  

Informa plc

    651       3,518  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    1,533       72,358  

Pearson plc(c)

    7,602       50,130  

Publicis Groupe SA

    1,365       47,383  

SES SA, FDR

    231       1,844  

WPP plc

    798       6,362  
              181,595  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

274    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – 1.4%  

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.

    509     $ 40,263  

Alumina Ltd.

    10,038       10,115  

Anglo American plc(c)

    3,003       70,327  

ArcelorMittal SA*(c)

    693       9,406  

BHP Group Ltd.(c)

    9,933       235,631  

BHP Group plc

    9,429       181,681  

BlueScope Steel Ltd.

    2,667       27,457  

Boliden AB

    1,008       27,541  

Evraz plc

    1,050       4,881  

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

    8,715       106,306  

Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.

    4,641       80,475  

Glencore plc*(c)

    30,114       60,703  

Newcrest Mining Ltd.

    3,570       73,306  

Newmont Corp.

    2,814       176,791  

Norsk Hydro ASA*

    294       822  

Northern Star Resources Ltd.

    1,890       19,710  

Nucor Corp.

    483       23,068  

OZ Minerals Ltd.

    3,045       31,776  

Polymetal International plc

    2,121       44,962  

Rio Tinto Ltd.

    1,281       83,148  

Rio Tinto plc

    3,843       216,499  

South32 Ltd.

    4,431       6,317  
              1,531,185  
Multiline Retail – 0.5%  

Dollar General Corp.

    609       127,105  

Marks & Spencer Group plc

    1,680       1,936  

Marui Group Co. Ltd.

    4,200       75,290  

Next plc

    546       41,229  

Target Corp.

    1,638       249,336  

Wesfarmers Ltd.

    3,360       108,445  
              603,341  
Multi-Utilities – 0.5%  

A2A SpA

    11,550       14,685  

AGL Energy Ltd.

    210       1,840  

CMS Energy Corp.

    462       29,259  

E.ON SE

    3,402       35,475  

Engie SA*

    7,812       94,502  

National Grid plc

    17,283       205,368  

NiSource, Inc.

    945       21,707  

RWE AG

    1,449       53,657  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Multi-Utilities – (continued)  

Sempra Energy

    357     $ 44,754  

Veolia Environnement SA

    2,520       46,937  
              548,184  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 2.3%  

Aker BP ASA

    1,974       30,625  

Ampol Ltd.

    966       17,597  

BP plc

    105,462       268,088  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

    1,260       20,034  

Chevron Corp.

    8,778       610,071  

ConocoPhillips

    4,935       141,240  

Eni SpA

    6,657       46,612  

Equinor ASA

    3,003       38,092  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    15,939       519,930  

Galp Energia SGPS SA

    42       340  

Koninklijke Vopak NV

    399       20,743  

Lundin Energy AB

    1,596       30,455  

Neste OYJ

    1,638       85,251  

OMV AG

    147       3,373  

Origin Energy Ltd.

    63       177  

Repsol SA

    3,234       20,116  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A(c)

    21,609       273,964  

Suncor Energy, Inc.

    6,594       74,330  

TOTAL SE

    11,886       357,488  

Woodside Petroleum Ltd.

    945       11,627  
              2,570,153  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.2%  

Mondi plc

    1,659       31,383  

Stora Enso OYJ, Class R

    3,948       57,600  

Svenska Cellulosa AB SCA, Class B*

    3,171       43,017  

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

    1,281       36,200  
              168,200  
Personal Products – 1.7%  

Beiersdorf AG

    357       37,385  

Estee Lauder Cos., Inc. (The), Class A

    861       189,127  

Kose Corp.

    700       88,923  

L’Oreal SA

    1,092       353,239  

Pola Orbis Holdings, Inc.

    2,100       41,341  

Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    1,000       31,184  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      275  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Personal Products – (continued)  

Shiseido Co. Ltd.

    8,400     $ 518,270  

Unilever NV

    5,649       319,471  

Unilever plc

    6,027       343,200  
              1,922,140  
Pharmaceuticals – 6.4%  

Astellas Pharma, Inc.

    27,300       374,742  

AstraZeneca plc

    6,552       657,915  

Bayer AG (Registered)

    2,604       122,423  

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

    7,056       412,423  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    3,192       416,428  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

    25,494       425,826  

Hikma Pharmaceuticals plc

    273       8,860  

Ipsen SA

    105       9,558  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    7,140       536,999  

Merck KGaA

    525       77,758  

Mylan NV*

    147       2,137  

Novartis AG (Registered)

    10,038       782,954  

Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B

    8,085       519,334  

Otsuka Holdings Co. Ltd.

    8,400       309,757  

Roche Holding AG

    2,835       911,697  

Sanofi

    5,019       452,335  

Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    4,200       74,607  

Shionogi & Co. Ltd.

    3,300       155,435  

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    25,200       780,781  

UCB SA

    378       37,295  
              7,069,264  
Professional Services – 0.4%  

Adecco Group AG (Registered)

    567       27,838  

Bureau Veritas SA*

    1,491       32,739  

Intertek Group plc

    1,092       78,674  

RELX plc

    9,135       180,422  

SGS SA (Registered)

    21       52,491  

Wolters Kluwer NV

    1,155       93,613  
              465,777  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.4%  

Aroundtown SA*

    4,998       23,969  

CapitaLand Ltd.(c)

    2,100       3,952  

Castellum AB

    1,176       24,494  

CBRE Group, Inc., Class A*

    462       23,285  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

CK Asset Holdings Ltd.

    10,500     $ 48,608  

Entra ASA(b)

    2,562       33,396  

Hulic Co. Ltd.

    8,400       77,620  

IWG plc*

    9,009       29,518  

Lendlease Corp. Ltd.

    5,670       47,622  

New World Development Co. Ltd.

    5,000       23,791  

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

    3,000       38,357  

Vonovia SE

    1,533       97,893  
              472,505  
Road & Rail – 0.5%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.

    8,022       21,238  

Canadian National Railway Co.

    2,562       254,308  

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.

    378       112,871  

MTR Corp. Ltd.

    8,549       42,278  

Nippon Express Co. Ltd.

    1,400       78,343  

Sotetsu Holdings, Inc.

    2,100       51,646  
              560,684  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 5.6%  

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.*

    4,473       336,772  

ams AG*

    849       18,202  

Analog Devices, Inc.

    1,197       141,880  

ASM International NV

    441       63,082  

ASML Holding NV

    1,659       602,936  

Broadcom, Inc.

    1,638       572,694  

Infineon Technologies AG

    3,864       107,573  

Intel Corp.

    25,137       1,113,066  

Lam Research Corp.

    735       251,429  

Marvell Technology Group Ltd.

    1,932       72,469  

Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.

    483       33,641  

Micron Technology, Inc.*

    4,830       243,142  

NVIDIA Corp.

    1,848       926,513  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    3,360       414,490  

Renesas Electronics Corp.*

    12,600       103,775  

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

    567       80,112  

STMicroelectronics NV

    2,562       78,100  

SUMCO Corp.

    4,200       63,679  

Teradyne, Inc.

    882       77,484  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    3,591       519,223  

Tokyo Electron Ltd.

    1,700       453,702  
              6,273,964  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

276    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Software – 8.7%  

Adobe, Inc.*

    1,911     $ 854,408  

ANSYS, Inc.*

    315       95,877  

Autodesk, Inc.*

    1,176       276,995  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    357       40,437  

Coupa Software, Inc.*

    126       33,730  

Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc., Class A*

    399       49,412  

Dassault Systemes SE

    548       93,548  

Datadog, Inc., Class A*

    294       26,681  

Fortinet, Inc.*

    210       23,178  

Intuit, Inc.

    945       297,373  

Microsoft Corp.

    27,867       5,642,231  

NortonLifeLock, Inc.

    2,520       51,836  

Oracle Corp.

    11,067       620,969  

Sage Group plc (The)

    4,326       35,552  

salesforce.com, Inc.*

    3,444       799,938  

SAP SE

    5,166       550,552  

SimCorp A/S

    357       42,562  

Splunk, Inc.*

    525       103,971  

VMware, Inc., Class A*

    189       24,330  
              9,663,580  
Specialty Retail – 2.2%  

AutoZone, Inc.*

    42       47,417  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    1,134       126,498  

Burlington Stores, Inc.*

    357       69,108  

Hennes & Mauritz AB, Class B(c)

    2,772       45,031  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    5,250       1,400,228  

Industria de Diseno Textil SA(c)

    2,562       63,238  

Kingfisher plc*

    7,812       29,000  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    2,352       371,851  

Tiffany & Co.

    399       52,205  

TJX Cos., Inc. (The)

    3,948       200,559  
              2,405,135  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 5.2%  

Apple, Inc.

    50,505       5,497,974  

Dell Technologies, Inc., Class C*

    525       31,637  

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

    3,507       30,300  

HP, Inc.

    9,681       173,871  

Logitech International SA (Registered)

    210       17,688  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

NetApp, Inc.

    504     $ 22,121  

Western Digital Corp.

    210       7,923  
              5,781,514  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 1.7%  

adidas AG*

    924       274,462  

Asics Corp.

    4,200       52,229  

Burberry Group plc

    735       12,887  

Cie Financiere Richemont SA (Registered)

    2,415       151,506  

EssilorLuxottica SA – IM*

    282       34,737  

EssilorLuxottica SA – MO*

    957       118,388  

Hermes International

    126       117,270  

Kering SA

    315       190,252  

Lululemon Athletica, Inc.*

    420       134,102  

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

    1,155       541,255  

Moncler SpA*

    1,176       47,068  

Pandora A/S

    441       34,927  

Shenzhou International Group Holdings Ltd.

    2,100       36,260  

Swatch Group AG (The)(c)

    210       44,438  

VF Corp.

    1,008       67,737  
              1,857,518  
Tobacco – 0.1%  

Altria Group, Inc.

    3,003       108,348  

Imperial Brands plc

    3,507       55,503  
              163,851  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.3%  

Brenntag AG

    462       29,534  

Bunzl plc

    1,071       33,235  

Electrocomponents plc

    21       185  

Fastenal Co.

    1,428       61,732  

Ferguson plc

    315       31,451  

Rexel SA*

    189       1,988  

Sojitz Corp.

    25,200       55,202  

Toyota Tsusho Corp.

    2,100       58,235  

WW Grainger, Inc.

    189       66,154  
              337,716  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      277  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.2%  

Aena SME SA*(b)

    231     $ 31,106  

Aeroports de Paris

    42       4,105  

Auckland International Airport Ltd.(c)

    5,581       25,819  

Flughafen Zurich AG (Registered)*(c)

    105       14,160  

Getlink SE*

    2,121       28,511  

Transurban Group

    10,836       102,425  
              206,126  
Water Utilities – 0.2%  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    777       116,946  

Pennon Group plc

    3,675       47,166  

Severn Trent plc

    1,428       44,868  
              208,980  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 0.1%  

Vodafone Group plc(c)

    88,893       118,387  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $93,167,922)

 

    110,029,500  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(e) – 0.2%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.2%  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $100,001, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $101,420

  $ 100,000       100,000  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $104,572, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $106,403

  $ 104,571     $ 104,571  
        204,571  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $204,571)

 

    204,571  
Total Investments – 99.0%
(Cost $93,372,493)

 

    110,234,071  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.0%

 

    1,089,221  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 111,323,292  

 

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $1,303,262, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $204,571 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $493,977 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.88%, and maturity dates ranging from January 7, 2021 – November 15, 2048 and $689,782 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $1,388,330.

 

(d) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $11,737, which represents approximately 0.01% of net assets of the Fund.

 

(e) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $204,571.

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

278    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

CVA – Dutch Certification

DI – Depositary Interest

FDR – Fiduciary Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation

preference.

SCA – Limited partnership with share capital

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 22,429,194  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (5,604,586

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 16,824,608  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 93,371,655  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    2       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 68,936     $ (5,568

MSCI EAFE E-Mini Index

    4       12/18/2020       USD       356,780       (20,164

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    5       12/18/2020       USD       816,175       (15,207
                                    $ (40,939

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    43,750       Citibank NA   AUD     60,000       12/16/2020     $ 1,605  

USD

    118,764         Citibank NA   EUR     100,000       12/16/2020       2,156  

Total unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 3,761  

USD

    64,042         Bank of New York   GBP     50,000       12/16/2020     $ (630

Total unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (630

Net unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 3,131  

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      279  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    2.8

Austria

     0.0   

Belgium

    0.3  

Canada

    1.6  

Denmark

    1.0  

Finland

    0.5  

France

    4.5  

Germany

    3.0  

Hong Kong

    0.9  

Ireland

    0.2  

Italy

    0.8  

Japan

    9.4  

Luxembourg

     0.0   

Netherlands

    1.9  

New Zealand

    0.1  

Norway

    0.2  

Poland

     0.0   

Portugal

     0.0   

Singapore

    0.1  

Spain

    0.9  

Sweden

    1.2  

Switzerland

    4.6  

United Kingdom

    5.6  

United States

    59.2  

Other1

    1.2  
      100.0

 

 

Amount represents less than 0.05%.

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

280    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.1%  
Building Products – 0.2%  

UFP Industries, Inc.

    105,120     $ 5,246,539  
Chemicals – 14.9%  

CF Industries Holdings, Inc.

    967,980       26,725,928  

Corteva, Inc.

    3,339,750       110,144,955  

FMC Corp.

    575,970       59,175,158  

ICL Group Ltd.

    3,184,260       11,609,379  

K+S AG (Registered)

    891,330       5,972,105  

Mosaic Co. (The)

    1,587,750       29,373,375  

Nutrien Ltd.(a)

    2,498,790       101,499,581  

Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co.

    908,850       18,272,482  

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (The)

    183,960       27,603,198  

UPL Ltd.

    2,516,310       15,390,041  

Yara International ASA

    823,440       28,642,964  
              434,409,166  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 1.4%  

Rayonier, Inc.

    236,520       6,002,878  

Weyerhaeuser Co.

    1,322,760       36,098,120  
              42,100,998  
Food Products – 17.0%  

a2 Milk Co. Ltd. (The)*(a)

    3,508,380       33,945,597  

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.(a)

    2,426,520       112,202,285  

Bakkafrost P/F*

    214,620       12,214,155  

Bunge Ltd.

    635,100       36,029,223  

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc.*(a)

    164,250       6,298,988  

Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL, NVDR

    19,491,000       15,790,415  

Charoen Pokphand Indonesia Tbk. PT

    34,602,000       13,840,800  

International Holdings Co. PJSC*

    1,520,586       15,880,016  

IOI Corp. Bhd.

    14,235,000       14,731,769  

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd.

    2,628,000       13,421,458  

Mowi ASA

    2,012,610       31,719,265  

Muyuan Foods Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,488,500       15,746,527  

New Hope Liuhe Co. Ltd., Class A

    1,752,000       7,028,710  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – (continued)  

PPB Group Bhd.

    3,066,000     $ 13,872,635  

QL Resources Bhd.

    4,927,500       7,471,300  

Salmar ASA*

    243,090       12,270,401  

Sime Darby Plantation Bhd.

    13,578,000       15,816,491  

Tyson Foods, Inc., Class A

    1,355,610       77,581,560  

Wilmar International Ltd.

    13,797,000       40,820,125  
              496,681,720  
Metals & Mining – 29.7%  

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.(a)

    362,514       28,675,405  

Anglo American plc(a)

    2,065,170       48,363,837  

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd.

    632,910       14,366,410  

B2Gold Corp.(a)

    1,578,990       10,148,831  

Barrick Gold Corp.(a)

    2,606,100       69,621,091  

BHP Group Ltd.

    4,644,990       110,188,476  

Boliden AB

    398,580       10,890,127  

Evolution Mining Ltd.

    2,590,770       10,079,300  

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

    2,505,360       30,560,588  

Franco-Nevada Corp.(a)

    287,561       39,163,162  

Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.

    2,113,350       36,645,489  

Glencore plc*(a)

    16,400,910       33,060,741  

Gold Fields Ltd.

    1,309,620       13,915,279  

Grupo Mexico SAB de CV, Series B

    4,707,000       13,328,481  

Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd.

    1,180,410       10,371,699  

Kinross Gold Corp.

    1,839,600       14,624,637  

Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd.

    378,870       17,247,841  

MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC

    19,016       4,512,405  

MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC, ADR

    722,396       17,221,921  

Newcrest Mining Ltd.

    1,265,820       25,992,082  

Newmont Corp.(a)

    1,191,360       74,865,062  

Northern Star Resources Ltd.(a)

    1,186,980       12,378,317  

Pan American Silver Corp.(a)

    319,740       10,153,217  

Polyus PJSC

    45,990       9,002,729  

Rio Tinto plc

    1,467,300       82,661,828  

Royal Gold, Inc.

    100,740       11,968,919  

South32 Ltd.

    7,222,620       10,296,332  

Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd.

    377,200       11,629,191  

Vale SA

    4,599,000       48,295,083  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      281  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)              
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.(a)

    657,000     $ 30,126,359  

Yamana Gold, Inc.(a)

    1,412,550       7,850,149  
              868,204,988  
Multi-Utilities – 1.0%  

Suez SA

    689,850       12,632,148  

Veolia Environnement SA

    961,410       17,907,176  
              30,539,324  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 26.3%  

BP plc

    20,123,910       51,155,744  

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.(a)

    389,820       6,934,898  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.(a)

    1,213,260       19,290,593  

Chevron Corp.

    1,874,640       130,287,480  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Class H

    25,604,000       9,938,044  

CNOOC Ltd.

    16,679,000       15,141,513  

Concho Resources, Inc.

    199,290       8,272,528  

ConocoPhillips(a)

    1,130,040       32,341,745  

Diamondback Energy, Inc.(a)

    183,960       4,775,602  

Eni SpA

    2,527,260       17,695,656  

EOG Resources, Inc.

    604,440       20,696,026  

Equinor ASA

    1,105,950       14,028,511  

Exxon Mobil Corp.(a)

    4,185,090       136,517,636  

Gazprom PJSC

    12,235,220       23,858,583  

Gazprom PJSC, ADR

    45,390       173,844  

Hess Corp.(a)

    245,280       9,129,322  

LUKOIL PJSC

    271,636       13,823,150  

LUKOIL PJSC, ADR

    151,214       7,720,987  

Novatek PJSC

    996,450       11,971,816  

Occidental Petroleum Corp.(a)

    994,260       9,077,594  

PetroChina Co. Ltd., Class H

    21,900,000       6,128,165  

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Preference)

    3,941,933       12,948,354  

Pioneer Natural Resources Co.

    168,630       13,416,203  

PTT PCL, NVDR

    13,797,000       13,722,852  

Repsol SA

    1,445,400       8,990,820  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A

    4,121,580       51,448,125  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Saudi Arabian Oil Co.(b)

    952,650     $ 8,560,463  

Suncor Energy, Inc.(a)

    1,673,160       18,860,460  

Tatneft PJSC

    1,620,600       8,369,320  

TOTAL SE

    2,424,330       72,915,184  

Woodside Petroleum Ltd.

    989,880       12,178,909  
              770,370,127  
Paper & Forest Products – 3.5%  

Canfor Corp.*

    109,500       1,327,123  

Duratex SA*

    438,000       1,456,202  

Empresas CMPC SA

    1,889,970       3,926,541  

Holmen AB, Class B

    162,060       6,142,919  

Mondi plc

    821,250       15,535,250  

Oji Holdings Corp.(a)

    1,653,000       6,941,525  

Stella-Jones, Inc.(a)

    100,740       3,276,024  

Stora Enso OYJ, Class R

    961,410       14,026,728  

Suzano SA*

    917,700       7,965,814  

Svenska Cellulosa AB SCA, Class B*

    994,260       13,487,796  

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

    873,810       24,693,225  

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.(a)

    87,600       4,059,552  
              102,838,699  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.9%  

Mitsui & Co. Ltd.

    1,641,400       25,592,902  
Water Utilities – 4.2%  

American States Water Co.(a)

    61,320       4,579,991  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    297,840       44,827,898  

Beijing Enterprises Water Group Ltd.*

    9,734,000       3,690,331  

California Water Service Group(a)

    81,030       3,611,507  

China Water Affairs Group Ltd.(a)

    1,466,000       1,049,189  

Cia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo*

    523,405       3,857,911  

Cia de Saneamento do Parana*

    360,360       1,480,563  

Essential Utilities, Inc.(a)

    396,390       16,331,268  

Guangdong Investment Ltd.

    4,615,576       6,832,732  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

282    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS –(continued)              
Water Utilities – (continued)  

Pennon Group plc

    700,800     $ 8,994,290  

Severn Trent plc

    400,770       12,592,153  

SJW Group(a)

    43,800       2,658,222  

United Utilities Group plc

    1,136,610       12,688,844  
              123,194,899  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $3,189,005,299)

 

    2,899,179,362  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 4.0%  
CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT – 0.8%  

Bank of Nova Scotia, Houston (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/21/2021(d)

  $ 2,000,000       2,000,422  

Cooperatieve Rabobank UA, London (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/30/2021(d)

    3,000,000       3,001,170  

Nordea Bank Abp, New York Branch (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.03%), 0.27%, 10/7/2021(d)

    5,000,000       4,999,220  

Royal Bank of Canada, New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.04%), 0.27%, 10/5/2021(d)

    2,000,000       1,999,736  

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank Ltd., New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.09%), 0.34%, 12/11/2020(d)

    3,000,000       3,000,000  

Svenska Handelsbanken, New York (ICE LIBOR USD 1 Month + 0.08%), 0.60%, 11/30/2020(d)

    3,000,000       2,999,137  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT – (continued)  

The Sumitomo Bank Ltd., New York (ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.06%), 0.27%, 1/29/2021(d)

    4,000,000     $ 4,000,176  
Total Certificates of Deposit
(Cost $21,998,821)

 

    21,999,861  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 3.2%  

BofA Securities, Inc., 0.53%, dated 10/30/2020, due 2/1/2021, repurchase price $8,011,071, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $8,696,146

  $ 8,000,000       8,000,000  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $10,300,094, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $10,446,282

    10,300,000       10,300,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $25,622,178, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $26,070,889

    25,622,028       25,622,028  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      283  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – (continued)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $24,700,412, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $25,183,270

  $ 24,700,000     $ 24,700,000  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $25,000,375, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $27,518,078

    25,000,000       25,000,000  
Total Repurchase Agreements
(Cost $93,622,028)

 

    93,622,028  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $115,620,849)

 

    115,621,889  
Total Investments – 103.1%
(Cost $3,304,626,148)

 

    3,014,801,251  

Liabilities in excess of other assets – (3.1%)

 

    (90,075,443
NET ASSETS – 100.0%           $ 2,924,725,808  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $169,515,214, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $115,620,769 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $22,237,387 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 12, 2020 – May 15, 2050 and $41,012,012 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $178,870,168.

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $115,621,889.

 

(d) 

Variable or floating rate security, linked to the referenced benchmark. The interest rate shown is the rate in effect as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ADR – American Depositary Receipt

ICE – Intercontinental Exchange

LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

SCA – Limited partnership with share capital

USD – US Dollar

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 428,380,004  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (740,757,352

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (312,377,348

Federal income tax cost

  $ 3,326,427,003  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

284    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional
Amount
    Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    2       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 68,936     $ (8,696

FTSE 100 Index

    108       12/18/2020       GBP       7,769,094       (574,014

FTSE/JSE Top 40 Index

    22       12/17/2020       ZAR       644,548       (58,164

Hang Seng Index

    2       11/27/2020       HKD       311,508       (7,882

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    24       12/18/2020       USD       1,322,280       25,865  

S&P Midcap 400 E-Mini Index

    20       12/18/2020       USD       3,791,200       94,462  

S&P/TSX 60 Index

    57       12/17/2020       CAD       7,912,071       (286,253

SPI 200 Index

    35       12/17/2020       AUD       3,619,221       497  

TOPIX Index

    3       12/10/2020       JPY       451,406       (13,057
                                    $ (827,242

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

CAD

    1,250,000       BNP Paribas SA   USD     936,683       12/16/2020     $ 1,006  

GBP

    1,250,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     1,602,512       12/16/2020       14,281  

HKD

    6,000,000       UBS AG   USD     773,677       12/16/2020       1  

JPY

    45,000,000       Bank of New York   USD     428,101       12/16/2020       2,624  

MYR*

    724,831       Goldman Sachs & Co.   USD     173,604       12/16/2020       622  

USD

    2,474,110       JPMorgan Chase Bank   AUD     3,390,000       12/16/2020       92,919  

USD

    2,138,340       Citibank NA   BRL*     11,800,000       12/16/2020       95,557  

USD

    1,151,418       Goldman Sachs & Co.   BRL*     6,150,760       12/16/2020       86,616  

USD

    535,500       Morgan Stanley   CAD     710,000       12/16/2020       2,892  

USD

    5,447,826       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   CAD     7,180,000       12/16/2020       61,738  

USD

    1,061,279       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CHF     961,534       12/16/2020       10,740  

USD

    1,556,469       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   EUR     1,310,000       12/16/2020       28,899  

USD

    1,387,395       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   GBP     1,070,000       12/16/2020       3,420  

USD

    548,253       BNP Paribas SA   HKD     4,250,000       12/16/2020       231  

USD

    1,460,680       UBS AG   HKD     11,327,495       12/16/2020       41  

USD

    548,645       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   NZD     810,000       12/16/2020       13,297  

USD

    15,907       Citibank NA   RUB*     1,215,850       12/16/2020       683  

USD

    546,474       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   SEK     4,780,000       12/16/2020       9,153  

USD

    153,984       JPMorgan Chase Bank   SGD     210,000       12/16/2020       192  

USD

    637,621       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   SGD     870,085       12/16/2020       418  

ZAR

    5,000,000       BNP Paribas SA   USD     290,725       12/17/2020       15,376  

ZAR

    2,180,000       Citibank NA   USD     127,780       12/17/2020       5,679  

ZAR

    8,690,000         Goldman Sachs & Co.   USD     511,476       12/17/2020       20,527  

Total unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 466,912  

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      285  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts (cont.)

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

AUD

    636,370       Citibank NA   USD     464,023       12/16/2020     $ (17,026

AUD

    300,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     215,058       12/16/2020       (4,333

AUD

    1,290,000       Morgan Stanley   USD     922,122       12/16/2020       (16,004

BRL*

    8,500,000       Citibank NA   USD     1,613,301       12/16/2020       (141,805

CAD

    520,000       BNP Paribas SA   USD     390,860       12/16/2020       (781

CAD

    5,000,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     3,797,666       12/16/2020       (46,908

CAD

    1,814,539       Morgan Stanley   USD     1,376,093       12/16/2020       (14,914

EUR

    275,000       BNP Paribas SA   USD     322,007       12/16/2020       (1,334

EUR

    1,498,602       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     1,782,028       12/16/2020       (34,533

GBP

    190,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     246,614       12/16/2020       (861

INR*

    6,925,711       Citibank NA   USD     93,309       12/16/2020       (220

NOK

    8,141,048       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     905,030       12/16/2020       (53,504

NZD

    1,106,346       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     738,165       12/16/2020       (6,953

SEK

    4,595,456       Morgan Stanley   USD     525,760       12/16/2020       (9,183

SGD

    1,500,000       UBS AG   USD     1,100,638       12/16/2020       (2,121

USD

    372,970       Morgan Stanley   GBP     291,242       12/16/2020       (3,734

USD

    823,107       Morgan Stanley   JPY     87,267,351       12/16/2020       (12,186

USD

    611,009       UBS AG   JPY     64,480,000       12/16/2020       (6,170

USD

    295,106       Citibank NA   KRW*     350,052,156       12/16/2020       (13,388

USD

    935,032         Morgan Stanley   ZAR     15,360,000       12/17/2020       (5,308

Total unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (391,266

Net unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 75,646  

 

*

Non-deliverable forward. See Note 2 in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

BRL – Brazilian Real

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

INR – Indian Rupee

JPY – Japanese Yen

KRW – Korean Won

MYR – Malaysian Ringgit

NOK – Norwegian Krone

NZD – New Zealand Dollar

RUB – Russian Ruble

SEK – Swedish Krona

SGD – Singapore Dollar

USD – US Dollar

ZAR – South African Rand

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

286    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    7.2

Brazil

    2.6  

Canada

    12.9  

Chile

    0.1  

China

    2.2  

Finland

    1.3  

France

    3.5  

Germany

    0.2  

India

    0.5  

Indonesia

    0.5  

Israel

    0.4  

Italy

    0.6  

Japan

    1.5  

Malaysia

    2.2  

Mexico

    0.5  

New Zealand

    1.2  

Norway

    3.4  

Russia

    3.3  

Saudi Arabia

    0.9  

Singapore

    1.4  

South Africa

    1.3  

Spain

    0.3  

Sweden

    1.1  

Thailand

    1.0  

United Arab Emirates

    0.6  

United Kingdom

    10.8  

United States

    37.6  

Other1

    0.9  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      287  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.0%  
Air Freight & Logistics – 3.2%  

bpost SA(a)

    117,344     $ 1,039,513  

CTT-Correios de Portugal SA*

    162,892       398,464  

Deutsche Post AG (Registered)

    1,199,688       53,159,248  

Oesterreichische Post AG(a)

    37,056       1,176,238  

Royal Mail plc

    1,052,236       3,088,428  

Singapore Post Ltd.

    1,235,200       601,544  
              59,463,435  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 3.7%  

Befesa SA(b)

    39,372       1,618,945  

Biffa plc(a)(b)

    366,700       1,028,891  

Bingo Industries Ltd.(a)(b)

    535,768       921,796  

Casella Waste Systems, Inc., Class A*

    16,984       916,966  

China Everbright Environment Group Ltd.

    4,632,000       2,329,484  

Clean Harbors, Inc.*

    18,528       981,428  

Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd.

    2,494,332       3,590,872  

Covanta Holding Corp.(a)

    40,916       371,517  

Daiseki Co. Ltd.

    37,700       955,663  

Insun ENT Co. Ltd.*

    31,652       253,562  

Koentec Co. Ltd.

    22,388       165,735  

Lassila & Tikanoja OYJ

    41,688       631,283  

Republic Services, Inc.

    70,252       6,194,119  

Shanghai Youngsun Investment Co. Ltd., Class B*^‡(c)

    57,800        

Stericycle, Inc.*

    31,652       1,971,920  

US Ecology, Inc.(a)

    10,808       329,860  

Waste Connections, Inc.(a)

    321,152       31,808,102  

Waste Management, Inc.

    141,276       15,245,093  
              69,315,236  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.1%  

Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

    16,212,000       1,343,184  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 13.2%  

AT&T, Inc.

    2,393,972     $ 64,685,123  

BCE, Inc.

    351,260       14,104,669  

Bharti Infratel Ltd.

    284,868       713,251  

BT Group plc

    3,368,236       4,416,101  

Cellnex Telecom SA(b)

    140,485       9,020,055  

CenturyLink, Inc.(a)

    335,048       2,888,114  

China Tower Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    16,984,000       2,650,037  

Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd.

    1,619,000       6,056,357  

Deutsche Telekom AG (Registered)

    1,252,184       19,063,987  

GCI Liberty, Inc., Class A*

    35,512       2,884,640  

Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane SpA(b)

    128,152       1,385,299  

Liberty Global plc, Class C*(a)

    133,556       2,492,155  

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp.

    1,003,600       21,081,936  

Swisscom AG (Registered)(a)

    9,264       4,713,112  

Telstra Corp. Ltd.

    4,598,804       8,655,087  

Tower Bersama Infrastructure Tbk. PT

    4,168,800       427,569  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    1,389,600       79,193,304  
              244,430,796  
Electric Utilities – 15.3%  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

    165,980       14,926,581  

Duke Energy Corp.(a)

    245,496       22,612,637  

Edison International

    126,608       7,095,112  

Enel SpA

    7,022,884       55,906,265  

Entergy Corp.

    67,164       6,798,340  

Eversource Energy

    115,028       10,038,494  

Exelon Corp.

    324,240       12,933,934  

FirstEnergy Corp.

    181,420       5,391,802  

Iberdrola SA

    5,234,932       61,741,344  

NextEra Energy, Inc.

    657,744       48,153,438  

PPL Corp.

    257,076       7,069,590  

Southern Co. (The)

    352,032       20,224,238  

Xcel Energy, Inc.

    172,156       12,056,085  
              284,947,860  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

288    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 5.9%  

American Tower Corp.

    148,996     $ 34,216,931  

CoreCivic, Inc.(a)

    39,372       252,375  

CoreSite Realty Corp.

    10,036       1,197,897  

Crown Castle International Corp.

    139,732       21,826,138  

CyrusOne, Inc.(a)

    40,144       2,852,231  

Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

    90,324       13,033,753  

Equinix, Inc.

    30,108       22,016,174  

GEO Group, Inc. (The)(a)

    40,144       355,676  

Keppel DC REIT

    540,422       1,147,729  

QTS Realty Trust, Inc., Class A(a)

    20,844       1,282,115  

SBA Communications Corp.

    37,828       10,984,116  
              109,165,135  
Gas Utilities – 1.3%  

APA Group

    894,748       6,591,253  

Beijing Enterprises Holdings Ltd.

    386,000       1,159,765  

Enagas SA

    209,212       4,515,772  

Infraestructura Energetica Nova SAB de CV*(a)

    463,200       1,545,197  

Petronas Gas Bhd.

    463,200       1,754,697  

Snam SpA

    1,854,344       9,050,537  
              24,617,221  
Health Care Providers & Services – 2.7%  

Acadia Healthcare Co., Inc.*(a)

    30,880       1,100,872  

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd.

    138,188       3,952,131  

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services PCL, NVDR

    14,282,000       8,019,090  

Bumrungrad Hospital PCL, NVDR

    540,400       1,577,810  

Encompass Health Corp.

    33,196       2,035,247  

Fortis Healthcare Ltd.*

    628,408       1,065,048  

HCA Healthcare, Inc.

    91,096       11,290,438  

IHH Healthcare Bhd.

    2,779,200       3,324,338  

Life Healthcare Group Holdings Ltd.

    1,574,880       1,578,878  

Mitra Keluarga Karyasehat Tbk. PT(b)

    6,870,800       1,235,570  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

Netcare Ltd.

    1,443,640     $ 1,146,116  

Ramsay Health Care Ltd.

    226,968       9,937,859  

Tenet Healthcare Corp.*(a)

    36,284       890,409  

Universal Health Services, Inc., Class B

    26,248       2,875,469  
              50,029,275  
IT Services – 0.1%  

NEXTDC Ltd.*(a)

    189,140       1,692,172  

Switch, Inc., Class A(a)

    30,880       434,173  
              2,126,345  
Media – 5.7%  

Cable One, Inc.

    1,544       2,673,992  

Charter Communications, Inc., Class A*(a)

    40,144       24,239,750  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    1,529,332       64,598,984  

DISH Network Corp., Class A*

    84,920       2,164,611  

Liberty Broadband Corp., Class C*

    51,724       7,329,808  

Shaw Communications, Inc., Class B

    188,290       3,099,685  

Sirius XM Holdings, Inc.(a)

    398,352       2,282,557  
              106,389,387  
Multi-Utilities – 7.7%  

Consolidated Edison, Inc.(a)

    111,168       8,725,576  

Dominion Energy, Inc.

    281,008       22,576,183  

Engie SA*

    1,680,644       20,330,695  

National Grid plc

    3,177,552       37,757,802  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

    169,068       9,831,304  

Sempra Energy(a)

    98,816       12,387,574  

Suez SA

    477,096       8,736,316  

Veolia Environnement SA

    652,340       12,150,453  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    104,992       10,556,946  
              143,052,849  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 7.0%  

Enbridge, Inc.

    1,831,956       50,437,698  

Inter Pipeline Ltd.(a)

    389,860       3,467,761  

Keyera Corp.(a)

    200,720       2,846,676  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

    670,868       7,983,329  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      289  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Koninklijke Vopak NV

    59,444     $ 3,090,330  

ONEOK, Inc.

    149,768       4,343,272  

Pembina Pipeline Corp.(a)

    498,712       10,431,678  

Petronet LNG Ltd.

    669,324       2,085,894  

Plains GP Holdings LP, Class A*(a)

    66,392       424,245  

Targa Resources Corp.

    79,516       1,276,232  

TC Energy Corp.

    849,972       33,428,981  

Transneft PJSC (Preference)

    1,544       2,565,968  

Williams Cos., Inc. (The)

    408,388       7,836,966  
              130,219,030  
Road & Rail – 17.7%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.(a)

    2,314,456       6,127,482  

Canadian National Railway Co.

    867,728       86,131,775  

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.

    165,208       49,331,318  

Central Japan Railway Co.

    254,100       30,589,712  

CSX Corp.

    255,532       20,171,696  

East Japan Railway Co.

    463,200       24,179,093  

Kansas City Southern

    31,652       5,575,183  

Keisei Electric Railway Co. Ltd.

    231,600       6,457,949  

Kyushu Railway Co.

    198,700       4,217,671  

MTR Corp. Ltd.(a)

    1,930,000       9,544,414  

Norfolk Southern Corp.

    84,920       17,758,471  

Odakyu Electric Railway Co. Ltd.(a)

    427,300       10,271,713  

Tobu Railway Co. Ltd.

    269,400       7,615,047  

Union Pacific Corp.

    226,968       40,216,460  

West Japan Railway Co.(a)

    231,600       9,880,773  
              328,068,757  
Transportation Infrastructure – 7.2%  

Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd.

    1,027,532       4,989,473  

Aena SME SA*(b)

    88,780       11,954,818  

Aeroports de Paris

    33,196       3,244,276  

Airports of Thailand PCL, NVDR

    5,172,400       8,588,167  

ASTM SpA*(a)

    70,252       1,306,055  

Atlantia SpA*

    615,284       9,428,367  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Transportation Infrastructure – (continued)  

Atlas Arteria Ltd.(a)

    1,161,088     $ 4,598,710  

Auckland International Airport Ltd.(a)

    1,395,004       6,453,707  

Bangkok Expressway & Metro PCL, NVDR

    10,036,000       2,640,417  

CCR SA

    1,544,000       2,988,387  

China Merchants Port Holdings Co. Ltd.

    1,544,000       1,636,612  

COSCO SHIPPING Ports Ltd.(a)

    1,602,410       936,049  

Getlink SE*

    530,364       7,129,349  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SAB de CV, Class B(a)

    463,200       3,842,965  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV, Class B*(a)

    216,160       2,489,180  

International Container Terminal Services, Inc.

    2,099,840       4,989,289  

Japan Airport Terminal Co. Ltd.(a)

    95,300       4,120,490  

Jiangsu Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

    1,544,000       1,543,034  

Qube Holdings Ltd.

    2,075,908       3,863,187  

Shenzhen International Holdings Ltd.

    1,158,000       1,797,884  

Sydney Airport

    3,063,296       11,724,038  

Transurban Group

    3,332,724       31,501,857  

Westports Holdings Bhd.

    1,080,800       1,014,469  

Westshore Terminals Investment Corp.(a)

    52,496       527,185  
              133,307,965  
Water Utilities – 3.0%  

Aguas Andinas SA, Class A

    3,581,308       929,392  

American States Water Co.(a)

    12,352       922,571  

American Water Works Co., Inc.

    60,988       9,179,304  

Beijing Enterprises Water Group Ltd.*(a)

    6,176,000       2,341,430  

California Water Service Group

    16,212       722,569  

Cia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo*

    386,000       2,845,127  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

290    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Water Utilities – (continued)  

Cia de Saneamento de Minas Gerais-COPASA*

    77,200     $ 573,042  

Cia de Saneamento do Parana (Preference)*

    1,158,000       955,963  

Essential Utilities, Inc.

    83,376       3,435,091  

Guangdong Investment Ltd.

    3,600,000       5,329,310  

Inversiones Aguas Metropolitanas SA

    543,488       365,822  

Manila Water Co., Inc.*

    1,466,800       424,281  

Middlesex Water Co.(a)

    6,176       396,129  

Pennon Group plc

    515,696       6,618,606  

Severn Trent plc

    294,904       9,265,854  

SJW Group(a)

    10,808       655,938  

TTW PCL, NVDR

    1,621,200       603,382  

United Utilities Group plc

    832,988       9,299,280  
              54,863,091  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 5.2%  

China Mobile Ltd.

    2,055,000       12,494,536  

KDDI Corp.

    617,600       16,497,494  

NTT DOCOMO, Inc.

    463,200       17,222,674  

SoftBank Group Corp.

    571,200       37,116,526  

Vodafone Group plc(a)

    10,327,816       13,754,482  
              97,085,712  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $1,763,040,875)

 

    1,838,425,278  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(d) – 0.4%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.4%  

BofA Securities, Inc., 0.53%, dated 10/30/2020, due 2/1/2021, repurchase price $2,002,768, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $2,174,036

  $ 2,000,000       2,000,000  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,500,014, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $1,521,303

  $ 1,500,000     $ 1,500,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,166,842, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $1,187,277

    1,166,835       1,166,835  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      291  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(d) – (continued)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $2,800,047, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $2,854,784

  $ 2,800,000     $ 2,800,000  
        7,466,835  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $7,466,835)

 

    7,466,835  
Total Investments – 99.4%
(Cost $1,770,507,710)

 

    1,845,892,113  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.6%

 

    10,704,064  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 1,856,596,177  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

^

Security subject to restrictions on resale.

 

Value determined using significant unobservable inputs.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $92,519,364, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $7,466,835 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $65,546,496 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government

  Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – August 15, 2050 and $22,213,475 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 7.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $95,226,806.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

Security fair valued as of October 31, 2020 in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Total value of all such securities at October 31, 2020 amounted to $0, which represents approximately 0.00% of net assets of the Fund.

 

(d) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $7,466,835.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 237,330,472  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (170,518,950

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 66,811,522  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 1,778,315,043  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    72       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 2,481,690     $ (283,481

FTSE 100 Index

    18       12/18/2020       GBP       1,294,849       (96,968

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    39       12/18/2020       USD       6,366,165       (151,521

S&P/TSX 60 Index

    23       12/17/2020       CAD       3,192,590       (128,493

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

292    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts (cont.)

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

SPI 200 Index

    10       12/17/2020       AUD       1,034,063     $ (2,767

TOPIX Index

    18       12/10/2020       JPY       2,708,437       (75,943
                                    $ (739,173

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

GBP

    90,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank     USD       116,366       12/16/2020     $ 43  

GBP

    105,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     USD       134,879       12/16/2020       932  

JPY

    142,666,439       Morgan Stanley     USD       1,345,943       12/16/2020       19,609  

USD

    553,888       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     CAD       730,000       12/16/2020       6,277  

USD

    224,058       JPMorgan Chase Bank     CHF       203,000       12/16/2020       2,267  

USD

    383,033       UBS AG     HKD       2,970,399       12/16/2020       11  

USD

    1,281,561         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     JPY       133,560,000       12/16/2020       3,172  

Total unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 32,311  

AUD

    147,161       Citibank NA     USD       107,306       12/16/2020     $ (3,937

CAD

    420,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank     USD       317,284       12/16/2020       (2,221

CAD

    1,320,816       Morgan Stanley     USD       1,001,668       12/16/2020       (10,856

EUR

    610,130       JPMorgan Chase Bank     USD       724,673       12/16/2020       (13,211

EUR

    370,000       Morgan Stanley     USD       435,096       12/16/2020       (3,645

GBP

    200,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     USD       259,326       12/16/2020       (639

USD

    220,077       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     CAD       295,000       12/16/2020       (1,218

USD

    1,019,694       Morgan Stanley     GBP       796,253       12/16/2020       (10,208

USD

    1,180,642         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)     JPY       124,680,000       12/16/2020       (12,751

Total unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (58,686

Net unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (26,375

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

JPY – Japanese Yen

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      293  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    4.8

Austria

    0.1  

Belgium

    0.1  

Brazil

    0.4  

Canada

    15.4  

Chile

    0.1  

China

    1.7  

Finland

     0.0   

France

    2.8  

Germany

    4.0  

Hong Kong

    0.5  

India

    0.7  

Indonesia

    0.1  

Italy

    4.1  

Japan

    10.2  

Malaysia

    0.3  

Mexico

    0.4  

Netherlands

    0.2  

New Zealand

    0.3  

Philippines

    0.4  

Portugal

     0.0   

Russia

    0.1  

Singapore

    0.1  

South Africa

    0.1  

South Korea

     0.0   

Spain

    4.7  

Switzerland

    0.3  

Taiwan

    0.3  

Thailand

    1.2  

United Kingdom

    4.6  

United States

    41.0  

Other1

    1.0  
      100.0

 

 

Amount represents less than 0.05%.

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

294    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.8%  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 76.4%  

AEON REIT Investment Corp.

    728     $ 821,733  

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.

    54,288       8,225,718  

alstria office REIT-AG

    67,704       861,995  

American Homes 4 Rent, Class A

    116,376       3,289,950  

American Tower Corp.

    44,616       10,246,064  

Argosy Property Ltd.

    120,709       110,889  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

    60,632       8,435,730  

Befimmo SA

    15,496       602,887  

BWP Trust

    258,752       728,651  

Camden Property Trust

    31,512       2,906,667  

Canadian Apartment Properties REIT(a)

    35,984       1,155,882  

Corporate Office Properties Trust

    41,496       930,755  

Cousins Properties, Inc.

    63,960       1,629,701  

Crombie REIT(a)

    61,464       599,267  

Crown Castle International Corp.

    29,744       4,646,013  

CT REIT(a)

    59,280       613,096  

Daiwa Securities Living Investments Corp.

    832       812,581  

Derwent London plc(a)

    45,656       1,569,103  

Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

    2,704       390,187  

Dream Industrial REIT(a)

    69,888       620,074  

Dream Office REIT(a)

    31,096       408,363  

Duke Realty Corp.

    159,536       6,060,773  

EastGroup Properties, Inc.

    16,952       2,255,972  

Equinix, Inc.

    5,720       4,182,693  

Equity Commonwealth

    52,312       1,382,083  

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc.

    74,464       4,407,524  

Equity Residential

    160,368       7,534,089  

Essex Property Trust, Inc.

    19,032       3,893,757  

First Capital REIT(a)

    58,760       520,901  

First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc.

    54,704       2,177,766  

Fortune REIT(a)

    208,000       173,270  

Franklin Street Properties Corp.

    92,664       389,189  

Frasers Centrepoint Trust

    536,700       829,320  

Frontier Real Estate Investment Corp.

    208       695,389  

Fukuoka REIT Corp.

    520       628,238  

GCP Student Living plc(a)

    331,552       480,140  

Gecina SA

    19,760       2,453,659  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

GEO Group, Inc. (The)(a)

    67,392     $ 597,093  

Getty Realty Corp.

    24,544       645,016  

Goodman Group

    557,544       7,204,249  

Goodman Property Trust

    519,064       850,763  

Granite REIT(a)

    13,312       745,796  

Growthpoint Properties Australia Ltd.(a)

    278,928       665,982  

H&R REIT(a)

    65,104       499,993  

Hibernia REIT plc

    499,616       602,929  

Highwoods Properties, Inc.

    44,616       1,328,218  

InterRent REIT(a)

    65,728       559,996  

Investors Real Estate Trust

    9,568       644,979  

Japan Logistics Fund, Inc.

    104       291,586  

Killam Apartment REIT(a)

    46,800       561,944  

Kimco Realty Corp.

    186,160       1,910,002  

Lexington Realty Trust

    99,528       988,313  

Life Storage, Inc.

    20,176       2,303,090  

LTC Properties, Inc.

    19,968       659,144  

Mapletree Commercial Trust

    925,600       1,165,897  

Medical Properties Trust, Inc.

    146,744       2,614,978  

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc.

    49,192       5,737,263  

Mirvac Group

    1,385,280       2,052,635  

Mori Trust Sogo Reit, Inc.

    520       619,782  

National Health Investors, Inc.

    19,240       1,078,402  

Nippon Accommodations Fund, Inc.

    208       1,189,822  

Nippon Building Fund, Inc.

    416       2,101,091  

Northview Apartment REIT(a)

    25,376       687,427  

NSI NV

    18,304       579,942  

Office Properties Income Trust(a)

    27,976       515,038  

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.

    97,448       2,807,477  

Parkway Life REIT

    260,000       771,146  

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc., Class A

    54,184       618,781  

Premier Investment Corp.(a)

    624       684,645  

Prologis, Inc.

    182,312       18,085,349  

PS Business Parks, Inc.

    8,840       1,008,025  

Public Storage

    53,040       12,149,873  

Rayonier, Inc.

    58,656       1,488,689  

RioCan REIT(a)

    70,616       761,584  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      295  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Safestore Holdings plc

    90,896     $ 944,342  

SBA Communications Corp.

    8,112       2,355,481  

Segro plc

    489,528       5,709,297  

SmartCentres REIT(a)

    38,376       606,141  

Summit Industrial Income REIT(a)

    68,432       691,326  

Sunlight REIT

    208,000       89,585  

Terreno Realty Corp.

    29,120       1,638,874  

VICI Properties, Inc.

    172,016       3,947,767  

Washington REIT

    35,984       629,000  

Waypoint REIT

    384,696       724,009  

Weingarten Realty Investors

    52,312       829,668  

Welltower, Inc.

    179,608       9,657,522  

Weyerhaeuser Co.

    321,152       8,764,238  
              202,034,258  
Household Durables – 0.4%  

Iida Group Holdings Co. Ltd.

    62,400       1,123,964  
Real Estate Management & Development – 22.0%  

ADLER Group SA*(b)

    27,664       695,403  

Aeon Mall Co. Ltd.

    52,000       808,303  

Aroundtown SA*

    386,776       1,854,857  

Atrium Ljungberg AB, Class B

    37,856       611,572  

CA Immobilien Anlagen AG

    28,600       784,561  

Castellum AB

    99,944       2,081,711  

City Developments Ltd.

    197,600       917,454  

CK Asset Holdings Ltd.

    1,040,000       4,814,535  

CLS Holdings plc(a)

    24,856       63,699  

Daibiru Corp.

    62,400       703,149  

Deutsche Wohnen SE

    130,624       6,592,979  

DREAM Unlimited Corp., Class A

    4,160       55,099  

Entra ASA(b)

    62,712       817,454  

Fabege AB

    113,776       1,437,355  

Fastighets AB Balder, Class B*

    23,712       1,117,250  

Goldcrest Co. Ltd.

    41,600       530,048  

Hang Lung Group Ltd.

    416,000       920,528  

Heiwa Real Estate Co. Ltd.

    20,800       605,854  

Henderson Land Development Co. Ltd.

    624,000       2,208,785  

Hufvudstaden AB, Class A

    51,792       676,700  

Hulic Co. Ltd.

    124,800       1,153,212  

Intershop Holding AG(a)

    1,040       637,696  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Real Estate Management & Development – (continued)  

K Wah International Holdings Ltd.

    1,456,000     $ 689,055  

Kenedix, Inc.

    156,000       807,308  

Kojamo OYJ

    55,952       1,153,610  

Kungsleden AB

    90,688       770,239  

Nomura Real Estate Holdings, Inc.

    52,000       905,797  

Open House Co. Ltd.

    27,000       918,165  

PSP Swiss Property AG (Registered)

    18,408       2,227,317  

S IMMO AG(a)

    32,448       479,267  

Sagax AB, Class B

    44,928       706,641  

Sirius Real Estate Ltd.

    692,016       657,661  

St Joe Co. (The)*

    29,120       787,405  

Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. Ltd.

    135,200       3,604,385  

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

    572,000       7,313,333  

Swire Pacific Ltd., Class B

    520,000       422,445  

Swire Properties Ltd.(a)

    499,200       1,335,732  

TAG Immobilien AG*

    61,672       1,817,517  

Tokyo Tatemono Co. Ltd.

    83,200       951,858  

Tricon Residential, Inc.(a)

    24,960       204,794  

UOL Group Ltd.

    197,600       900,089  

Wihlborgs Fastigheter AB

    59,280       1,069,566  

Yanlord Land Group Ltd.

    665,600       511,813  
              58,322,201  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $279,640,292)

 

    261,480,423  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

296    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 1.0%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 1.0%  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $600,006, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $608,521

  $ 600,000     $ 600,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $752,631, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $765,811

    752,626       752,626  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,200,020, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $1,223,479

    1,200,000       1,200,000  
        2,552,626  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $2,552,626)

 

    2,552,626  
Total Investments – 99.8%
(Cost $282,192,918)

 

    264,033,049  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.2%

 

    541,316  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 264,574,365  
*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $13,427,825, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $2,552,626 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $7,943,374 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – August 15, 2050 and $3,621,912 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.25%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $14,117,912.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $2,552,626.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

OYJ – Public Limited Company

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 24,197,189  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (44,897,294

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (20,700,105

Federal income tax cost

  $ 284,711,235  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      297  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts     

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:    

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    3       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 103,404     $ (9,963

Hang Seng Index

    3       11/27/2020       HKD       467,262       (11,852

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    5       12/18/2020       USD       816,175       (15,548

S&P Midcap 400 E-Mini Index

    5       12/18/2020       USD       947,800       29,579  

SPI 200 Index

    6       12/17/2020       AUD       620,438       (7,882

TOPIX Mini Index

    15       12/10/2020       JPY       225,703       (5,635
                                    $ (21,301

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

GBP

    12,150       Morgan Stanley  

USD

    15,559       12/16/2020     $ 156  

HKD

    710,000       Morgan Stanley  

USD

    91,532       12/16/2020       20  

USD

    134,241       Citibank NA  

AUD

    184,101       12/16/2020       4,925  

USD

    19,176       JPMorgan Chase Bank  

CHF

    17,373       12/16/2020       194  

USD

    51,865       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)  

GBP

    40,000       12/16/2020       128  

USD

    166,645       UBS AG  

HKD

    1,292,326       12/16/2020       5  

USD

    34,468         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)  

SGD

    47,035       12/16/2020       23  

Total unrealized appreciation

 

          $ 5,451  

AUD

    117,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)  

USD

    84,805       12/16/2020     $ (2,623

CAD

    16,971       Morgan Stanley  

USD

    12,870       12/16/2020       (139

EUR

    1,023       JPMorgan Chase Bank  

USD

    1,215       12/16/2020       (22

SEK

    568,851       Morgan Stanley  

USD

    65,081       12/16/2020       (1,137

USD

    145,091         Morgan Stanley  

JPY

    15,382,807       12/16/2020       (2,148

Total unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (6,069

Net unrealized depreciation

 

          $ (618

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

JPY – Japanese Yen

SEK – Swedish Krona

SGD – Singapore Dollar

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

298    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    4.3

Austria

    0.5  

Belgium

    0.2  

Canada

    3.5  

Finland

    0.4  

France

    0.9  

Germany

    4.5  

Hong Kong

    6.8  

Ireland

    0.2  

Japan

    7.5  

Netherlands

    0.2  

New Zealand

    0.4  

Norway

    0.3  

Singapore

    1.9  

Sweden

    3.2  

Switzerland

    1.1  

United Kingdom

    3.6  

United States

    59.3  

Other1

    1.2  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      299  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS – 100.0%  

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund(a)

    18,060     $ 917,016  

FlexShares® Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund(a)

    49,910       1,335,592  

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund(a)

    46,634       2,249,624  
Total Exchange Traded Funds
(Cost $4,892,161)

 

    4,502,232  
Total Investments – 100.0%
(Cost $4,892,161)

 

    4,502,232  

Liabilities in excess of other assets – (0.0%)(b)

 

    (503
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 4,501,729  
(a)  

Investment in affiliated Fund. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. is the Investment Adviser to both the Fund and the affiliated Funds.

 

(b) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (400,344

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (400,344

Federal income tax cost

  $ 4,902,576  
 

 

The underlying index of the FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund is comprised of securities of affiliated FlexShares® Funds. The Schedules of Investments of the affiliated FlexShares® Funds are located elsewhere in this Report.

 

Investment in a company which was affiliated for the period ended October 31, 2020, was as follows:

 

Security   Value
October 31,
2019
    Purchases
at Cost
    Sales
Proceeds
    Shares
October 31,
2020
    Value
October 31,
2020
    Change in
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)
    Dividend
Income
    Realized
Gain/
(Loss)
 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

  $ 4,608,580     $ 106,750     $ 2,854,816       18,060     $ 917,016     $ (486,478   $ 160,367     $ (457,020

FlexShares® Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

    1,020,332       997,051       588,053       49,910       1,335,592       (67,983     25,673       (25,755

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

    5,729,117       148,519       3,310,221       46,634       2,249,624       (512,160     102,156       194,369  
    $ 11,358,029     $ 1,252,320     $ 6,753,090       114,604     $ 4,502,232     $ (1,066,621   $ 288,196     $ (288,406

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

300    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.6%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.4%  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    51,304     $ 17,963,069  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.5%  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.(a)

    75,207       6,650,555  
Auto Components – 0.5%  

Gentex Corp.

    248,941       6,888,197  
Banks – 5.5%  

Bank of America Corp.

    235,532       5,582,108  

Citigroup, Inc.

    167,904       6,954,584  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    404,602       39,667,180  

M&T Bank Corp.(a)

    47,806       4,951,745  

Wells Fargo & Co.

    86,867       1,863,297  

Western Alliance Bancorp

    128,843       5,308,332  

Zions Bancorp NA

    148,082       4,778,606  
              69,105,852  
Beverages – 0.2%  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    41,393       1,989,348  
Biotechnology – 3.0%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    2,915       248,067  

Amgen, Inc.

    118,932       25,801,108  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

    199,969       11,628,197  
              37,677,372  
Capital Markets – 4.2%  

Ameriprise Financial, Inc.

    46,057       7,407,347  

Eaton Vance Corp.

    18,073       1,080,585  

Lazard Ltd., Class A

    173,151       5,829,994  

Moody’s Corp.

    34,397       9,042,971  

Morgan Stanley

    135,628       6,530,488  

S&P Global, Inc.

    48,972       15,804,734  

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

    57,717       7,310,435  
              53,006,554  
Chemicals – 1.9%  

Dow, Inc.

    170,819       7,770,556  

Eastman Chemical Co.

    93,280       7,540,755  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – (continued)  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    12,826     $ 8,824,032  
              24,135,343  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.7%  

Cintas Corp.

    5,830       1,833,827  

Rollins, Inc.(a)

    126,511       7,318,661  
              9,152,488  
Communications Equipment – 2.4%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    845,933       30,368,995  
Consumer Finance – 0.4%  

Synchrony Financial

    212,795       5,324,131  
Containers & Packaging – 0.6%  

International Paper Co.

    167,904       7,345,800  
Distributors – 0.6%  

Pool Corp.

    22,154       7,750,134  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 2.8%  

AT&T, Inc.

    510,125       13,783,578  

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.

    32,648       1,821,758  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    343,970       19,602,850  
              35,208,186  
Electric Utilities – 3.8%  

Evergy, Inc.

    106,689       5,889,233  

Exelon Corp.

    205,799       8,209,322  

IDACORP, Inc.

    43,725       3,835,994  

NRG Energy, Inc.

    199,386       6,304,585  

OGE Energy Corp.

    163,823       5,040,834  

Portland General Electric Co.(a)

    118,349       4,651,116  

PPL Corp.

    230,285       6,332,837  

Southern Co. (The)

    131,175       7,536,004  
              47,799,925  
Electrical Equipment – 0.6%  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    33,231       7,879,735  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.2%  

Amphenol Corp., Class A

    20,405       2,302,500  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      301  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Energy Equipment & Services – 1.3%  

Baker Hughes Co.(a)

    372,537     $ 5,502,372  

Halliburton Co.

    433,169       5,224,018  

Schlumberger NV

    387,112       5,783,453  
              16,509,843  
Entertainment – 0.9%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

    156,827       11,876,509  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 3.0%  

American Tower Corp.

    54,219       12,451,393  

Extra Space Storage, Inc.

    3,498       405,593  

Highwoods Properties, Inc.

    13,409       399,186  

Life Storage, Inc.(a)

    61,798       7,054,242  

Public Storage

    37,312       8,547,060  

Simon Property Group, Inc.

    70,543       4,430,806  

Welltower, Inc.

    96,778       5,203,753  
              38,492,033  
Food & Staples Retailing – 2.3%  

Walmart, Inc.

    209,297       29,039,959  
Food Products – 1.1%  

Campbell Soup Co.(a)

    124,179       5,795,434  

General Mills, Inc.

    129,426       7,651,665  
              13,447,099  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.7%  

Abbott Laboratories

    11,077       1,164,304  

Dentsply Sirona, Inc.

    37,312       1,760,753  

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc.

    58,883       5,362,475  
              8,287,532  
Health Care Providers & Services – 3.0%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    70,543       6,777,066  

Cardinal Health, Inc.

    127,094       5,819,634  

Chemed Corp.

    13,733       6,568,769  

Humana, Inc.

    13,409       5,353,945  

McKesson Corp.

    48,389       7,136,894  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    19,822       6,048,485  
              37,704,793  
Health Care Technology – 0.6%  

Cerner Corp.(a)

    103,191       7,232,657  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Household Durables – 1.1%  

PulteGroup, Inc.

    156,244     $ 6,368,505  

Whirlpool Corp.(a)

    39,061       7,224,723  
              13,593,228  
Household Products – 3.1%  

Church & Dwight Co., Inc.

    70,543       6,235,296  

Clorox Co. (The)(a)

    5,830       1,208,267  

Colgate-Palmolive Co.

    34,397       2,713,579  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    211,046       28,934,407  
              39,091,549  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 1.3%
 

AES Corp. (The)

    162,657       3,171,812  

NextEra Energy Partners LP(a)

    108,438       6,809,906  

Vistra Corp.

    365,541       6,349,447  
              16,331,165  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.0%(b)  

Honeywell International, Inc.

    1,749       288,498  
Insurance – 2.5%  

Aflac, Inc.

    167,904       5,700,341  

Aon plc, Class A(a)

    18,656       3,432,891  

MetLife, Inc.

    174,900       6,619,965  

National General Holdings Corp.

    160,325       5,446,240  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    118,349       10,876,273  
              32,075,710  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 0.5%  

eBay, Inc.

    146,916       6,997,609  
IT Services – 3.8%  

International Business Machines Corp.

    180,730       20,180,312  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    16,324       4,711,759  

Paychex, Inc.

    4,664       383,614  

Visa, Inc., Class A(a)

    95,029       17,267,720  

Western Union Co. (The)(a)

    293,249       5,700,760  
              48,244,165  
Leisure Products – 0.5%  

Polaris, Inc.(a)

    66,462       6,038,737  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

302    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.0%(b)  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

    583     $ 275,829  
Machinery – 1.0%  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

    64,130       12,561,784  
Media – 3.1%  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    336,974       14,233,782  

Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. (The)

    365,541       6,612,637  

New York Times Co. (The), Class A(a)

    153,912       6,104,150  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    129,426       6,108,907  

Sirius XM Holdings, Inc.(a)

    1,145,595       6,564,259  
              39,623,735  
Multi-Utilities – 0.6%  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

    136,422       7,932,939  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 1.0%  

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.

    346,302       6,160,713  

Chevron Corp.

    2,915       202,592  

HollyFrontier Corp.

    98,527       1,823,735  

Plains GP Holdings LP, Class A*(a)

    632,555       4,042,026  
              12,229,066  
Pharmaceuticals – 6.4%  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    110,770       14,451,054  

Johnson & Johnson

    311,322       42,685,359  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    300,828       22,625,274  

Pfizer, Inc.

    53,053       1,882,321  
              81,644,008  
Professional Services – 0.4%  

ManpowerGroup, Inc.

    74,624       5,064,731  
Road & Rail – 0.6%  

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.

    38,478       7,325,057  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 6.8%  

Intel Corp.

    89,199       3,949,732  

KLA Corp.

    37,312       7,357,180  

Lam Research Corp.

    29,733       10,171,065  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – (continued)  

Microchip Technology, Inc.

    73,458     $ 7,718,967  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    223,289       27,544,931  

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

    18,073       2,553,534  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    185,977       26,890,414  
              86,185,823  
Software – 7.0%  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    53,053       6,009,313  

Intuit, Inc.

    23,320       7,338,338  

Microsoft Corp.

    260,018       52,645,845  

Oracle Corp.

    409,266       22,963,915  
              88,957,411  
Specialty Retail – 5.4%  

Aaron’s Holdings Co., Inc.

    116,017       6,063,049  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    69,960       7,804,038  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    98,527       26,278,136  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    132,924       21,015,284  

Tractor Supply Co.

    49,555       6,601,222  
              67,761,729  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 9.3%  

Apple, Inc.

    984,284       107,149,156  

NetApp, Inc.

    120,098       5,271,101  

Seagate Technology plc(a)

    120,098       5,743,087  
              118,163,344  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.6%  

Hanesbrands, Inc.(a)

    437,250       7,026,607  
Tobacco – 1.8%  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    315,403       22,399,921  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.6%  

WW Grainger, Inc.(a)

    20,405       7,142,158  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $1,138,758,079)

 

    1,260,093,412  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      303  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 5.3%  
CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT – 1.1%  

Bank of Nova Scotia, Houston

 

 

(ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/21/2021(d)

  $ 3,000,000     $ 3,000,633  

Cooperatieve Rabobank UA, London

 

 

(ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.08%), 0.29%, 7/30/2021(d)

    3,000,000       3,001,170  

Nordea Bank Abp, New York Branch

 

 

(ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.03%), 0.27%, 10/7/2021(d)

    3,000,000       2,999,532  

Royal Bank of Canada, New York

 

 

(ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.04%), 0.27%, 10/5/2021(d)

    1,000,000       999,868  

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank Ltd., New York

 

 

(ICE LIBOR USD 3 Month + 0.09%), 0.34%, 12/11/2020(d)

    4,000,000       4,000,000  
Total Certificates of Deposit
(Cost $13,999,811)

 

    14,001,203  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 4.2%  

BofA Securities, Inc., 0.53%, dated 10/30/2020, due 2/1/2021, repurchase price $8,011,071, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $8,696,146

    8,000,000       8,000,000  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $3,100,028, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $3,144,026

    3,100,000       3,100,000  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $15,820,262, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $16,097,316

  $ 15,820,170     $ 15,820,170  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $5,700,095, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $5,811,524

    5,700,000       5,700,000  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $20,000,300, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $22,014,463

    20,000,000       20,000,000  
Total Repurchase Agreements
(Cost $52,620,170)

 

    52,620,170  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $66,619,981)

 

    66,621,373  
Total Investments – 104.9%
(Cost $1,205,378,060)

 

    1,326,714,785  

Liabilities in excess of other assets – (4.9%)

 

    (61,538,180
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 1,265,176,605  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

304    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $78,388,967, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $66,619,988 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments and $14,667,980 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050; a total value of $81,287,968.

 

(b) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $66,621,373.

 

(d) 

Variable or floating rate security, linked to the referenced benchmark. The interest rate shown is the rate in effect as of October 31, 2020.

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ICE – Intercontinental Exchange

LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate

USD – US Dollar

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 192,538,806  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (71,049,213

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 121,489,593  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 1,205,103,322  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
  Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    28       12/18/2020     USD   $ 4,570,580     $ (121,870

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      305  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.6%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.4%  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    16,405     $ 5,743,883  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.5%  

CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.(a)

    24,318       2,150,441  
Banks – 4.0%  

Bank of America Corp.

    59,637       1,413,397  

Citigroup, Inc.

    4,053       167,875  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    133,170       13,055,987  

Wells Fargo & Co.

    76,814       1,647,660  
              16,284,919  
Beverages – 1.2%  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    100,746       4,841,853  
Biotechnology – 4.1%  

AbbVie, Inc.

    45,548       3,876,135  

Amgen, Inc.(a)

    38,407       8,332,014  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

    82,411       4,792,200  
              17,000,349  
Capital Markets – 1.8%  

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.

    35,705       3,370,552  

MarketAxess Holdings, Inc.

    1,351       727,986  

MSCI, Inc.

    2,316       810,230  

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

    18,721       2,371,202  
              7,279,970  
Chemicals – 1.0%  

CF Industries Holdings, Inc.

    52,110       1,438,757  

Dow, Inc.

    18,721       851,618  

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (The)

    13,510       2,027,176  
              4,317,551  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 1.2%  

Cintas Corp.

    7,913       2,489,034  

Rollins, Inc.

    41,109       2,378,156  
              4,867,190  
Communications Equipment – 3.0%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    266,726       9,575,463  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Communications Equipment – (continued)  

Motorola Solutions, Inc.

    16,598     $ 2,623,480  
              12,198,943  
Consumer Finance – 0.4%  

Synchrony Financial

    69,866       1,748,047  
Containers & Packaging – 0.7%  

International Paper Co.

    64,076       2,803,325  
Distributors – 0.6%  

Pool Corp.

    7,141       2,498,136  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.1%  

Service Corp. International

    11,966       554,145  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 3.6%  

AT&T, Inc.

    165,015       4,458,705  

CenturyLink, Inc.(a)

    52,110       449,188  

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.

    32,424       1,809,259  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    139,346       7,941,329  
              14,658,481  
Electric Utilities – 3.5%  

Evergy, Inc.

    35,319       1,949,609  

Exelon Corp.

    68,515       2,733,063  

FirstEnergy Corp.

    8,106       240,910  

IDACORP, Inc.

    1,351       118,523  

OGE Energy Corp.

    53,075       1,633,118  

Portland General Electric Co.

    39,179       1,539,735  

PPL Corp.

    75,077       2,064,618  

Southern Co. (The)

    69,094       3,969,450  
              14,249,026  
Electrical Equipment – 0.3%  

Eaton Corp. plc

    11,194       1,161,825  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.2%  

CDW Corp.

    5,790       709,854  
Entertainment – 0.9%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

    50,759       3,843,979  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

306    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 6.5%  

American Tower Corp.

    5,790     $ 1,329,674  

CoreSite Realty Corp.

    16,405       1,958,101  

Crown Castle International Corp.

    11,966       1,869,089  

CubeSmart(a)

    73,726       2,501,523  

CyrusOne, Inc.

    6,948       493,655  

Equity Residential

    32,617       1,532,347  

Extra Space Storage, Inc.

    22,774       2,640,645  

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc.

    12,506       454,593  

Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc.

    65,234       1,813,505  

Life Storage, Inc.

    22,002       2,511,528  

National Health Investors, Inc.(a)

    35,705       2,001,265  

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.(a)

    16,984       489,309  

Public Storage

    12,931       2,962,104  

SBA Communications Corp.

    3,281       952,704  

Simon Property Group, Inc.(a)

    23,160       1,454,680  

Welltower, Inc.

    31,845       1,712,306  
              26,677,028  
Food & Staples Retailing – 3.1%  

Walmart, Inc.

    93,026       12,907,357  
Food Products – 0.8%  

General Mills, Inc.

    41,495       2,453,185  

Hershey Co. (The)

    5,018       689,774  
              3,142,959  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.8%  

Abbott Laboratories

    2,895       304,293  

Medtronic plc

    19,300       1,941,001  

ResMed, Inc.

    4,439       852,022  
              3,097,316  
Health Care Providers & Services – 3.9%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    23,160       2,224,981  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    45,548       13,898,517  
              16,123,498  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.8%  

Domino’s Pizza, Inc.

    1,544       584,126  

McDonald’s Corp.

    20,072       4,275,336  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Yum! Brands, Inc.

    26,634     $ 2,485,751  
              7,345,213  
Household Durables – 0.6%  

Newell Brands, Inc.

    28,757       507,849  

PulteGroup, Inc.

    50,373       2,053,203  
              2,561,052  
Household Products – 2.1%  

Church & Dwight Co., Inc.

    8,685       767,667  

Clorox Co. (The)(a)

    3,667       759,986  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    51,917       7,117,821  
              8,645,474  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.1%
 

NextEra Energy Partners LP(a)

    6,948       436,334  
Insurance – 3.4%  

Aflac, Inc.

    55,584       1,887,077  

Aon plc, Class A(a)

    15,247       2,805,600  

Brown & Brown, Inc.

    12,931       562,628  

Fidelity National Financial, Inc.(a)

    14,089       440,845  

Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (The)(a)

    17,370       1,661,614  

Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

    14,861       572,446  

MetLife, Inc.

    57,514       2,176,905  

Progressive Corp. (The)

    38,600       3,547,340  

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd.

    2,895       468,179  
              14,122,634  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 0.5%  

eBay, Inc.

    46,513       2,215,414  
IT Services – 4.2%  

Amdocs Ltd.

    8,299       467,898  

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp.

    5,018       393,913  

International Business Machines Corp.

    58,286       6,508,215  

Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.

    11,387       1,688,123  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    5,211       1,504,103  

Paychex, Inc.(a)

    28,564       2,349,389  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      307  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – (continued)  

Visa, Inc., Class A(a)

    13,896     $ 2,525,042  

Western Union Co. (The)(a)

    95,535       1,857,200  
              17,293,883  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.0%(b)  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

    193       91,312  
Machinery – 0.5%  

Cummins, Inc.

    4,053       891,214  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

    5,597       1,096,341  
              1,987,555  
Media – 2.3%  

Cable One, Inc.(a)

    282       488,385  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    109,624       4,630,518  

Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. (The)

    25,283       457,369  

New York Times Co. (The), Class A(a)

    50,952       2,020,756  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    42,653       2,013,222  
              9,610,250  
Metals & Mining – 0.3%  

Newmont Corp.

    22,388       1,406,862  
Multiline Retail – 0.5%  

Target Corp.

    13,896       2,115,249  
Multi-Utilities – 2.8%  

Dominion Energy, Inc.

    55,005       4,419,102  

NorthWestern Corp.

    29,722       1,549,408  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

    46,320       2,693,508  

WEC Energy Group, Inc.

    27,406       2,755,673  
              11,417,691  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 1.5%  

Antero Midstream Corp.

    12,352       70,777  

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.

    112,905       2,008,580  

Chevron Corp.

    49,215       3,420,443  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    4,053       132,209  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

    59,637       709,680  
              6,341,689  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – 6.4%  

Eli Lilly and Co.

    56,549     $ 7,377,382  

Johnson & Johnson

    102,290       14,024,982  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    27,406       2,061,205  

Pfizer, Inc.

    77,393       2,745,904  
              26,209,473  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 4.4%  

Broadcom, Inc.

    8,299       2,901,579  

Intel Corp.

    34,161       1,512,649  

KLA Corp.(a)

    12,159       2,397,512  

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

    17,370       2,454,207  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    60,216       8,706,632  
              17,972,579  
Software – 6.2%  

CDK Global, Inc.(a)

    31,459       1,355,883  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    16,791       1,901,917  

Microsoft Corp.

    92,640       18,756,821  

Oracle Corp.

    60,795       3,411,207  
              25,425,828  
Specialty Retail – 4.7%  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    22,195       2,475,852  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    51,917       13,846,783  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    16,598       2,624,144  

Tractor Supply Co.

    1,737       231,386  
              19,178,165  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 9.0%  

Apple, Inc.

    317,292       34,540,407  

Seagate Technology plc

    50,180       2,399,608  
              36,940,015  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.6%  

Hanesbrands, Inc.(a)

    141,662       2,276,508  
Tobacco – 2.4%  

Altria Group, Inc.

    73,340       2,646,107  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    102,097       7,250,929  
              9,897,036  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 1.7%  

Fastenal Co.

    51,724       2,236,028  

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc., Class A

    6,948       483,998  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

308    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Trading Companies & Distributors – (continued)  

Watsco, Inc.(a)

    9,264     $ 2,076,433  

WW Grainger, Inc.

    6,755       2,364,385  
              7,160,844  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $375,996,148)

 

    409,511,135  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 2.0%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 2.0%  

BofA Securities, Inc., 0.53%, dated 10/30/2020, due 2/1/2021, repurchase price $1,001,384, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $1,087,018

  $ 1,000,000       1,000,000  

Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., 0.11%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $1,200,011, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 0.50% – 1.88%, maturing 11/30/2021 – 3/15/2023; Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 11/15/2023 – 12/15/2025; total market value $1,217,043

    1,200,000       1,200,000  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $3,602,132, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $3,665,214

    3,602,111       3,602,111  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – (continued)  

Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, 0.20%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $2,300,038, collateralized by various Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, ranging from 0.25% – 0.50%, maturing 10/19/2023 – 10/28/2025; total market value $2,345,001

  $ 2,300,000     $ 2,300,000  
        8,102,111  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $8,102,111)

 

    8,102,111  
Total Investments – 101.6%
(Cost $384,098,259)

 

    417,613,246  

Liabilities in excess of other assets – (1.6%)

 

    (6,440,452
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 411,172,794  

 

(a)  

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $27,769,586, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $8,102,111 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments and $20,687,869 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050; a total value of $28,789,980.

 

(b) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $8,102,111.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 56,681,922  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (23,509,794

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 33,172,128  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 384,406,936  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      309  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts     

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:    

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
  Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Depreciation*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

S&P 500 E-Mini Index

    9       12/18/2020     USD   $ 1,469,115     $ (34,182

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Abbreviations:

 

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

310    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 99.3%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.4%  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

    528     $ 184,869  
Auto Components – 0.5%  

Gentex Corp.(a)

    2,448       67,736  
Automobiles – 0.1%  

Thor Industries, Inc.

    144       12,179  
Banks – 6.0%  

Bank of America Corp.

    2,904       68,825  

Citigroup, Inc.

    4,320       178,934  

Comerica, Inc.

    474       21,572  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

    4,170       408,827  

Western Alliance Bancorp(a)

    1,536       63,283  

Zions Bancorp NA

    1,584       51,116  
              792,557  
Beverages – 0.2%  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

    558       26,817  
Biotechnology – 3.0%              

AbbVie, Inc.

    1,422       121,012  

Amgen, Inc.(a)

    1,236       268,138  
              389,150  
Building Products – 2.3%  

A O Smith Corp.

    1,434       74,123  

Armstrong World Industries, Inc.

    192       11,501  

Masco Corp.

    1,326       71,074  

Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc.

    726       64,411  

Trane Technologies plc

    666       88,411  
              309,520  
Capital Markets – 4.7%  

Ameriprise Financial, Inc.

    486       78,163  

Eaton Vance Corp.

    360       21,524  

Lazard Ltd., Class A

    1,752       58,990  

LPL Financial Holdings, Inc.

    822       65,702  

MarketAxess Holdings, Inc.

    36       19,399  

Morgan Stanley

    2,550       122,783  

MSCI, Inc.

    78       27,288  

S&P Global, Inc.

    462       149,101  

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

    612       77,516  
              620,466  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Chemicals – 4.0%  

Celanese Corp.

    594     $ 67,425  

Dow, Inc.

    1,800       81,882  

Eastman Chemical Co.

    1,002       81,002  

FMC Corp.

    702       72,123  

Huntsman Corp.

    810       19,675  

LyondellBasell Industries NV, Class A

    300       20,535  

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (The)

    444       66,622  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

    174       119,709  
              528,973  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.6%  

Cintas Corp.

    258       81,154  
Communications Equipment – 2.4%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

    8,922       320,300  
Consumer Finance – 1.6%  

Discover Financial Services

    1,116       72,551  

OneMain Holdings, Inc.

    2,280       79,549  

Synchrony Financial

    2,184       54,644  
              206,744  
Containers & Packaging – 0.6%  

International Paper Co.

    1,842       80,587  
Distributors – 0.6%  

Pool Corp.

    222       77,662  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 2.7%  

AT&T, Inc.

    5,232       141,369  

CenturyLink, Inc.(a)

    1,848       15,930  

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.

    132       7,365  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

    3,342       190,460  
              355,124  
Electric Utilities – 0.9%  

OGE Energy Corp.

    1,758       54,094  

PPL Corp.

    2,346       64,515  
              118,609  
Electrical Equipment – 2.1%  

Eaton Corp. plc

    378       39,232  

Emerson Electric Co.

    1,278       82,802  

Hubbell, Inc.

    480       69,845  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      311  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Electrical Equipment – (continued)  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

    348     $ 82,518  
              274,397  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.3%  

Amphenol Corp., Class A

    192       21,665  

CDW Corp.

    186       22,804  
              44,469  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.5%  

Baker Hughes Co.(a)

    4,518       66,731  

Halliburton Co.(a)

    270       3,256  
              69,987  
Entertainment – 0.9%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

    1,602       121,319  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 1.5%  

Equinix, Inc.

    66       48,262  

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc.

    389       14,140  

Highwoods Properties, Inc.

    1,452       43,226  

Lamar Advertising Co., Class A

    222       13,755  

National Health Investors, Inc.

    1,146       64,233  

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.

    414       11,928  
              195,544  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.2%  

Walmart, Inc.

    144       19,980  
Food Products – 0.6%  

General Mills, Inc.

    1,314       77,684  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.7%  

Abbott Laboratories

    90       9,460  

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc.

    600       54,642  

Teleflex, Inc.

    12       3,819  

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.

    78       21,221  
              89,142  
Health Care Providers & Services – 1.8%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

    108       10,376  

Cardinal Health, Inc.

    1,236       56,596  

Humana, Inc.

    276       110,201  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

    204       62,249  
              239,422  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.2%  

Domino’s Pizza, Inc.

    48     $ 18,160  

Wendy’s Co. (The)

    318       6,948  
              25,108  
Household Durables – 0.9%  

DR Horton, Inc.

    348       23,250  

Lennar Corp., Class A

    324       22,754  

Whirlpool Corp.(a)

    408       75,464  
              121,468  
Household Products – 0.6%  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

    576       78,970  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 1.1%
 

AES Corp. (The)

    3,714       72,423  

NextEra Energy Partners LP(a)

    1,122       70,462  
              142,885  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.3%  

Honeywell International, Inc.

    216       35,629  
Insurance – 0.9%  

MetLife, Inc.

    2,094       79,258  

Unum Group

    2,496       44,079  
              123,337  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 0.6%  

eBay, Inc.

    1,524       72,588  
IT Services – 3.3%  

International Business Machines Corp.(a)

    1,848       206,348  

Leidos Holdings, Inc.

    156       12,948  

Mastercard, Inc., Class A

    276       79,665  

Visa, Inc., Class A(a)

    444       80,679  

Western Union Co. (The)

    3,006       58,436  
              438,076  
Leisure Products – 0.6%  

Brunswick Corp.

    276       17,584  

Polaris, Inc.

    678       61,603  
              79,187  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 1.2%  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

    330       156,130  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

312    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Machinery – 2.4%  

Caterpillar, Inc.

    462     $ 72,557  

Cummins, Inc.

    138       30,345  

Dover Corp.

    684       75,726  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

    672       131,631  

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc.

    54       5,498  
              315,757  
Media – 3.3%  

Cable One, Inc.

    6       10,391  

Comcast Corp., Class A

    3,558       150,290  

Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. (The)

    3,894       70,442  

New York Times Co. (The), Class A

    1,602       63,535  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

    1,398       65,986  

Sirius XM Holdings, Inc.(a)

    12,096       69,310  
              429,954  
Metals & Mining – 1.5%  

Commercial Metals Co.

    3,132       64,676  

Newmont Corp.

    750       47,130  

Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co.

    648       70,626  

Steel Dynamics, Inc.

    636       20,021  
              202,453  
Multiline Retail – 0.5%  

Target Corp.

    456       69,412  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 3.0%  

Antero Midstream Corp.

    9,456       54,183  

Apache Corp.

    1,248       10,358  

Chevron Corp.

    1,548       107,586  

Devon Energy Corp.

    1,140       10,180  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

    1,182       38,557  

HollyFrontier Corp.

    1,674       30,986  

Plains GP Holdings LP, Class A*

    9,324       59,580  

Valero Energy Corp.

    372       14,363  

Williams Cos., Inc. (The)

    3,348       64,248  
              390,041  
Pharmaceuticals – 5.8%  

Johnson & Johnson

    3,384       463,980  

Merck & Co., Inc.

    2,124       159,746  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Pfizer, Inc.

    3,984     $ 141,353  
              765,079  
Professional Services – 1.1%  

ManpowerGroup, Inc.

    924       62,712  

Robert Half International, Inc.

    1,248       63,261  

TransUnion

    204       16,251  
              142,224  
Road & Rail – 0.2%  

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.

    114       21,702  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 7.3%  

Applied Materials, Inc.

    768       45,489  

Intel Corp.

    852       37,726  

KLA Corp.

    402       79,266  

Lam Research Corp.(a)

    312       106,729  

Microchip Technology, Inc.(a)

    720       75,658  

Monolithic Power Systems, Inc.

    66       21,094  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

    2,388       294,584  

Teradyne, Inc.

    252       22,138  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

    1,938       280,215  
              962,899  
Software – 6.2%  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

    96       10,874  

Intuit, Inc.

    168       52,866  

Microsoft Corp.

    3,354       679,084  

Oracle Corp.

    198       11,110  

SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc.

    1,176       69,643  
              823,577  
Specialty Retail – 5.3%  

Best Buy Co., Inc.

    732       81,655  

Camping World Holdings, Inc., Class A

    1,896       50,130  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

    858       228,837  

Lithia Motors, Inc., Class A(a)

    282       64,739  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

    1,572       248,533  

Williams-Sonoma, Inc.(a)

    204       18,607  
              692,501  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 9.2%  

Apple, Inc.

    10,152       1,105,148  

HP, Inc.

    624       11,207  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      313  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

NetApp, Inc.

    660     $ 28,967  

Seagate Technology plc

    1,500       71,730  
              1,217,052  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.5%  

Hanesbrands, Inc.

    4,428       71,158  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – 0.1%  

Radian Group, Inc.

    930       16,693  
Tobacco – 1.8%  

Altria Group, Inc.

    150       5,412  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

    3,240       230,105  
              235,517  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 1.2%  

Fastenal Co.

    1,632       70,552  

MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc., Class A

    270       18,808  

Watsco, Inc.(a)

    294       65,897  
              155,257  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $11,940,711)

 

    13,089,045  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(b) – 0.6%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.6%  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $77,040, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $78,389
(Cost $77,040)

  $ 77,040       77,040  
Total Investments – 99.9%
(Cost $12,017,751)

 

    13,166,085  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.1%

 

    14,734  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 13,180,819  
*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $972,749, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $77,040 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments and $929,424 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 5, 2020 – May 15, 2050; a total value of $1,006,464.

 

(b) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $77,040.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 1,993,031  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (844,502

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 1,148,529  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 12,017,556  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

314    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 97.3%  
Airlines – 0.8%  

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

    909,889     $ 1,134,603  

Qantas Airways Ltd.

    835,091       2,457,195  
              3,591,798  
Auto Components – 1.1%  

Bridgestone Corp.

    116,500       3,777,836  

Xinyi Glass Holdings Ltd.

    642,000       1,405,722  
              5,183,558  
Automobiles – 1.8%  

Ford Otomotiv Sanayi A/S

    287,325       3,701,670  

Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi A/S

    1,136,700       3,623,121  

Toyota Motor Corp.

    11,200       728,846  
              8,053,637  
Banks – 7.2%  

Absa Group Ltd.

    327,825       1,753,847  

Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    1,800,000       608,136  

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.(a)

    99,450       1,313,667  

Banco Santander Brasil SA

    292,800       1,627,513  

Banco Santander Brasil SA (Preference)

    292,500       870,500  

Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    4,275,000       1,350,606  

China Construction Bank Corp., Class H

    3,150,000       2,173,156  

China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd., Class H(a)

    1,350,000       738,119  

DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

    224,800       3,350,187  

DNB ASA

    79,425       1,069,375  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.(a)

    202,500       3,112,633  

National Bank of Canada(a)

    76,725       3,679,301  

Royal Bank of Canada

    155,475       10,862,901  
              32,509,941  
Beverages – 0.5%  

Carlsberg A/S, Class B

    5,400       683,507  

Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd.

    161,325       1,408,201  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Beverages – (continued)  

Diageo plc

    4,500     $ 145,404  
              2,237,112  
Building Products – 0.4%  

Geberit AG (Registered)

    3,375       1,922,154  
Capital Markets – 1.3%  

CSC Financial Co. Ltd., Class H(a)(b)

    225,000       271,572  

Deutsche Boerse AG

    7,650       1,125,918  

Magellan Financial Group Ltd.(a)

    23,175       896,733  

Moscow Exchange MICEX-RTS PJSC

    92,250       155,515  

Partners Group Holding AG

    3,825       3,449,615  
              5,899,353  
Chemicals – 1.9%  

Covestro AG(b)

    25,425       1,213,380  

Nissan Chemical Corp.

    8,500       448,824  

Nitto Denko Corp.

    14,900       1,041,888  

PhosAgro PJSC

    92,025       3,264,796  

Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd.

    13,100       1,740,568  

Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    4,050,000       746,823  
              8,456,279  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.1%  

Country Garden Services Holdings Co. Ltd.

    49,000       307,401  
Construction & Engineering – 0.9%  

Obayashi Corp.

    67,500       561,746  

Taisei Corp.

    109,000       3,383,442  
              3,945,188  
Construction Materials – 0.4%  

China Resources Cement Holdings Ltd.

    1,490,000       1,944,435  
Diversified Financial Services – 2.8%  

Banca Mediolanum SpA

    460,575       3,143,895  

M&G plc

    1,538,775       2,917,801  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      315  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Financial Services – (continued)  

Power Finance Corp. Ltd.

    2,729,475     $ 3,208,006  

REC Ltd.

    2,335,050       3,240,696  
              12,510,398  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 2.8%  

Elisa OYJ

    6,525       321,051  

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization SA

    21,600       287,336  

Koninklijke KPN NV

    1,402,650       3,790,594  

O2 Czech Republic A/S*(a)

    353,475       3,312,736  

Proximus SADP

    110,925       2,157,178  

Spark New Zealand Ltd.

    70,754       209,958  

Swisscom AG (Registered)

    3,150       1,602,580  

Telefonica SA(a)

    37,561       122,771  

Telenor ASA

    68,625       1,056,780  
              12,860,984  
Electric Utilities – 1.5%  

Fortum OYJ

    109,350       2,057,128  

Red Electrica Corp. SA

    70,200       1,236,809  

SSE plc

    229,801       3,729,015  
              7,022,952  
Electrical Equipment – 0.7%  

Mitsubishi Electric Corp.

    239,300       3,067,362  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.2%  

Yageo Corp.

    73,000       907,284  
Entertainment – 1.6%  

NetEase, Inc., ADR

    5,625       488,194  

Nintendo Co. Ltd.

    12,500       6,813,181  
              7,301,375  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.9%  

Gecina SA

    27,900       3,464,427  

RioCan REIT(a)

    41,625       448,920  
              3,913,347  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.2%  

Etablissements Franz Colruyt NV

    1,350       79,917  

Kobe Bussan Co. Ltd.(a)

    8,600       242,271  

President Chain Store Corp.

    91,000       820,808  
              1,142,996  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Food Products – 2.3%  

Dali Foods Group Co. Ltd.(b)

    337,500     $ 208,902  

Nestle SA (Registered)

    72,900       8,200,306  

Uni-President Enterprises Corp.

    450,000       964,392  

Want Want China Holdings Ltd.(a)

    1,575,000       1,039,865  
              10,413,465  
Gas Utilities – 1.7%  

Enagas SA

    141,325       3,050,453  

Naturgy Energy Group SA(a)

    162,675       3,022,397  

Snam SpA

    303,075       1,479,225  
              7,552,075  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.2%  

Coloplast A/S, Class B

    2,025       295,538  

Hoya Corp.

    4,900       553,090  
              848,628  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.2%  

Evolution Gaming Group AB(b)

    52,200       3,876,375  

Genting Singapore Ltd.

    2,002,500       945,890  

Kangwon Land, Inc.

    36,900       686,164  
              5,508,429  
Household Durables – 1.8%  

Casio Computer Co. Ltd.(a)

    235,500       3,557,055  

Nien Made Enterprise Co. Ltd.

    143,000       1,609,803  

Sekisui House Ltd.

    191,000       3,154,405  
              8,321,263  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.4%
 

Unipro PJSC

    56,025,000       1,821,980  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.3%  

Alfa SAB de CV, Class A

    2,070,000       1,378,541  
Insurance – 6.8%  

Ageas SA

    19,125       769,696  

AIA Group Ltd.

    45,000       423,896  

Allianz SE (Registered)

    45,900       8,076,667  

ASR Nederland NV

    56,700       1,723,827  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

316    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

Aviva plc

    583,650     $ 1,943,248  

BB Seguridade Participacoes SA

    540,000       2,217,690  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

    883,125       3,008,855  

IRB Brasil Resseguros S/A

    2,295,000       2,443,861  

Legal & General Group plc

    242,550       579,565  

Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG in Muenchen (Registered)

    5,175       1,210,442  

Poste Italiane SpA(b)

    26,550       216,487  

Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.

    86,200       3,841,647  

UnipolSai Assicurazioni SpA(a)

    330,374       767,363  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

    10,800       3,582,129  
              30,805,373  
Interactive Media & Services – 1.6%  

Kakaku.com, Inc.

    14,100       373,743  

Tencent Holdings Ltd.

    91,300       6,958,007  
              7,331,750  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.3%  

CJ ENM Co. Ltd.

    22,500       2,607,518  

ZOZO, Inc.

    127,400       3,230,700  
              5,838,218  
IT Services – 1.8%  

Amadeus IT Group SA

    11,025       526,413  

Capgemini SE

    13,500       1,559,024  

Edenred

    25,650       1,196,331  

Infosys Ltd.

    29,475       421,836  

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

    62,600       1,853,329  

Otsuka Corp.

    22,500       1,037,402  

SCSK Corp.

    29,400       1,459,594  
              8,053,929  
Leisure Products – 0.5%  

Bandai Namco Holdings, Inc.(a)

    21,300       1,584,358  

Yamaha Corp.

    16,100       757,720  
              2,342,078  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Machinery – 2.9%  

Atlas Copco AB, Class B

    10,800     $ 414,108  

Epiroc AB, Class A

    75,150       1,122,883  

Epiroc AB, Class B

    9,675       138,693  

Komatsu Ltd.

    67,500       1,511,551  

Kone OYJ, Class B

    50,175       3,994,224  

MINEBEA MITSUMI, Inc.

    48,300       865,833  

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

    45,000       961,857  

Rational AG

    675       505,967  

Schindler Holding AG

    1,125       287,832  

Schindler Holding AG (Registered)

    450       115,575  

Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd.

    1,198,500       3,053,877  
              12,972,400  
Media – 0.2%  

Publicis Groupe SA

    32,758       1,137,113  
Metals & Mining – 6.5%  

BHP Group Ltd.

    81,450       1,932,157  

BHP Group plc

    34,875       671,981  

Eregli Demir ve Celik Fabrikalari TAS

    933,525       1,061,254  

Evraz plc

    777,600       3,614,545  

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

    303,525       3,702,423  

Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd.

    1,575       71,701  

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd.

    114,075       3,372,036  

Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works PJSC

    3,847,500       1,822,889  

Novolipetsk Steel PJSC

    1,667,250       3,901,349  

Rio Tinto plc

    94,500       5,323,753  

Severstal PAO

    263,025       3,594,909  

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.

    12,375       567,449  
              29,636,446  
Multiline Retail – 0.9%  

Wesfarmers Ltd.

    124,425       4,015,868  
Multi-Utilities – 0.8%  

A2A SpA

    556,650       707,744  

AGL Energy Ltd.

    331,200       2,902,663  
              3,610,407  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      317  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 5.6%  

BP plc

    1,126,575     $ 2,863,797  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

    201,825       3,208,977  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    2,250,000       3,887,890  

CNOOC Ltd.

    1,469,000       1,333,586  

Ecopetrol SA

    6,102,000       2,835,194  

Equinor ASA

    74,025       938,976  

Exxaro Resources Ltd.

    143,563       963,316  

Formosa Petrochemical Corp.

    300,000       824,375  

LUKOIL PJSC

    49,275       2,507,531  

Lundin Energy AB

    52,200       996,070  

Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd.

    3,372,075       2,953,111  

Origin Energy Ltd.

    28,800       80,899  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A

    48,600       606,655  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class B

    23,400       281,080  

Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    1,350,000       980,096  
              25,261,553  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.8%  

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

    136,350       3,853,150  
Personal Products – 3.2%  

Hengan International Group Co. Ltd.

    97,000       672,321  

L’Oreal SA

    27,675       8,952,277  

Pola Orbis Holdings, Inc.

    54,700       1,076,838  

Unilever NV(a)

    63,000       3,562,868  

Unilever plc

    1,800       102,499  
              14,366,803  
Pharmaceuticals – 7.8%  

China Medical System Holdings Ltd.

    225,000       235,594  

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    13,800       530,800  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

    550,125       9,188,724  

Livzon Pharmaceutical Group, Inc., Class H

    292,500       1,289,967  

Novartis AG (Registered)

    88,875       6,932,163  

Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B

    63,000       4,046,758  

Orion OYJ, Class B

    76,275       3,265,198  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Roche Holding AG

    28,350     $ 9,116,974  

Roche Holding AG – BR

    675       217,402  

Sanofi

    4,275       385,282  

Shionogi & Co. Ltd.

    5,700       268,479  
              35,477,341  
Professional Services – 1.3%  

Nihon M&A Center, Inc.

    45,000       2,630,094  

SGS SA (Registered)

    900       2,249,632  

Thomson Reuters Corp.

    15,525       1,206,044  
              6,085,770  
Real Estate Management & Development – 3.1%  

Agile Group Holdings Ltd.(a)

    686,000       937,684  

CK Asset Holdings Ltd.

    39,000       180,545  

Country Garden Holdings Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,386,894       1,706,154  

Daito Trust Construction Co. Ltd.

    34,300       3,113,708  

Land & Houses PCL, NVDR

    11,025,000       2,263,897  

Logan Group Co. Ltd.(a)

    1,410,000       2,203,679  

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

    305,000       3,899,592  
              14,305,259  
Road & Rail – 0.7%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.

    1,073,475       2,842,006  

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.

    675       201,556  
              3,043,562  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 4.6%  

ASM International NV

    7,425       1,062,099  

ASML Holding NV

    3,150       1,144,815  

Globalwafers Co. Ltd.

    72,000       1,044,627  

Novatek Microelectronics Corp.

    410,000       3,827,154  

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    579,222       8,748,017  

Tokyo Electron Ltd.

    16,400       4,376,889  

United Microelectronics Corp.

    450,000       482,983  
              20,686,584  
Software – 0.2%  

SAP SE

    8,325       887,213  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

318    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Specialty Retail – 0.9%  

Nitori Holdings Co. Ltd.

    3,800     $ 783,337  

Topsports International Holdings Ltd.(b)

    450,000       615,099  

USS Co. Ltd.

    152,900       2,793,562  
              4,191,998  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 3.5%  

Brother Industries Ltd.

    104,000       1,597,704  

Canon, Inc.(a)

    65,400       1,126,389  

Chicony Electronics Co. Ltd.

    1,127,000       3,392,406  

Inventec Corp.

    1,575,000       1,244,428  

Lite-On Technology Corp.

    675,000       1,098,511  

Pegatron Corp.

    1,579,000       3,394,987  

Quanta Computer, Inc.

    401,000       1,009,387  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

    63,225       3,153,728  
              16,017,540  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 2.2%  

Eclat Textile Co. Ltd.

    62,000       820,424  

Hermes International

    1,800       1,675,287  

Li Ning Co. Ltd.

    337,500       1,740,846  

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

    900       421,757  

Pandora A/S

    57,375       4,544,075  

Swatch Group AG (The)(a)

    4,050       857,016  
              10,059,405  
Tobacco – 1.8%  

Imperial Brands plc

    227,025       3,592,970  

Japan Tobacco, Inc.

    207,500       3,910,226  

Swedish Match AB

    6,075       457,682  
              7,960,878  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.9%  

ITOCHU Corp.(a)

    77,600       1,855,749  

Marubeni Corp.

    180,000       935,298  

Toyota Tsusho Corp.

    40,800       1,131,425  
              3,922,472  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.6%  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SAB de CV, Class B

    22,500       186,672  

Sydney Airport

    627,121       2,400,157  
              2,586,829  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Water Utilities – 0.6%  

Aguas Andinas SA, Class A

    10,255,050     $ 2,661,308  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 1.2%  

NTT DOCOMO, Inc.

    147,900       5,499,209  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $452,696,837)

 

    441,232,391  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 0.0%(d)  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.0%(d)  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $121,447, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $123,574 (Cost $121,447)

  $ 121,447       121,447  
Total Investments – 97.3%
(Cost $452,818,284)

 

    441,353,838  

Other assets less liabilities – 2.7%

 

    12,122,743  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 453,476,581  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $16,663,333, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $121,447 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $7,817,768 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from November 12, 2020 – November 15, 2049 and $10,051,673 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.25%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $17,990,888.

 

(b) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      319  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $121,447.

 

(d) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ADR – American Depositary Receipt

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 44,411,419  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (57,601,706

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (13,190,287

Federal income tax cost

  $ 453,990,578  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

EURO STOXX 50 Index

    93       12/18/2020       EUR     $ 3,205,516     $ (386,091

FTSE 100 Index

    30       12/18/2020       GBP       2,158,082       (167,169

Hang Seng Index

    2       11/27/2020       HKD       311,508       (7,876

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    53       12/18/2020       USD       2,920,035       33,956  

S&P/TSX 60 Index

    5       12/17/2020       CAD       694,041       (23,741

SPI 200 Index

    10       12/17/2020       AUD       1,034,063       2,023  

TOPIX Index

    13       12/10/2020       JPY       1,956,094       (39,454
                                    $ (588,352

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

GBP

    348,010       Morgan Stanley   USD     445,666       12/16/2020     $ 4,461  

HKD

    6,971,184       Citibank NA   USD     898,893       12/16/2020       16  

HKD

    3,210,000       Morgan Stanley   USD     413,827       12/16/2020       91  

JPY

    109,493,684       Citibank NA   USD     1,037,577       12/16/2020       10,458  

JPY

    98,140,675       Morgan Stanley   USD     925,664       12/16/2020       13,704  

USD

    393,086       UBS AG   AUD     540,431       12/16/2020       13,479  

USD

    521,040       Goldman Sachs & Co.   BRL*     2,783,346       12/16/2020       39,195  

USD

    38,123       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CAD     50,000       12/16/2020       616  

USD

    464,461       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CHF     420,809       12/16/2020       4,701  

USD

    264,471       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   CHF     240,000       12/16/2020       2,255  

USD

    289,402       Morgan Stanley   CZK     6,474,570       12/16/2020       12,766  

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

320    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts (cont.)

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    591,385       JPMorgan Chase Bank   EUR     500,000       12/16/2020     $ 8,343  

USD

    914,871       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   EUR     770,000       12/16/2020       16,986  

USD

    746,354       Morgan Stanley   GBP     570,000       12/16/2020       9,096  

USD

    56,759       BNP Paribas SA   HKD     440,000       12/16/2020       23  

USD

    1,307,267       UBS AG   HKD     10,137,813       12/16/2020       32  

USD

    98,900       Citibank NA   INR*     7,340,681       12/16/2020       233  

USD

    604,126       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   JPY     62,960,000       12/16/2020       1,495  

USD

    45,522       Morgan Stanley   NOK     420,000       12/16/2020       1,592  

USD

    6,586       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   NOK     59,248       12/16/2020       389  

USD

    116,130       JPMorgan Chase Bank   NZD     174,054       12/16/2020       1,094  

USD

    2,051,224       Citibank NA   PLN     7,665,089       12/16/2020       117,182  

USD

    261,806       Goldman Sachs & Co.   RUB*     20,270,000       12/16/2020       7,996  

USD

    65,859       Morgan Stanley   SEK     580,000       12/16/2020       661  

USD

    29,519       UBS AG   SGD     40,000       12/16/2020       225  

USD

    168,941       Goldman Sachs & Co.   TRY     1,301,646       12/16/2020       17,073  

ZAR

    3,371,713         Morgan Stanley   USD     200,128       12/17/2020       6,289  

Total unrealized appreciation

                  $ 290,451  

AUD

    948,315       Citibank NA   USD     691,775       12/16/2020       (25,662

BRL*

    760,000       Citibank NA   USD     136,920       12/16/2020       (5,351

CAD

    274,850       Morgan Stanley   USD     208,438       12/16/2020       (2,259

CHF

    1,064,380       Citibank NA   USD     1,177,229       12/16/2020       (14,325

EUR

    1,282,609       Citibank NA   USD     1,525,746       12/16/2020       (30,116

EUR

    914,497       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     1,085,431       12/16/2020       (19,050

GBP

    510,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     661,703       12/16/2020       (2,051

INR*

    11,580,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     157,489       12/16/2020       (1,842

PLN

    6,488,602       Citibank NA   USD     1,733,761       12/16/2020       (96,568

RUB*

    38,148,601       Citibank NA   USD     499,106       12/16/2020       (21,429

SEK

    1,319,475       Morgan Stanley   USD     150,959       12/16/2020       (2,637

SGD

    17,194       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     12,600       12/16/2020       (8

TWD*

    3,440,000       JPMorgan Chase Bank   USD     121,930       12/16/2020       (1,645

USD

    446,799       JPMorgan Chase Bank   JPY     47,260,000       12/16/2020       (5,557

USD

    277,232       Citibank NA   KRW*     328,849,715       12/16/2020       (12,577

USD

    170,959       Citibank NA   TWD*     4,953,516       12/16/2020       (2,247

USD

    283,574       Goldman Sachs & Co.   ZAR     4,817,935       12/17/2020       (11,381

USD

    70,074         UBS AG   ZAR     1,160,000       12/17/2020       (941

Total unrealized depreciation

                  $ (255,646

Net unrealized appreciation

                  $ 34,805  

 

*

Non-deliverable forward. See Note 2 in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

BRL – Brazilian Real

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

CZK – Czech Koruna

EUR – Euro

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      321  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

GBP – British Pound

HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

INR – Indian Rupee

JPY – Japanese Yen

KRW – Korean Won

NOK – Norwegian Krone

NZD – New Zealand Dollar

PLN – Polish Zloty

RUB – Russian Ruble

SEK – Swedish Krona

SGD – Singapore Dollar

TRY – Turkish Lira

TWD – Taiwan Dollar

USD – US Dollar

ZAR – South African Rand

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    5.3

Belgium

    0.7

Brazil

    1.6

Canada

    4.5

Chile

    0.6

China

    7.8

Colombia

    0.6

Czech Republic

    0.7

Denmark

    2.1

Finland

    3.0

France

    4.1

Germany

    2.9

Greece

    0.1

Hong Kong

    2.0

India

    2.2

Italy

    1.4

Japan

    17.2

Mexico

    0.3

Netherlands

    2.5

New Zealand

     0.0   

Norway

    0.7

Russia

    3.8

Singapore

    0.9

South Africa

    1.3

South Korea

    1.4

Spain

    1.8

Sweden

    1.5

Switzerland

    8.5

Taiwan

    6.7

Thailand

    0.5

Turkey

    1.8

United Kingdom

    8.8

Other1

    2.7  
      100.0

 

 

Amount represents less than 0.05%.

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

322    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments    Shares      Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.1%  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.6%  

Deutsche Post AG (Registered)

     1,023      $ 45,330  

SG Holdings Co. Ltd.

     6,200        149,158  

Sinotrans Ltd., Class H

     527,000        155,623  
                350,111  
Airlines – 0.1%  

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

     59,442        74,122  
Auto Components – 2.1%  

Bridgestone Corp.

     16,100        522,087  

Continental AG

     682        72,515  

Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

     153,600        650,659  
                1,245,261  
Automobiles – 1.9%  

Hero MotoCorp Ltd.

     8,122        306,851  

Subaru Corp.

     7,400        134,884  

Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi A/S

     151,652        483,376  

Toyota Motor Corp.

     3,100        201,734  
                1,126,845  
Banks – 8.1%  

Absa Group Ltd.

     102,331        547,466  

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

     20,305        268,215  

Banco de Chile

     1,741,859        134,348  

Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM

     29,667        140,645  

Bank of China Ltd., Class H

     589,000        186,084  

Bank of Communications Co. Ltd., Class H

     155,000        76,152  

China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd., Class H(b)

     170,500        93,222  

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

     12,710        616,045  

DNB ASA

     10,137        136,484  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.(b)

     31,000        476,502  

Malayan Banking Bhd.

     46,500        78,339  

National Bank of Canada(b)

     8,618        413,271  

Royal Bank of Canada

     20,553        1,436,020  
Investments    Shares      Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Sberbank of Russia PJSC

     77,500      $ 196,003  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

     310        13,666  
                4,812,462  
Beverages – 0.3%  

Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd.

     22,506        196,454  

Diageo plc

     372        12,020  
                208,474  
Biotechnology – 0.9%  

Seegene, Inc.

     2,325        537,862  
Capital Markets – 0.4%  

Singapore Exchange Ltd.

     37,200        235,922  
Chemicals – 0.8%  

Acron PJSC

     5,022        401,949  

Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

     558,000        102,896  
                504,845  
Construction & Engineering – 0.9%  

ACS Actividades de Construccion y Servicios SA

     5,146        122,284  

Bouygues SA

     9,455        310,034  

HOCHTIEF AG

     1,364        100,416  
                532,734  
Construction Materials – 0.3%  

Ssangyong Cement Industrial Co. Ltd.

     35,433        173,308  
Diversified Financial Services – 1.4%  

Banca Mediolanum SpA(b)

     15,283        104,322  

Power Finance Corp. Ltd.

     293,477        344,929  

REC Ltd.

     281,232        390,308  
                839,559  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 4.3%  

BCE, Inc.

     3,348        134,437  

Deutsche Telekom AG (Registered)

     5,301        80,705  

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization SA

     26,722        355,472  

HKT Trust & HKT Ltd.

     102,000        131,794  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      323  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments    Shares      Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

Koninklijke KPN NV

     183,396      $ 495,619  

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp.

     8,200        172,252  

O2 Czech Republic A/S*

     45,415        425,625  

Proximus SADP

     22,878        444,912  

Spark New Zealand Ltd.

     9,442        28,019  

Telefonica SA

     42,346        138,411  

Telenor ASA

     8,866        136,531  
                2,543,777  
Electric Utilities – 3.1%  

Endesa SA

     5,735        153,716  

Enel SpA

     59,923        477,022  

Fortis, Inc.(b)

     3,173        125,245  

Red Electrica Corp. SA

     24,893        438,574  

SSE plc

     27,497        446,198  

Verbund AG(b)

     3,472        199,710  
                1,840,465  
Electrical Equipment – 0.0%(c)  

Zhuzhou CRRC Times Electric Co. Ltd., Class H

     6,200        19,028  

Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.6%

     

Walsin Technology Corp.

     20,000        114,322  

WPG Holdings Ltd.

     93,000        126,152  

Yageo Corp.

     11,000        136,714  
                377,188  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.4%  

Covivio

     1,119        66,607  

RioCan REIT(b)

     7,099        76,562  

Scentre Group

     77,314        114,017  
                257,186  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.7%  

Etablissements Franz Colruyt NV

     7,533        445,936  

ICA Gruppen AB

     9,548        451,916  

Welcia Holdings Co. Ltd.

     3,100        121,580  
                1,019,432  
Investments    Shares      Value  
Food Products – 3.8%  

Nestle SA (Registered)

     16,492      $ 1,855,136  

Orkla ASA

     14,880        140,225  

Uni-President Enterprises Corp.

     62,000        132,872  

Yamazaki Baking Co. Ltd.(b)

     6,200        101,772  
                2,230,005  
Gas Utilities – 1.6%  

Enagas SA

     18,786        405,490  

Naturgy Energy Group SA(b)

     21,111        392,229  

Snam SpA

     33,976        165,827  
                963,546  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 2.2%  

Coloplast A/S, Class B

     2,635        384,565  

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd.

     21,111        488,329  

Hartalega Holdings Bhd.

     55,800        241,733  

Sartorius AG (Preference)

     403        170,592  
                1,285,219  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.5%  

Crown Resorts Ltd.

     17,174        99,860  

Evolution Gaming Group AB(a)

     6,820        506,454  

McDonald’s Holdings Co. Japan Ltd.(b)

     3,300        156,256  

Sodexo SA

     1,953        125,350  
                887,920  
Household Durables – 1.4%  

Casio Computer Co. Ltd.

     31,000        468,232  

Coway Co. Ltd.*

     3,379        206,665  

SEB SA

     837        136,107  
                811,004  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.7%  

Alfa SAB de CV, Class A

     728,500        485,153  

CITIC Ltd.

     31,000        22,106  

Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.

     11,100        492,729  
                999,988  
Insurance – 6.9%  

Admiral Group plc

     4,371        155,422  

AIA Group Ltd.

     6,200        58,403  

Allianz SE (Registered)

     1,147        201,829  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

324    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments    Shares      Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

Assicurazioni Generali SpA

     10,540      $ 141,314  

Aviva plc

     46,531        154,924  

BB Seguridade Participacoes SA

     99,200        407,398  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

     116,901        398,288  

IRB Brasil Resseguros S/A

     356,500        379,624  

Legal & General Group plc

     57,567        137,554  

MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings, Inc.

     6,200        168,700  

Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG in Muenchen (Registered)

     2,046        478,563  

PICC Property & Casualty Co. Ltd., Class H

     434,000        293,256  

Sampo OYJ, Class A

     4,371        164,967  

Suncorp Group Ltd.

     22,506        129,758  

Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.

     6,200        276,313  

UnipolSai Assicurazioni SpA(b)

     43,958        102,102  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

     1,426        472,974  
                4,121,389  
Interactive Media & Services – 1.6%  

Tencent Holdings Ltd.

     12,400        945,009  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.3%  

CJ ENM Co. Ltd.

     2,914        337,702  

ZOZO, Inc.

     16,700        423,491  
                761,193  
IT Services – 1.4%  

Edenred

     729        34,001  

Itochu Techno-Solutions Corp.

     12,400        421,676  

Otsuka Corp.

     8,400        387,297  
                842,974  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.1%  

Sartorius Stedim Biotech

     155        58,788  
Machinery – 2.4%  

Knorr-Bremse AG

     4,092        473,940  

Kone OYJ, Class B

     6,603        525,637  

Rational AG

     124        92,948  

Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd.

     139,500        355,458  
                1,447,983  
Investments    Shares      Value  
Media – 0.3%  

Publicis Groupe SA

     4,315      $ 149,785  
Metals & Mining – 6.5%  

Eregli Demir ve Celik Fabrikalari TAS

     361,770        411,269  

Evraz plc

     102,393        475,957  

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

     39,897        486,667  

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd.

     15,004        443,515  

Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works PJSC

     753,984        357,226  

Novolipetsk Steel PJSC

     219,798        514,325  

Rio Tinto Ltd.

     3,069        199,206  

Rio Tinto plc

     14,291        805,098  

Severstal PAO

     12,193        166,649  

Severstal PAO, GDR(a)

     238        3,254  
                3,863,166  
Multiline Retail – 1.3%  

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd., Class A(b)

     930        103,773  

Dollarama, Inc.

     4,526        155,738  

Wesfarmers Ltd.

     16,678        538,289  
                797,800  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 5.9%  

BP plc

     146,165        371,557  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Class H

     310,000        120,325  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

     294,500        508,882  

Eni SpA

     5,983        41,892  

Equinor ASA

     9,858        125,045  

Exxaro Resources Ltd.

     19,065        127,927  

LUKOIL PJSC

     899        45,749  

Neste OYJ

     10,478        545,333  

Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd.

     443,207        388,141  

Repsol SA

     19,189        119,361  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class A

     25,110        313,439  

Royal Dutch Shell plc, Class B

     3,131        37,609  

Surgutneftegas PJSC (Preference)

     235,600        107,459  

TOTAL SE

     7,409        222,836  

Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

     576,000        418,174  
                3,493,729  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      325  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments    Shares      Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Personal Products – 1.3%  

L’Oreal SA

     2,449      $ 792,200  
Pharmaceuticals – 6.9%  

Astellas Pharma, Inc.

     14,200        194,921  

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

     12,400        476,950  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

     72,261        1,206,974  

Novartis AG (Registered)

     7,130        556,133  

Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B

     1,054        67,703  

Orion OYJ, Class B

     9,982        427,312  

Roche Holding AG

     3,503        1,126,517  

Sanofi

     527        47,495  
                4,104,005  
Professional Services – 0.3%  

Thomson Reuters Corp.

     2,077        161,350  
Real Estate Management & Development – 1.6%  

Agile Group Holdings Ltd.

     96,000        131,221  

Daito Trust Construction Co. Ltd.

     5,600        508,360  

Deutsche Wohnen SE

     279        14,082  

Land & Houses PCL, NVDR

     1,453,900        298,547  
                952,210  
Road & Rail – 0.6%  

Aurizon Holdings Ltd.

     142,879        378,270  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 2.6%  

ASML Holding NV

     403        146,464  

Nanya Technology Corp.

     62,000        125,285  

Novatek Microelectronics Corp.

     54,000        504,064  

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

     49,000        740,049  
                1,515,862  
Software – 1.1%  

Kingdee International Software Group Co. Ltd.*

     196,000        514,336  

SAP SE

     1,085        115,631  
                629,967  
Specialty Retail – 0.5%  

USS Co. Ltd.

     9,300        169,916  

Yamada Holdings Co. Ltd.

     24,800        120,513  
                290,429  
Investments    Shares      Value  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 4.1%  

Asustek Computer, Inc.

     18,000      $ 152,604  

Canon, Inc.(b)

     9,900        170,508  

Compal Electronics, Inc.

     186,000        120,950  

FUJIFILM Holdings Corp.

     9,700        493,444  

Inventec Corp.

     186,000        146,961  

Lite-On Technology Corp.

     279,000        454,051  

Logitech International SA (Registered)

     5,673        477,831  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

     8,277        412,865  
                2,429,214  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 2.1%  

Bosideng International Holdings Ltd.(b)

     434,000        189,722  

Hermes International

     403        375,078  

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

     155        72,636  

Pandora A/S

     7,688        608,886  
                1,246,322  
Tobacco – 3.4%  

British American Tobacco plc

     33,046        1,045,993  

Imperial Brands plc

     29,760        470,991  

Japan Tobacco, Inc.

     27,900        525,761  
                2,042,745  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 1.0%  

ITOCHU Corp.(b)

     10,300        246,317  

Mitsubishi Corp.

     9,300        206,879  

Sumitomo Corp.

     12,400        135,755  
                588,951  
Transportation Infrastructure – 1.9%  

China Merchants Port Holdings Co. Ltd.

     102,427        108,571  

Jiangsu Expressway Co. Ltd., Class H

     72,000        71,955  

Sydney Airport

     115,759        443,040  

Westports Holdings Bhd.

     511,500        480,108  
                1,103,674  
Water Utilities – 0.6%  

Aguas Andinas SA, Class A

     1,350,732        350,531  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

326    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments    Shares      Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 2.3%  

China Mobile Ltd.

     11,500      $ 69,921  

KDDI Corp.

     12,400        331,232  

NTT DOCOMO, Inc.

     19,500        725,048  

PLDT, Inc.

     2,945        80,805  

Softbank Corp.(b)

     13,600        157,738  
                1,364,744  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $58,870,836)

 

     58,308,553  
     Principal
Amount
        
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(d) – 0.2%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.2%  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $98,136, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $99,855

   $ 98,136        98,136  

Societe Generale, 0.18%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $10,000, collateralized by various Common Stocks; total market value $11,007

     10,000        10,000  
                108,136  
Total Securities Lending Reinvestments
(Cost $108,136)

 

     108,136  
Total Investments – 98.3%
(Cost $58,978,972)

 

     58,416,689  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.7%

 

     987,045  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

   $ 59,403,734  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

(b) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $2,646,645, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $108,136 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $1,132,096 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from December 17, 2020 – August 15, 2050 and $1,620,714 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 7.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 22, 2021 – September 20, 2117; a total value of $2,860,946.

 

(c) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(d) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $108,136.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

GDR – Global Depositary Receipt

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

 

Preference A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 6,309,967  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (7,171,925

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (861,958

Federal income tax cost

  $ 59,229,834  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      327  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional
Amount
    Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

MSCI EAFE E-Mini Index

    10       12/18/2020       USD     $ 891,950     $ (52,893

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    4       12/18/2020       USD       220,380       2,999  
                                    $ (49,894

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive         Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity Date     Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    76,828       Citibank NA   AUD     105,364       12/16/2020     $ 2,819  

USD

    18,720       Goldman Sachs & Co.   BRL*     100,000       12/16/2020       1,408  

USD

    110,374       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CHF     100,000       12/16/2020       1,117  

USD

    237,547         JPMorgan Chase Bank   EUR     200,000       12/16/2020       4,331  

Total unrealized appreciation

                      $ 9,675  

NOK

    59,477       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     6,612       12/16/2020     $ (391

USD

    75,456       Morgan Stanley   JPY     8,000,000       12/16/2020       (1,117

USD

    176,574         Goldman Sachs & Co.   ZAR     3,000,000       12/17/2020       (7,086

Total unrealized depreciation

                      $ (8,594

Net unrealized appreciation

                      $ 1,081  

 

*

Non-deliverable forward. See Note 2 in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

BRL – Brazilian Real

CHF – Swiss Franc

EUR – Euro

JPY – Japanese Yen

NOK – Norwegian Krone

USD – US Dollar

ZAR – South African Rand

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

328    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    5.9

Austria

    0.3

Belgium

    1.5

Brazil

    1.3

Canada

    4.4

Chile

    0.8

China

    8.5

Czech Republic

    0.7

Denmark

    1.8

Finland

    2.8

France

    4.0

Germany

    3.1

Greece

    0.6

Hong Kong

    1.1

India

    2.4

Israel

    0.2

Italy

    1.7

Japan

    13.8

Malaysia

    1.4

Mexico

    0.8

Netherlands

    1.1

New Zealand

    0.9

Norway

    0.9

Philippines

    0.1

Russia

    3.0

Singapore

    1.2

South Africa

    1.9

South Korea

    2.8

Spain

    3.0

Sweden

    1.6

Switzerland

    7.6

Taiwan

    4.6

Thailand

    0.5

Turkey

    1.5

United Kingdom

    10.3

Other1

    1.9  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      329  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – 98.1%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.3%  

MTU Aero Engines AG

    380     $ 64,869  
Airlines – 1.1%  

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

    48,724       60,757  

Qantas Airways Ltd.

    65,310       192,170  
              252,927  
Auto Components – 2.9%  

Continental AG

    620       65,923  

Denso Corp.

    1,000       46,279  

Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co. Ltd., Class H(a)

    56,000       237,219  

Koito Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    4,000       192,080  

Magna International, Inc.

    1,240       63,267  

Xinyi Glass Holdings Ltd.

    20,000       43,792  
              648,560  
Automobiles – 2.5%  

Ford Otomotiv Sanayi A/S

    13,930       179,463  

Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd.

    30,000       61,587  

Porsche Automobil Holding SE (Preference)

    940       50,368  

Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi A/S

    58,530       186,559  

Volkswagen AG (Preference)

    530       77,233  
              555,210  
Banks – 8.0%  

Absa Group Ltd.

    28,090       150,280  

Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., Class H

    130,000       43,921  

China Construction Bank Corp., Class H

    270,000       186,271  

China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd., Class H

    40,000       207,870  

DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

    12,000       178,836  

DNB ASA

    3,840       51,702  

Hang Seng Bank Ltd.(b)

    10,000       153,710  

Mediobanca Banca di Credito Finanziario SpA(b)

    5,950       42,195  

National Bank of Canada(b)

    2,160       103,581  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Nedbank Group Ltd.

    8,030     $ 47,433  

Raiffeisen Bank International AG*

    2,080       29,898  

Royal Bank of Canada

    7,740       540,787  

Standard Bank Group Ltd.

    8,610       56,205  
              1,792,689  
Beverages – 0.5%  

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV

    2,050       106,407  
Capital Markets – 1.4%  

Macquarie Group Ltd.

    950       84,560  

St James’s Place plc

    14,030       163,122  

Standard Life Aberdeen plc

    19,580       56,836  
              304,518  
Chemicals – 2.2%  

Covestro AG(a)

    1,150       54,882  

Nippon Sanso Holdings Corp.

    3,000       43,821  

Nissan Chemical Corp.

    4,000       211,211  

Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd.

    1,000       132,868  

Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Class H(b)

    220,000       40,568  

Wacker Chemie AG

    90       8,683  
              492,033  
Construction & Engineering – 0.9%  

ACS Actividades de Construccion y Servicios SA

    7,070       168,004  

HOCHTIEF AG

    530       39,018  
              207,022  
Construction Materials – 0.7%  

China Resources Cement Holdings Ltd.

    120,000       156,599  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.6%  

YDUQS Participacoes SA

    32,000       127,201  
Diversified Financial Services – 2.0%  

Banca Mediolanum SpA

    22,260       151,947  

EXOR NV

    2,980       154,818  

M&G plc

    76,780       145,589  
              452,354  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

330    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.7%  

O2 Czech Republic A/S*

    17,730     $ 166,164  

Telefonica SA(b)

    16,228       53,042  

Telenor ASA

    3,620       55,746  

Turk Telekomunikasyon A/S

    140,260       107,583  
              382,535  
Electric Utilities – 1.6%  

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA

    9,000       48,481  

Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA (Preference), Class B

    7,000       37,622  

Enel SpA

    7,260       57,794  

Federal Grid Co. Unified Energy System PJSC

    17,224,781       41,151  

Fortum OYJ

    9,140       171,945  
              356,993  
Electrical Equipment – 2.0%  

Fuji Electric Co. Ltd.

    2,000       60,264  

Mitsubishi Electric Corp.

    15,000       192,271  

Schneider Electric SE

    1,570       190,562  
              443,097  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 2.0%  

Hitachi Ltd.

    3,000       100,497  

Omron Corp.

    3,000       215,228  

Walsin Technology Corp.

    10,000       57,161  

Yageo Corp.

    3,000       37,286  

Yokogawa Electric Corp.

    3,000       43,792  
              453,964  
Entertainment – 1.5%  

Nintendo Co. Ltd.

    600       327,033  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.6%  

Covivio

    560       33,333  

RioCan REIT(b)

    4,130       44,542  

Stockland

    21,370       57,777  
              135,652  
Food Products – 2.2%  

Nestle SA (Registered)

    3,050       343,086  

Want Want China Holdings Ltd.

    230,000       151,853  
              494,939  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Gas Utilities – 1.3%  

Enagas SA

    7,100     $ 153,251  

Naturgy Energy Group SA(b)

    7,910       146,963  
              300,214  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 1.3%  

Hoya Corp.

    2,000       225,751  

Straumann Holding AG (Registered)

    60       62,582  
              288,333  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 0.9%  

Aristocrat Leisure Ltd.

    7,260       145,965  

Genting Singapore Ltd.

    101,000       47,708  

Sodexo SA

    170       10,911  
              204,584  
Household Durables – 0.7%  

Panasonic Corp.

    8,000       73,518  

Persimmon plc

    2,710       81,854  
              155,372  
Insurance – 6.8%  

Allianz SE (Registered)

    2,280       401,194  

Aviva plc

    40,260       134,045  

AXA SA

    5,350       86,001  

BB Seguridade Participacoes SA

    10,000       41,068  

Direct Line Insurance Group plc

    44,610       151,989  

IRB Brasil Resseguros S/A

    55,000       58,568  

Legal & General Group plc

    21,980       52,520  

Manulife Financial Corp.

    5,250       71,110  

Old Mutual Ltd.

    102,170       58,980  

Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China Ltd., Class H(b)

    10,000       102,581  

Poste Italiane SpA(a)

    3,590       29,273  

Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.

    4,000       178,267  

Zurich Insurance Group AG

    500       165,839  
              1,531,435  
Interactive Media & Services – 1.4%  

Tencent Holdings Ltd.

    4,000       304,842  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.3%  

CJ ENM Co. Ltd.

    1,120       129,797  

ZOZO, Inc.

    6,000       152,152  
              281,949  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      331  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
IT Services – 1.9%  

Amadeus IT Group SA

    2,290     $ 109,341  

Capgemini SE

    1,000       115,483  

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

    7,000       207,242  
              432,066  
Machinery – 3.2%  

Atlas Copco AB, Class B

    440       16,871  

FANUC Corp.

    1,100       232,016  

Komatsu Ltd.

    3,000       67,180  

MINEBEA MITSUMI, Inc.

    10,000       179,262  

Sinotruk Hong Kong Ltd.

    60,000       152,885  

SKF AB, Class B

    2,950       60,384  
              708,598  
Media – 1.1%  

Publicis Groupe SA

    1,624       56,373  

WPP plc

    22,870       182,334  
              238,707  
Metals & Mining – 6.6%  

Anglo American Platinum Ltd.

    760       49,832  

BHP Group Ltd.

    2,710       64,287  

BHP Group plc

    3,880       74,761  

Eregli Demir ve Celik Fabrikalari TAS

    128,850       146,480  

Evraz plc

    39,710       184,585  

Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd.

    18,910       166,153  

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd.(b)

    5,550       164,057  

Novolipetsk Steel PJSC

    80,203       187,674  

Rio Tinto plc

    4,650       261,963  

Severstal PAO

    12,830       175,355  
              1,475,147  
Multiline Retail – 0.1%  

Central Retail Corp. PCL, NVDR*

    39,000       33,472  
Multi-Utilities – 0.6%  

AGL Energy Ltd.

    15,310       134,178  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 5.5%  

BP plc

    22,200       56,433  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

    10,070       160,111  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Class H

    100,000       38,815  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd., Class H

    80,000     $ 138,236  

CNOOC Ltd.

    150,000       136,173  

Ecopetrol SA

    314,160       145,969  

Equinor ASA

    3,920       49,724  

Exxaro Resources Ltd.

    4,410       29,591  

Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd.

    116,800       102,288  

OMV AG

    3,590       82,382  

Suncor Energy, Inc.

    4,520       50,951  

TOTAL SE

    6,860       206,324  

Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd., Class H

    60,000       43,560  
              1,240,557  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.4%  

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

    3,260       92,125  
Personal Products – 2.0%  

L’Oreal SA

    1,380       446,401  
Pharmaceuticals – 6.7%  

Astellas Pharma, Inc.

    5,000       68,634  

Bayer AG (Registered)

    1,690       79,452  

Eisai Co. Ltd.

    2,200       170,229  

GlaxoSmithKline plc

    27,510       459,499  

Novartis AG (Registered)

    3,470       270,657  

Orion OYJ, Class B

    3,390       145,120  

Roche Holding AG

    680       218,679  

Roche Holding AG – BR

    260       83,740  
              1,496,010  
Professional Services – 1.0%  

Nihon M&A Center, Inc.

    4,000       233,786  
Real Estate Management & Development – 3.7%  

Agile Group Holdings Ltd.(b)

    40,000       54,675  

China Resources Land Ltd.

    40,000       162,737  

CK Asset Holdings Ltd.

    30,000       138,881  

Country Garden Holdings Co. Ltd.(b)

    135,109       166,211  

Daito Trust Construction Co. Ltd.

    1,000       90,779  

Daiwa House Industry Co. Ltd.

    1,000       26,167  

Logan Group Co. Ltd.

    40,000       62,516  

NEPI Rockcastle plc

    37,294       132,134  
              834,100  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

332    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
COMMON STOCKS – (continued)  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 6.9%  

ASML Holding NV

    2,320     $ 843,165  

Globalwafers Co. Ltd.

    3,000       43,526  

Nanya Technology Corp.

    20,000       40,415  

Novatek Microelectronics Corp.

    20,000       186,690  

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

    14,000       211,443  

Tokyo Electron Ltd.

    800       213,507  
              1,538,746  
Software – 0.8%  

Nemetschek SE

    2,340       169,269  

SAP SE

    60       6,394  
              175,663  
Specialty Retail – 1.9%  

Fast Retailing Co. Ltd.

    100       69,552  

Hotai Motor Co. Ltd.

    2,000       42,093  

Industria de Diseno Textil SA(b)

    1,300       32,088  

JD Sports Fashion plc

    5,730       54,915  

Petrobras Distribuidora SA

    46,000       153,014  

USS Co. Ltd.

    4,000       73,082  
              424,744  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 2.0%  

Brother Industries Ltd.

    10,000       153,625  

Lite-On Technology Corp.

    30,000       48,823  

Logitech International SA (Registered)

    150       12,634  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

    2,560       127,696  

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Preference)

    2,200       97,136  
              439,914  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.7%  

Pandora A/S

    2,130       168,695  
Tobacco – 2.8%  

British American Tobacco plc

    1,950       61,723  

Imperial Brands plc

    11,290       178,679  

Japan Tobacco, Inc.

    11,000       207,289  

Swedish Match AB

    2,330       175,539  
              623,230  
Investments   Shares     Value  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.5%  

Ashtead Group plc

    1,790     $ 64,805  

Toyota Tsusho Corp.

    2,000       55,462  
              120,267  
Transportation Infrastructure – 1.0%  

CCR SA

    21,000       40,645  

Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SAB de CV, Class B

    23,000       190,821  
              231,466  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 0.3%  

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC

    3,700       14,476  

MTN Group Ltd.

    13,730       48,832  
              63,308  
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $22,839,281)

 

    21,972,511  
    Principal
Amount
       
SECURITIES LENDING REINVESTMENTS(c) – 0.2%  
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS – 0.2%  

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., 0.07%, dated 10/30/2020, due 11/2/2020, repurchase price $33,903, collateralized by various U.S. Treasury Securities, ranging from 2.63% – 5.50%, maturing 8/15/2028 – 4/15/2029; total market value $34,497
(Cost $33,903)

  $ 33,903       33,903  
Total Investments – 98.3%
(Cost $22,873,184)

 

    22,006,414  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.7%

 

    369,908  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 22,376,322  

 

*  

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Security exempt from registration pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. Regulation S applies to securities offerings that are made outside of the United States and do not involve direct selling efforts in the United States and as such may have restrictions on resale.

 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      333  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

(b) 

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $842,167, collateralized in the form of cash with a value of $33,903 that was reinvested in the securities shown in the Securities Lending Reinvestment section of the Schedule of Investments; $276,466 of collateral in the form of U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 8.00%, and maturity dates ranging from January 7, 2021 – November 15, 2049 and $599,417 of collateral in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 6.25%, and maturity dates ranging from March 1, 2021 – October 22, 2071; a total value of $909,786.

 

(c) 

The security was purchased with cash collateral held from securities on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities purchased was $33,903.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

NVDR – Non-Voting Depositary Receipt

OYJ – Public Limited Company

PJSC – Public Joint Stock Company

Preference – A special type of equity investment that shares in the earnings of the company, has limited voting rights, and may have a dividend preference. Preference shares may also have liquidation preference.

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 1,913,567  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (2,845,933

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (932,366

Federal income tax cost

  $ 22,925,487  
 

 

Futures Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund had the following open futures contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

    Number of
Contracts
    Expiration
Date
    Trading
Currency
    Notional Amount     Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)*
 

Long Contracts

 

 

MSCI EAFE E-Mini Index

    3       12/18/2020       USD     $ 267,585     $ (15,771

MSCI Emerging Markets E-Mini Index

    2       12/18/2020       USD       110,190       2,286  
                                    $ (13,485

 

*

This amount represents the cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund had the following outstanding contracts as of October 31, 2020:

 

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

CAD

    22,000       Citibank NA   USD     16,428       12/16/2020     $ 75  

GBP

    20,000       Citibank NA   USD     25,456       12/16/2020       413  

GBP

    3,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     3,854       12/16/2020       27  

USD

    11,667       Citibank NA   AUD     16,000       12/16/2020       428  

USD

    55,187       JPMorgan Chase Bank   CHF     50,000       12/16/2020       559  

USD

    47,509       JPMorgan Chase Bank   EUR     40,000       12/16/2020       866  

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

334    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts (cont.)

 

Contracts to Receive   Counterparty   In Exchange For     Maturity
Date
    Unrealized
Appreciation/
(Depreciation)
 

USD

    40,814         Morgan Stanley   EUR     35,000       12/16/2020     $ 1  

Total unrealized appreciation

                  $ 2,369  

AUD

    4,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     2,923       12/16/2020     $ (114

EUR

    25,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     29,704       12/16/2020       (551

GBP

    2,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     2,593       12/16/2020       (7

JPY

    1,544,000       Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   USD     14,815       12/16/2020       (37

USD

    24,332       Morgan Stanley   GBP     19,000       12/16/2020       (244

USD

    24,198       UBS AG   GBP     19,000       12/16/2020       (377

USD

    35,078       Morgan Stanley   JPY     3,719,000       12/16/2020       (519

USD

    30,378         Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)   JPY     3,208,000       12/16/2020       (328

Total unrealized depreciation

                  $ (2,177

Net unrealized appreciation

                  $ 192  

 

Abbreviations:

 

AUD – Australian Dollar

CAD – Canadian Dollar

CHF – Swiss Franc

EUR – Euro

GBP – British Pound

JPY – Japanese Yen

USD – US Dollar

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      335  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

    3.0

Austria

    0.5

Belgium

    0.5

Brazil

    2.3

Canada

    4.6

China

    10.9

Colombia

    0.6  

Czech Republic

    0.7

Denmark

    0.8

Finland

    1.8

France

    5.1

Germany

    4.5

Hong Kong

    1.5

India

    0.5

Italy

    1.9

Japan

    19.0

Mexico

    0.9

Netherlands

    3.8

Norway

    0.7

Russia

    1.9

Singapore

    1.0

South Africa

    4.0

South Korea

    1.6

Spain

    3.0

Sweden

    1.1

Switzerland

    5.2

Taiwan

    3.0

Thailand

    0.1

Turkey

    2.8

United Kingdom

    10.8

Other1

    1.9  
      100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-equity securities, securities lending reinvestments and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

336    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
U.S. TREASURY OBLIGATIONS – 99.8%  

U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Bonds

 

2.38%, 1/15/2025

  $ 124,117,547     $ 142,953,236  

2.00%, 1/15/2026

    29,292,238       34,225,582  

2.38%, 1/15/2027

    23,758,845       29,053,925  

U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Notes

 

0.13%, 1/15/2022

    53,011,518       53,619,538  

0.13%, 4/15/2022

    53,120,578       53,794,488  

0.13%, 7/15/2022

    51,826,942       52,895,803  

0.13%, 1/15/2023

    51,628,266       52,958,912  

0.63%, 4/15/2023

    55,039,594       57,246,593  

0.38%, 7/15/2023

    51,213,416       53,446,463  

0.63%, 1/15/2024(a)

    51,079,063       53,983,465  

0.50%, 4/15/2024

    120,970,368       127,703,957  

0.13%, 7/15/2024

    163,542,500       172,035,913  

0.13%, 10/15/2024

    129,888,744       137,000,714  

0.25%, 1/15/2025

    62,012,944       65,745,228  

0.13%, 4/15/2025(a)

    40,013,929       42,310,698  

0.38%, 7/15/2025

    50,257,818       54,165,796  

0.13%, 10/15/2025

    20,485,379       21,886,749  

0.63%, 1/15/2026

    51,903,512       56,813,984  

0.13%, 7/15/2026

    44,681,314       48,127,997  

0.38%, 1/15/2027

    46,306,736       50,583,342  

0.38%, 7/15/2027

    43,873,339       48,367,461  

0.50%, 1/15/2028

    16,467,692       18,312,450  
Total U.S. Treasury Obligations
(Cost $1,372,986,967)

 

    1,427,232,294  
Total Investments – 99.8%
(Cost $1,372,986,967)

 

    1,427,232,294  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.2%

 

    2,258,313  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 1,429,490,607  
(a)  

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $1,983,669, collateralized by $495,948 in U.S. Government Treasury Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.13% – 7.13%, and maturity dates ranging from October 31, 2020 – February 15, 2050 and $1,809,629 in Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 5.50%, and maturity dates ranging from January 27, 2021 – January 15, 2052; a total value of $2,305,577.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 54,096,990  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (113,397

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 53,983,593  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 1,373,248,701  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      337  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
U.S. TREASURY OBLIGATIONS – 99.8%  

U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Bonds

 

2.38%, 1/15/2025(a)

  $ 18,253,878     $ 21,024,029  

2.00%, 1/15/2026

    13,037,979       15,233,811  

2.38%, 1/15/2027

    10,747,804       13,143,142  

1.75%, 1/15/2028

    10,193,427       12,297,509  

3.63%, 4/15/2028

    10,953,380       14,858,099  

2.50%, 1/15/2029

    9,223,638       11,921,255  

3.88%, 4/15/2029

    12,857,261       18,280,645  

3.38%, 4/15/2032

    3,261,063       4,884,776  

2.13%, 2/15/2040

    9,892,176       14,955,984  

U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Notes

 

0.63%, 1/15/2024(a)

    26,508,668       28,015,975  

0.50%, 4/15/2024

    21,007,139       22,176,462  

0.13%, 7/15/2024

    26,732,203       28,120,513  

0.13%, 10/15/2024

    22,944,009       24,200,293  

0.25%, 1/15/2025

    26,729,982       28,338,741  

0.13%, 4/15/2025

    23,182,218       24,512,859  

0.38%, 7/15/2025

    26,732,416       28,811,091  

0.13%, 10/15/2025

    11,910,570       12,725,352  

0.63%, 1/15/2026

    27,662,037       30,279,079  

0.13%, 7/15/2026(a)

    24,017,047       25,869,704  

0.38%, 1/15/2027

    25,088,016       27,404,991  

0.38%, 7/15/2027

    24,070,781       26,536,448  

0.50%, 1/15/2028

    25,308,487       28,143,616  

0.75%, 7/15/2028

    23,909,807       27,289,619  

0.88%, 1/15/2029

    23,571,544       27,186,089  

0.25%, 7/15/2029

    25,950,689       28,736,886  

0.13%, 1/15/2030

    26,767,319       29,250,668  

0.13%, 7/15/2030

    19,049,564       20,930,155  
Total U.S. Treasury Obligations
(Cost $557,783,123)

 

    595,127,791  
Total Investments – 99.8%
(Cost $557,783,123)

 

    595,127,791  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.2%

 

    967,419  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 596,095,210  
(a)  

The security or a portion of this security is on loan at October 31, 2020. The total value of securities on loan at October 31, 2020 was $48,099,575, collateralized in the form of Foreign Government Fixed Income Securities, interest rates ranging from 0.00% – 7.50%, and maturity dates ranging from November 25, 2020 – November 2, 2086; a total value of $55,296,092.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 37,243,236  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (166,596

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 37,076,640  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 558,051,151  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

338    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – 99.4%  

FHLMC

   

2.50%, 4/1/2022

  $ 62,079     $ 64,526  

3.50%, 10/1/2025

    76,802       81,208  

3.50%, 11/1/2025

    182,305       192,765  

3.50%, 2/1/2026

    48,922       51,752  

4.00%, 3/1/2026

    91,774       97,609  

4.00%, 4/1/2026

    63,297       67,313  

4.00%, 5/1/2026

    165,463       175,986  

3.50%, 6/1/2026

    80,596       85,272  

3.00%, 9/1/2026

    154,608       162,180  

3.50%, 9/1/2026

    136,949       144,800  

3.00%, 10/1/2026

    55,661       59,493  

3.50%, 10/1/2026

    64,435       68,171  

3.00%, 12/1/2026

    93,013       99,420  

3.00%, 3/1/2027

    111,106       119,023  

2.50%, 4/1/2027

    130,259       135,743  

3.00%, 6/1/2027

    175,602       184,246  

3.50%, 8/1/2027

    54,155       57,924  

2.50%, 11/1/2027

    119,685       125,884  

3.00%, 11/1/2027

    60,943       64,491  

2.50%, 2/1/2028

    31,548       33,283  

2.50%, 4/1/2028

    18,231       18,985  

3.00%, 4/1/2028

    517,343       550,205  

3.50%, 5/1/2028

    154,419       166,575  

2.50%, 8/1/2028

    48,550       50,769  

3.50%, 10/1/2028

    237,421       251,226  

2.50%, 11/1/2028

    14,020       14,616  

3.00%, 11/1/2028

    75,667       79,405  

4.00%, 11/1/2028

    207,988       221,251  

3.00%, 1/1/2029

    125,530       131,731  

4.00%, 1/1/2029

    105,254       111,913  

3.50%, 12/1/2029

    279,839       296,047  

2.00%, 8/1/2031

    262,398       273,643  

2.00%, 10/1/2031

    55,165       57,530  

5.50%, 10/1/2032

    79,152       92,579  

3.00%, 4/1/2033

    210,397       222,605  

3.00%, 6/1/2033

    166,530       176,192  

6.00%, 4/1/2034

    46,461       54,992  

5.00%, 5/1/2034

    71,463       82,397  

5.00%, 7/1/2034

    417,851       482,111  

6.00%, 8/1/2034

    27,086       32,065  

5.50%, 12/1/2034

    51,838       61,157  

3.00%, 5/1/2035

    34,769       36,647  

5.50%, 5/1/2035

    101,265       119,556  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

6.00%, 5/1/2035

  $ 97,611     $ 114,716  

5.50%, 6/1/2035

    70,645       83,285  

5.00%, 7/1/2035

    406,859       469,426  

5.00%, 8/1/2035

    171,609       198,067  

5.00%, 10/1/2035

    22,493       25,811  

5.50%, 10/1/2035

    26,016       30,506  

3.00%, 11/1/2035

    41,135       43,459  

5.00%, 11/1/2035

    250,448       289,058  

5.00%, 12/1/2035

    155,600       179,519  

6.00%, 12/1/2035

    91,918       108,767  

5.50%, 3/1/2036

    39,450       46,053  

6.00%, 3/1/2036

    303,704       359,786  

5.50%, 6/1/2036

    43,111       50,530  

5.50%, 10/1/2036

    25,944       30,252  

5.50%, 12/1/2036

    128,771       149,717  

6.00%, 1/1/2037

    100,795       118,919  

5.50%, 2/1/2037

    106,123       123,670  

6.00%, 4/1/2037

    49,657       58,593  

6.00%, 5/1/2037

    87,676       103,617  

5.50%, 7/1/2037

    77,798       91,630  

5.50%, 9/1/2037

    38,458       44,837  

5.50%, 11/1/2037

    34,698       40,408  

5.50%, 1/1/2038

    19,697       22,932  

5.00%, 2/1/2038

    78,000       89,997  

5.50%, 4/1/2038

    52,636       61,161  

5.50%, 6/1/2038

    33,388       38,744  

5.00%, 7/1/2038

    234,379       270,276  

5.50%, 7/1/2038

    4,191       4,870  

5.50%, 8/1/2038

    45,893       53,205  

5.00%, 10/1/2038

    72,984       84,154  

5.00%, 11/1/2038

    293,923       337,999  

5.00%, 12/1/2038

    491,702       565,029  

5.50%, 12/1/2038

    15,054       17,453  

5.50%, 1/1/2039

    40,674       47,306  

5.00%, 2/1/2039

    200,688       231,420  

5.00%, 5/1/2039

    95,110       109,604  

5.00%, 6/1/2039

    42,249       48,586  

5.00%, 7/1/2039

    66,482       76,760  

4.50%, 8/1/2039

    1,085,111       1,219,594  

5.00%, 8/1/2039

    5,658       6,453  

5.00%, 9/1/2039

    99,320       114,344  

6.00%, 11/1/2039

    54,695       64,260  

5.00%, 12/1/2039

    626,441       722,666  

5.00%, 1/1/2040

    26,687       30,786  

5.50%, 1/1/2040

    68,746       79,315  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      339  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

4.50%, 2/1/2040

  $ 166,777     $ 187,634  

5.00%, 3/1/2040

    79,306       91,573  

5.00%, 4/1/2040

    30,391       34,681  

5.50%, 4/1/2040

    188,531       215,582  

6.00%, 4/1/2040

    63,732       74,354  

5.00%, 5/1/2040

    28,678       33,140  

6.00%, 5/1/2040

    154,788       180,571  

5.50%, 6/1/2040

    47,890       55,385  

5.00%, 7/1/2040

    164,211       189,761  

6.00%, 7/1/2040

    243,540       287,205  

4.50%, 12/1/2040

    66,411       74,774  

4.00%, 1/1/2041

    22,874       25,225  

4.50%, 1/1/2041

    58,225       65,551  

5.50%, 4/1/2041

    75,796       87,758  

5.00%, 5/1/2041

    106,535       123,116  

5.50%, 6/1/2041

    388,315       451,719  

4.50%, 7/1/2041

    91,861       103,289  

5.00%, 7/1/2041

    338,045       389,835  

3.50%, 11/1/2041

    141,611       153,117  

5.00%, 2/1/2042

    195,254       225,199  

3.00%, 3/1/2042

    25,602       27,142  

3.00%, 12/1/2042

    137,653       148,229  

3.00%, 1/1/2043

    39,900       42,427  

3.00%, 2/1/2043

    39,237       42,917  

3.00%, 3/1/2043

    165,142       183,213  

3.00%, 4/1/2043

    51,859       55,131  

3.00%, 6/1/2043

    24,700       27,386  

4.00%, 5/1/2044

    197,773       226,213  

4.50%, 5/1/2044

    56,730       63,171  

4.00%, 8/1/2044

    27,773       30,370  

5.00%, 8/1/2044

    60,714       69,959  

4.50%, 9/1/2044

    50,319       56,031  

4.00%, 1/1/2045

    85,152       93,443  

4.00%, 2/1/2045

    138,164       156,402  

4.00%, 8/1/2045

    209,567       229,010  

4.00%, 9/1/2045

    37,610       40,944  

4.00%, 10/1/2045

    308,633       337,918  

4.00%, 11/1/2045

    72,962       79,357  

4.50%, 11/1/2045

    448,474       500,504  

4.00%, 12/1/2045

    29,262       31,884  

4.50%, 12/1/2045

    497,881       558,617  

4.00%, 1/1/2046

    89,185       97,902  

4.00%, 2/1/2046

    413,437       449,058  

4.50%, 4/1/2046

    95,165       106,776  

4.50%, 5/1/2046

    62,698       68,845  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

3.50%, 8/1/2046

  $ 26,516     $ 28,417  

2.50%, 9/1/2046

    50,352       53,065  

3.50%, 1/1/2047

    27,882       29,617  

4.50%, 3/1/2047

    75,710       84,118  

FHLMC UMBS

   

4.00%, 7/1/2026

    41,199       43,816  

3.50%, 9/1/2026

    46,204       48,850  

3.50%, 10/1/2026

    31,108       32,873  

3.00%, 3/1/2027

    28,081       30,007  

2.50%, 11/1/2027

    112,892       118,687  

2.50%, 12/1/2027

    206,659       217,406  

2.50%, 6/1/2028

    351,460       370,319  

3.50%, 8/1/2028

    157,529       166,485  

2.50%, 1/1/2029

    108,665       113,258  

2.00%, 8/1/2031

    64,025       66,752  

2.00%, 11/1/2031

    98,559       102,755  

2.00%, 2/1/2032

    104,185       108,623  

5.00%, 8/1/2035

    543,608       626,655  

5.00%, 3/1/2038

    86,186       99,557  

4.50%, 10/1/2039

    16,020       18,011  

4.50%, 12/1/2039

    145,307       163,810  

4.00%, 2/1/2040

    10,499       11,554  

4.50%, 2/1/2040

    32,410       36,857  

4.50%, 4/1/2040

    62,051       69,798  

5.00%, 5/1/2040

    295,159       340,954  

6.00%, 7/1/2040

    1,111,437       1,338,610  

3.50%, 12/1/2040

    95,848       102,966  

4.00%, 1/1/2041

    113,089       125,328  

4.50%, 3/1/2041

    108,269       121,795  

4.00%, 4/1/2041

    31,451       35,503  

4.50%, 5/1/2041

    22,175       25,146  

4.50%, 8/1/2041

    31,554       35,487  

4.00%, 1/1/2042

    97,400       109,998  

3.00%, 3/1/2042

    188,965       200,017  

3.50%, 11/1/2042

    141,416       154,736  

3.50%, 1/1/2043

    60,843       68,644  

3.50%, 2/1/2043

    57,676       62,666  

3.00%, 3/1/2043

    26,766       28,472  

3.00%, 4/1/2043

    391,266       421,330  

2.50%, 6/1/2043

    678,545       718,391  

3.00%, 6/1/2043

    166,899       181,563  

3.50%, 8/1/2043

    69,707       75,645  

4.00%, 12/1/2043

    24,767       27,224  

4.50%, 3/1/2044

    113,895       127,898  

4.00%, 6/1/2044

    9,904       10,799  

4.50%, 7/1/2044

    48,577       54,507  

4.00%, 8/1/2044

    30,011       32,809  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

340    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

4.50%, 12/1/2044

  $ 28,375     $ 31,500  

4.00%, 2/1/2045

    27,633       31,272  

3.00%, 7/1/2045

    23,309       24,525  

4.50%, 7/1/2045

    42,028       47,243  

4.50%, 9/1/2045

    26,536       29,000  

4.00%, 10/1/2045

    101,303       109,892  

4.00%, 12/1/2045

    38,484       42,748  

4.50%, 12/1/2045

    195,830       218,866  

4.00%, 1/1/2046

    68,562       75,748  

4.00%, 4/1/2046

    53,716       58,408  

4.50%, 4/1/2046

    58,852       66,015  

3.50%, 5/1/2046

    32,137       34,525  

4.00%, 5/1/2046

    23,101       25,103  

3.50%, 11/1/2046

    39,544       43,160  

2.50%, 12/1/2046

    237,428       251,232  

3.50%, 2/1/2047

    197,971       210,491  

3.00%, 9/1/2047

    187,122       197,142  

2.50%, 10/1/2049

    203,187       211,933  

2.50%, 11/1/2049

    136,994       142,890  

FNMA UMBS

   

4.50%, 11/1/2020

    27       27  

3.50%, 8/1/2025

    32,956       34,831  

3.00%, 11/1/2025

    100,767       105,634  

3.00%, 12/1/2025

    88,039       92,269  

3.50%, 12/1/2025

    78,453       82,912  

3.00%, 1/1/2026

    110,815       117,512  

3.50%, 1/1/2026

    24,151       25,523  

3.50%, 2/1/2026

    142,599       150,704  

4.00%, 2/1/2026

    73,875       78,555  

4.00%, 3/1/2026

    219,081       232,660  

4.00%, 5/1/2026

    108,793       115,704  

3.50%, 6/1/2026

    34,793       36,766  

3.00%, 8/1/2026

    162,893       170,777  

3.50%, 8/1/2026

    62,399       65,996  

3.50%, 10/1/2026

    29,116       30,786  

2.50%, 11/1/2026

    35,077       36,515  

3.00%, 11/1/2026

    230,480       245,025  

3.50%, 11/1/2026

    42,309       44,748  

4.00%, 11/1/2026

    63,661       67,675  

3.00%, 12/1/2026

    25,999       27,241  

3.50%, 12/1/2026

    54,913       58,054  

2.50%, 1/1/2027

    117,295       123,477  

3.00%, 1/1/2027

    103,978       110,565  

2.50%, 6/1/2027

    14,175       14,860  

3.50%, 6/1/2027

    20,547       21,718  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

2.50%, 10/1/2027

  $ 147,601     $ 153,786  

2.50%, 12/1/2027

    72,695       76,473  

2.50%, 1/1/2028

    82,397       86,617  

3.50%, 1/1/2028

    259,912       278,898  

3.50%, 2/1/2028

    90,903       97,040  

3.00%, 3/1/2028

    25,647       27,077  

3.00%, 6/1/2028

    347,312       364,959  

3.50%, 6/1/2028

    78,647       85,552  

2.50%, 7/1/2028

    83,796       88,237  

3.00%, 7/1/2028

    28,815       30,787  

2.50%, 8/1/2028

    20,094       21,246  

2.50%, 9/1/2028

    100,302       105,151  

3.50%, 9/1/2028

    29,642       31,324  

3.00%, 11/1/2028

    27,264       29,117  

4.00%, 2/1/2029

    24,803       26,363  

4.00%, 5/1/2029

    46,991       49,928  

4.00%, 7/1/2029

    69,181       73,520  

3.00%, 7/1/2030

    39,549       41,923  

3.00%, 9/1/2030

    48,508       50,878  

3.50%, 10/1/2030

    92,266       97,808  

3.50%, 11/1/2030

    20,593       21,829  

3.50%, 2/1/2031

    36,255       38,311  

4.00%, 3/1/2031

    91,202       97,017  

2.00%, 9/1/2031

    52,291       54,508  

2.00%, 11/1/2031

    116,819       121,780  

2.00%, 2/1/2032

    95,184       99,227  

3.50%, 3/1/2032

    22,182       23,469  

3.00%, 4/1/2032

    102,409       107,240  

6.00%, 12/1/2032

    17,222       20,175  

6.00%, 4/1/2033

    10,274       12,121  

3.00%, 5/1/2033

    195,609       206,368  

3.00%, 6/1/2033

    197,366       208,449  

3.00%, 7/1/2033

    24,233       25,639  

5.50%, 7/1/2033

    42,406       49,918  

3.00%, 10/1/2033

    40,220       42,543  

5.50%, 3/1/2034

    24,726       28,383  

6.00%, 3/1/2034

    359,310       434,261  

5.50%, 7/1/2034

    51,857       60,638  

6.00%, 8/1/2034

    65,687       77,645  

6.50%, 9/1/2034

    158,066       187,330  

5.00%, 12/1/2034

    32,532       37,479  

5.00%, 1/1/2035

    41,881       48,278  

5.50%, 2/1/2035

    639,709       755,501  

5.00%, 3/1/2035

    220,931       254,616  

5.00%, 4/1/2035

    811,813       935,723  

5.50%, 5/1/2035

    44,082       52,210  

5.00%, 6/1/2035

    109,508       126,216  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      341  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

5.00%, 7/1/2035

  $ 155,367     $ 179,089  

5.00%, 8/1/2035

    39,320       45,393  

5.50%, 10/1/2035

    47,739       55,991  

5.00%, 11/1/2035

    51,874       59,811  

5.50%, 11/1/2035

    41,740       49,459  

6.00%, 11/1/2035

    53,324       63,111  

5.00%, 12/1/2035

    85,792       98,978  

5.50%, 1/1/2036

    223,204       263,081  

5.00%, 2/1/2036

    174,086       200,865  

5.00%, 4/1/2036

    29,131       33,577  

6.00%, 6/1/2036

    77,295       91,531  

5.00%, 7/1/2036

    42,094       48,549  

5.50%, 7/1/2036

    182,676       215,359  

6.50%, 8/1/2036

    28,631       34,174  

6.00%, 11/1/2036

    75,184       88,954  

5.50%, 12/1/2036

    135,652       158,055  

6.50%, 12/1/2036

    77,381       87,301  

5.50%, 1/1/2037

    25,558       29,759  

5.50%, 2/1/2037

    6,822       7,684  

5.50%, 4/1/2037

    301,368       354,270  

5.50%, 5/1/2037

    39,990       46,428  

5.50%, 8/1/2037

    85,195       99,852  

6.00%, 8/1/2037

    12,306       14,564  

6.00%, 9/1/2037

    35,999       42,542  

6.50%, 10/1/2037

    104,593       127,030  

5.00%, 2/1/2038

    55,563       64,021  

5.00%, 3/1/2038

    82,232       94,384  

5.50%, 3/1/2038

    20,755       24,192  

5.00%, 5/1/2038

    71,576       82,536  

6.00%, 5/1/2038

    25,076       29,529  

5.50%, 6/1/2038

    55,669       64,790  

5.50%, 9/1/2038

    24,453       28,422  

6.00%, 9/1/2038

    45,423       53,227  

5.50%, 11/1/2038

    95,124       110,280  

5.00%, 1/1/2039

    8,885       10,213  

5.50%, 3/1/2039

    84,215       97,829  

4.50%, 4/1/2039

    77,759       87,189  

5.50%, 5/1/2039

    61,661       71,648  

5.00%, 6/1/2039

    77,272       88,939  

5.50%, 8/1/2039

    78,483       90,844  

4.50%, 9/1/2039

    131,633       151,329  

4.50%, 10/1/2039

    159,119       183,039  

4.50%, 11/1/2039

    36,665       41,223  

5.50%, 11/1/2039

    57,736       66,775  

4.50%, 1/1/2040

    71,769       81,539  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

5.50%, 1/1/2040

  $ 20,196     $ 23,350  

4.50%, 2/1/2040

    46,374       52,222  

5.00%, 2/1/2040

    66,736       78,021  

4.50%, 3/1/2040

    479,732       540,041  

5.50%, 3/1/2040

    368,646       434,737  

4.50%, 4/1/2040

    143,553       161,356  

5.50%, 4/1/2040

    111,089       130,641  

5.00%, 6/1/2040

    28,790       33,258  

6.00%, 6/1/2040

    179,881       210,768  

4.50%, 7/1/2040

    610,914       686,125  

4.50%, 8/1/2040

    162,492       183,852  

4.00%, 9/1/2040

    31,421       34,606  

4.50%, 10/1/2040

    246,353       277,049  

2.00%, 11/1/2040

    1,000,000       1,033,188  

4.00%, 11/1/2040

    27,183       29,983  

4.50%, 12/1/2040

    663,213       746,535  

3.50%, 1/1/2041

    74,616       81,826  

5.00%, 1/1/2041

    24,222       27,981  

3.50%, 2/1/2041

    50,265       54,386  

4.00%, 2/1/2041

    35,743       39,180  

4.50%, 4/1/2041

    191,623       215,482  

5.50%, 4/1/2041

    6,203       6,912  

4.50%, 5/1/2041

    71,213       80,148  

6.00%, 5/1/2041

    42,230       49,682  

4.50%, 6/1/2041

    1,162,334       1,306,398  

6.00%, 6/1/2041

    61,756       73,093  

5.00%, 7/1/2041

    507,460       585,614  

6.00%, 7/1/2041

    597,804       716,268  

4.50%, 8/1/2041

    242,030       271,989  

5.00%, 8/1/2041

    111,888       129,915  

5.50%, 8/1/2041

    52,871       59,778  

4.00%, 9/1/2041

    342,763       385,969  

5.50%, 9/1/2041

    122,746       142,782  

3.50%, 10/1/2041

    196,095       219,538  

4.00%, 10/1/2041

    102,353       115,628  

5.00%, 10/1/2041

    400,854       462,217  

4.00%, 11/1/2041

    149,535       164,964  

4.00%, 12/1/2041

    36,082       39,812  

4.00%, 1/1/2042

    303,320       334,384  

4.50%, 1/1/2042

    33,913       38,133  

6.00%, 1/1/2042

    115,082       136,156  

4.00%, 3/1/2042

    149,245       167,806  

3.00%, 4/1/2042

    98,239       104,143  

4.50%, 4/1/2042

    186,306       209,575  

3.50%, 5/1/2042

    55,664       60,430  

4.50%, 5/1/2042

    125,640       141,362  

3.50%, 6/1/2042

    82,988       91,121  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

342    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

3.50%, 7/1/2042

  $ 196,357     $ 218,739  

4.00%, 7/1/2042

    188,281       214,455  

3.50%, 8/1/2042

    68,265       75,456  

4.50%, 8/1/2042

    30,795       34,603  

3.50%, 9/1/2042

    24,760       27,371  

4.00%, 9/1/2042

    118,109       133,581  

4.50%, 9/1/2042

    29,461       33,112  

3.00%, 10/1/2042

    253,367       274,483  

3.50%, 10/1/2042

    56,176       61,466  

3.00%, 12/1/2042

    216,373       236,610  

2.50%, 1/1/2043

    16,416       17,353  

3.00%, 1/1/2043

    280,279       298,029  

3.50%, 1/1/2043

    72,011       78,229  

4.00%, 1/1/2043

    131,879       146,273  

4.50%, 1/1/2043

    47,690       53,783  

2.50%, 2/1/2043

    96,968       102,658  

3.00%, 2/1/2043

    303,270       329,726  

3.50%, 2/1/2043

    128,859       140,696  

3.00%, 3/1/2043

    197,656       210,124  

3.50%, 3/1/2043

    140,684       157,482  

3.50%, 4/1/2043

    266,263       298,063  

2.50%, 5/1/2043

    21,632       22,902  

3.00%, 5/1/2043

    87,345       93,057  

3.50%, 5/1/2043

    116,536       129,634  

2.50%, 6/1/2043

    10,181       10,709  

3.00%, 6/1/2043

    37,353       39,630  

3.00%, 7/1/2043

    117,186       123,784  

3.50%, 7/1/2043

    66,716       72,382  

3.00%, 8/1/2043

    32,435       34,479  

3.50%, 8/1/2043

    150,862       163,727  

4.00%, 8/1/2043

    91,249       100,571  

4.00%, 9/1/2043

    180,146       200,148  

4.50%, 9/1/2043

    44,983       51,005  

4.00%, 10/1/2043

    229,899       253,843  

4.00%, 11/1/2043

    505,812       570,848  

4.50%, 11/1/2043

    139,807       158,592  

5.00%, 11/1/2043

    57,633       66,428  

3.00%, 12/1/2043

    25,761       27,378  

4.50%, 12/1/2043

    103,577       116,418  

4.00%, 1/1/2044

    183,386       202,859  

5.00%, 1/1/2044

    173,840       199,644  

3.50%, 2/1/2044

    35,255       39,450  

4.50%, 2/1/2044

    40,985       45,883  

4.50%, 3/1/2044

    164,551       185,925  

5.00%, 3/1/2044

    34,604       40,153  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

4.50%, 4/1/2044

  $ 83,962     $ 96,304  

5.00%, 5/1/2044

    23,464       26,191  

5.50%, 5/1/2044

    1,729,418       2,035,943  

5.00%, 6/1/2044

    28,008       31,348  

3.50%, 7/1/2044

    112,915       127,402  

3.00%, 10/1/2044

    565,183       602,092  

4.00%, 10/1/2044

    62,377       69,949  

4.50%, 10/1/2044

    19,642       21,614  

3.00%, 12/1/2044

    49,855       53,993  

4.50%, 12/1/2044

    22,069       24,885  

3.00%, 2/1/2045

    35,552       37,366  

4.00%, 2/1/2045

    51,281       55,991  

4.50%, 2/1/2045

    229,423       256,192  

3.00%, 4/1/2045

    36,298       38,184  

4.00%, 4/1/2045

    43,120       47,923  

3.00%, 7/1/2045

    258,023       272,295  

4.00%, 8/1/2045

    27,553       30,233  

4.00%, 11/1/2045

    113,344       125,974  

4.50%, 11/1/2045

    57,167       65,521  

4.00%, 12/1/2045

    577,836       640,993  

3.50%, 2/1/2046

    65,632       72,507  

4.00%, 2/1/2046

    26,743       29,154  

3.00%, 3/1/2046

    29,380       32,105  

4.00%, 3/1/2046

    40,788       44,632  

4.50%, 3/1/2046

    291,241       327,450  

4.00%, 4/1/2046

    22,276       24,612  

3.50%, 5/1/2046

    34,022       36,288  

4.00%, 5/1/2046

    32,904       35,581  

2.50%, 6/1/2046

    126,028       133,415  

3.50%, 6/1/2046

    330,821       361,397  

4.50%, 6/1/2046

    135,037       150,188  

4.50%, 7/1/2046

    47,192       51,654  

3.50%, 8/1/2046

    126,909       138,512  

4.50%, 8/1/2046

    34,861       39,025  

2.50%, 9/1/2046

    271,921       287,054  

3.00%, 9/1/2046

    37,322       39,670  

2.50%, 10/1/2046

    131,087       138,093  

3.50%, 10/1/2046

    91,182       97,364  

2.50%, 12/1/2046

    40,307       42,636  

4.00%, 12/1/2046

    67,771       73,714  

3.50%, 1/1/2047

    452,023       494,308  

4.50%, 1/1/2047

    70,654       77,249  

4.00%, 2/1/2047

    148,298       161,174  

4.50%, 2/1/2047

    70,582       79,202  

2.50%, 3/1/2047

    238,039       251,777  

4.50%, 3/1/2047

    300,086       345,968  

4.50%, 5/1/2047

    160,990       177,062  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      343  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

4.50%, 7/1/2047

  $ 161,102     $ 179,719  

5.00%, 7/1/2047

    602,006       691,311  

3.50%, 8/1/2047

    90,696       99,194  

5.00%, 12/1/2047

    36,736       42,217  

4.00%, 7/1/2048

    253,699       281,773  

5.50%, 1/1/2049

    88,632       98,714  

6.00%, 2/1/2049

    153,948       186,163  

5.50%, 6/1/2049

    434,581       499,882  

4.50%, 9/1/2049

    42,249       46,550  

FNMA/FHLMC UMBS, 15 Year, Single Family

   

TBA 1.50%, 11/25/2035

    600,000       612,645  

FNMA/FHLMC UMBS, 30 Year, Single Family

   

TBA 1.50%, 11/25/2050

    2,000,000       2,013,672  

TBA 2.00%, 11/25/2050

    2,850,000       2,939,842  

TBA 2.50%, 11/25/2050

    3,850,000       4,012,271  

GNMA

   

3.00%, 2/20/2027

    168,416       176,243  

2.50%, 4/20/2027

    75,955       78,873  

3.00%, 5/20/2027

    150,469       157,394  

2.50%, 11/20/2027

    84,579       87,829  

2.50%, 1/20/2028

    43,967       45,657  

3.00%, 1/20/2028

    92,879       96,524  

3.00%, 3/20/2028

    87,495       91,572  

3.00%, 7/20/2028

    145,297       152,074  

2.50%, 8/20/2028

    136,352       141,907  

2.50%, 12/20/2028

    19,529       20,324  

2.50%, 3/20/2031

    56,328       58,505  

2.50%, 10/20/2031

    67,315       69,919  

5.50%, 3/15/2033

    219,960       256,301  

6.00%, 3/15/2033

    77,333       93,452  

5.50%, 6/15/2033

    58,302       67,905  

5.50%, 8/20/2033

    48,936       58,084  

6.00%, 10/20/2033

    89,012       102,507  

5.50%, 11/15/2033

    26,421       30,699  

5.50%, 11/20/2033

    45,339       53,812  

6.00%, 12/15/2033

    143,773       173,704  

5.50%, 3/20/2034

    54,989       65,290  

5.00%, 5/15/2034

    27,833       32,245  

5.00%, 7/15/2034

    52,820       60,884  

5.50%, 7/20/2034

    34,931       41,455  

5.50%, 9/20/2034

    15,375       18,262  

5.00%, 1/15/2035

    172,991       199,409  

6.00%, 2/15/2035

    31,527       38,100  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

5.50%, 3/15/2035

  $ 148,892     $ 172,999  

5.50%, 9/15/2035

    200,417       234,935  

5.50%, 3/20/2036

    112,348       133,402  

5.50%, 5/15/2036

    153,710       180,181  

5.50%, 8/15/2038

    26,479       30,775  

5.50%, 9/20/2038

    69,878       82,953  

5.00%, 10/15/2038

    21,709       24,865  

5.50%, 11/15/2038

    81,121       95,118  

5.00%, 12/15/2038

    30,339       34,719  

5.50%, 12/15/2038

    76,402       89,581  

6.00%, 12/20/2038

    156,808       180,441  

5.50%, 2/15/2039

    58,666       68,788  

5.50%, 2/20/2039

    86,003       102,095  

4.50%, 5/15/2039

    91,237       102,121  

5.50%, 5/15/2039

    41,092       48,174  

4.50%, 6/15/2039

    10,073       11,200  

5.00%, 6/15/2039

    869,199       1,001,329  

5.00%, 9/15/2039

    64,204       73,406  

5.50%, 9/15/2039

    17,590       20,624  

4.00%, 9/20/2039

    29,733       33,059  

4.50%, 10/15/2039

    53,517       60,201  

5.00%, 10/15/2039

    261,719       300,846  

5.00%, 11/15/2039

    537,010       619,011  

5.50%, 11/15/2039

    38,159       44,742  

4.50%, 12/15/2039

    123,125       136,327  

5.50%, 12/15/2039

    47,599       55,810  

5.00%, 1/20/2040

    134,351       152,897  

5.50%, 3/15/2040

    193,787       227,220  

4.50%, 4/15/2040

    50,827       56,237  

5.00%, 4/15/2040

    84,776       97,784  

4.50%, 6/15/2040

    28,176       31,265  

5.00%, 6/15/2040

    30,719       34,740  

4.50%, 7/15/2040

    68,425       75,446  

5.00%, 7/20/2040

    150,545       172,387  

4.00%, 8/15/2040

    13,818       14,887  

5.50%, 8/15/2040

    15,529       18,213  

4.00%, 10/15/2040

    24,962       27,159  

3.50%, 11/15/2040

    31,679       34,074  

4.00%, 11/15/2040

    27,461       29,767  

4.00%, 12/15/2040

    333,396       372,744  

4.00%, 12/20/2040

    38,507       43,605  

5.50%, 1/20/2041

    30,415       36,134  

5.50%, 2/15/2041

    29,179       34,073  

4.00%, 3/15/2041

    4,068       4,429  

4.50%, 3/15/2041

    30,256       34,026  

3.50%, 3/20/2041

    82,349       88,110  

4.50%, 6/15/2041

    121,239       135,307  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

344    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

4.00%, 7/15/2041

  $ 38,074     $ 41,021  

3.50%, 7/20/2041

    32,533       34,896  

4.00%, 8/15/2041

    76,430       83,184  

5.00%, 8/15/2041

    661,975       761,415  

3.50%, 9/15/2041

    79,449       85,330  

3.50%, 10/20/2041

    73,259       79,549  

3.50%, 11/20/2041

    84,031       91,504  

3.50%, 1/15/2042

    17,509       18,676  

4.00%, 1/20/2042

    72,775       80,866  

3.00%, 2/20/2042

    146,914       156,429  

4.00%, 2/20/2042

    166,277       184,368  

5.50%, 2/20/2042

    23,302       27,671  

4.50%, 3/15/2042

    103,125       114,590  

3.50%, 3/20/2042

    29,760       32,311  

5.00%, 3/20/2042

    50,332       57,326  

3.50%, 4/20/2042

    100,833       109,478  

3.00%, 5/15/2042

    51,226       53,344  

3.00%, 5/20/2042

    149,093       158,921  

3.50%, 5/20/2042

    21,475       23,327  

4.00%, 5/20/2042

    211,488       234,242  

3.50%, 6/15/2042

    50,535       53,810  

3.00%, 6/20/2042

    39,951       42,641  

5.00%, 7/20/2042

    6,606       7,522  

3.50%, 8/20/2042

    33,567       36,462  

3.00%, 9/15/2042

    27,614       28,804  

3.00%, 9/20/2042

    50,519       53,938  

3.00%, 10/20/2042

    49,327       52,662  

3.50%, 10/20/2042

    69,678       75,161  

3.00%, 11/20/2042

    169,430       180,815  

3.00%, 12/20/2042

    111,910       120,030  

3.50%, 12/20/2042

    235,915       256,433  

3.50%, 1/15/2043

    64,219       70,797  

3.00%, 2/20/2043

    108,072       118,363  

2.50%, 3/20/2043

    71,135       75,298  

3.00%, 3/20/2043

    78,632       85,250  

3.50%, 3/20/2043

    21,834       23,251  

3.00%, 4/15/2043

    61,890       66,376  

3.50%, 4/15/2043

    59,297       62,765  

3.00%, 4/20/2043

    232,227       248,133  

3.50%, 4/20/2043

    84,843       93,490  

3.00%, 5/15/2043

    78,200       85,175  

2.50%, 5/20/2043

    103,482       109,511  

3.50%, 6/15/2043

    51,532       56,392  

3.00%, 8/20/2043

    32,632       34,683  

3.50%, 8/20/2043

    42,786       46,411  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  

3.00%, 9/20/2043

  $ 94,818     $ 101,012  

3.00%, 10/20/2043

    88,649       94,489  

3.50%, 10/20/2043

    51,863       56,254  

5.00%, 12/20/2043

    35,616       40,550  

5.00%, 1/20/2044

    4,493       5,091  

3.50%, 3/20/2044

    110,764       120,137  

5.50%, 3/20/2044

    111,914       132,839  

3.00%, 4/20/2044

    21,828       23,170  

4.00%, 7/15/2044

    25,058       26,975  

3.50%, 8/20/2044

    68,568       73,842  

4.00%, 9/15/2044

    10,852       11,551  

3.50%, 9/20/2044

    54,857       59,027  

3.50%, 10/15/2044

    48,455       51,670  

3.50%, 10/20/2044

    11,581       12,535  

2.50%, 11/20/2044

    81,536       86,272  

4.00%, 12/15/2044

    25,961       27,977  

3.00%, 12/20/2044

    34,356       36,500  

3.50%, 12/20/2044

    34,930       37,484  

3.50%, 1/15/2045

    66,826       72,525  

3.00%, 1/20/2045

    70,339       74,860  

3.50%, 2/20/2045

    46,323       49,668  

3.00%, 3/20/2045

    52,408       55,590  

3.50%, 4/20/2045

    23,441       25,858  

3.50%, 5/15/2045

    52,094       55,592  

3.50%, 5/20/2045

    109,637       117,126  

5.00%, 6/20/2045

    293,386       333,954  

3.00%, 7/15/2045

    148,547       154,251  

4.00%, 8/15/2045

    243,468       273,027  

3.00%, 8/20/2045

    201,542       213,007  

5.50%, 11/15/2045

    466,537       546,239  

3.00%, 12/20/2045

    86,102       90,718  

3.50%, 12/20/2045

    95,677       102,590  

3.00%, 2/20/2046

    125,798       132,644  

3.50%, 2/20/2046

    175,363       188,447  

4.00%, 3/15/2046

    43,272       46,408  

4.00%, 3/20/2046

    136,511       147,989  

5.50%, 3/20/2046

    995,320       1,159,404  

3.50%, 4/20/2046

    83,049       89,147  

4.00%, 5/20/2046

    60,747       65,748  

5.00%, 5/20/2046

    736,057       843,135  

4.00%, 6/15/2046

    271,818       296,505  

4.50%, 6/15/2046

    466,409       519,252  

4.00%, 7/15/2046

    74,559       80,314  

3.00%, 9/20/2046

    47,427       50,251  

3.50%, 10/20/2046

    128,701       140,366  

3.00%, 12/15/2046

    27,311       29,317  

3.00%, 12/20/2046

    24,568       25,933  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      345  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

4.00%, 3/15/2047

  $ 1,303,707     $ 1,414,454  

4.50%, 4/15/2047

    55,712       62,677  

5.00%, 2/20/2048

    35,362       38,737  

5.00%, 4/20/2048

    81,835       89,305  

5.50%, 11/20/2048

    80,379       88,191  

5.50%, 7/20/2049

    38,016       41,711  

3.50%, 9/20/2049

    109,610       115,721  

5.00%, 9/20/2050

    179,870       198,554  
Total Mortgage-Backed Securities
(Cost $97,207,814)

 

    99,462,691  
Total Investments – 99.4%
(Cost $97,207,814)

 

    99,462,691  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.6%

 

    557,794  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 100,020,485  

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

FHLMC – Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.

FNMA – Federal National Mortgage Association

GNMA – Government National Mortgage Association

TBA – To Be Announced; Security is subject to delayed delivery.

UMBS – Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,305,012  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (50,589

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,254,423  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 97,208,268  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

346    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – 98.9%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.4%  

Boeing Co. (The)

   

5.15%, 5/1/2030

  $ 150,000     $ 166,078  

General Dynamics Corp.

   

3.75%, 5/15/2028

    100,000       116,527  

Hexcel Corp.

   

4.70%, 8/15/2025

    250,000       276,878  

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.

   

3.48%, 12/1/2027

    200,000       218,088  

L3Harris Technologies, Inc.

   

3.85%, 12/15/2026

    250,000       284,812  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

   

3.55%, 1/15/2026

    420,000       475,147  

Northrop Grumman Corp.

   

2.93%, 1/15/2025

    500,000       541,643  

3.25%, 1/ 15/2028

    500,000       559,073  

Precision Castparts Corp.

   

3.25%, 6/15/2025

    200,000       221,196  
              2,859,442  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.1%  

United Parcel Service, Inc.

   

3.40%, 3/15/2029

    200,000       229,549  
Airlines – 0.3%  

Southwest Airlines Co.

   

3.00%, 11/15/2026

    100,000       101,048  

5.13%, 6/15/2027

    500,000       556,766  
              657,814  
Auto Components – 0.2%  

BorgWarner, Inc.

   

3.38%, 3/15/2025

    100,000       109,151  

Lear Corp.

   

3.80%, 9/15/2027

    200,000       214,585  
              323,736  
Banks – 23.2%  

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

   

2.63%, 11/9/2022

    250,000       261,574  

Banco Santander SA

   

5.18%, 11/19/2025

    400,000       456,431  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Banks – (continued)  

3.31%, 6/27/2029

  $ 200,000     $ 218,505  

Bancolombia SA

   

3.00%, 1/29/2025

    250,000       252,640  

Bank of America Corp.

   

2.88%, 4/24/2023(a)

    315,000       325,419  

3.00%, 12/20/2023(a)

    500,000       524,382  

4.00%, 1/22/2025

    495,000       550,674  

2.01%, 2/13/2026(a)

    245,000       253,812  

4.45%, 3/3/2026

    250,000       287,832  

3.50%, 4/19/2026

    200,000       224,300  

Series L,
4.18%, 11/25/2027

    365,000       418,110  

3.82%, 1/20/2028(a)

    500,000       565,056  

3.71%, 4/24/2028(a)

    5,000       5,622  

3.42%, 12/20/2028(a)

    250,000       277,907  

4.27%, 7/23/2029(a)

    550,000       646,245  

3.97%, 2/7/2030(a)

    300,000       346,517  

Bank of Montreal

   

2.90%, 3/26/2022

    200,000       207,207  

4.34%, 10/5/2028(a)

    300,000       324,690  

Bank of Nova Scotia (The)

   

3.40%, 2/11/2024

    250,000       271,558  

4.50%, 12/16/2025

    350,000       404,263  

Barclays plc

   

4.61%, 2/15/2023(a)

    250,000       261,907  

4.38%, 9/11/2024

    490,000       532,245  

3.65%, 3/16/2025

    200,000       217,052  

4.84%, 5/9/2028

    300,000       327,842  

5.09%, 6/20/2030(a)

    250,000       284,963  

BBVA USA

   

2.88%, 6/29/2022

    300,000       310,494  

3.88%, 4/10/2025

    250,000       268,549  

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

   

2.25%, 1/28/2025

    300,000       316,421  

Capital One Bank USA NA

   

3.38%, 2/15/2023

    1,000,000       1,059,760  

Citigroup, Inc.

   

2.90%, 12/8/2021

    750,000       769,239  

4.50%, 1/14/2022

    150,000       157,274  

4.05%, 7/30/2022

    100,000       106,001  

3.35%, 4/24/2025(a)

    600,000       648,441  

3.30%, 4/27/2025

    200,000       220,882  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      347  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

4.40%, 6/10/2025

  $ 325,000     $ 367,981  

3.40%, 5/1/2026

    300,000       333,761  

3.20%, 10/21/2026

    350,000       385,234  

4.45%, 9/29/2027

    200,000       230,896  

3.67%, 7/24/2028(a)

    255,000       285,817  

2.98%, 11/5/2030(a)

    500,000       537,991  

4.41%, 3/31/2031(a)

    136,000       161,670  

2.57%, 6/3/2031(a)

    500,000       521,710  

Citizens Bank NA

   

3.70%, 3/29/2023

    300,000       321,983  

Citizens Financial Group, Inc.

   

3.25%, 4/30/2030

    200,000       218,575  

Comerica, Inc.

   

3.70%, 7/31/2023

    250,000       270,042  

Cooperatieve Rabobank UA

   

3.75%, 7/21/2026

    250,000       280,150  

Credit Suisse Group Funding Guernsey Ltd.

   

3.80%, 9/15/2022

    250,000       264,448  

3.75%, 3/26/2025

    650,000       720,084  

4.55%, 4/17/2026

    250,000       291,139  

Discover Bank

   

3.35%, 2/6/2023

    300,000       317,397  

4.20%, 8/8/2023

    400,000       438,597  

4.65%, 9/13/2028

    250,000       293,291  

Fifth Third Bancorp

   

4.30%, 1/16/2024

    250,000       275,133  

Fifth Third Bank NA

   

3.85%, 3/15/2026

    400,000       452,732  

First Horizon National Corp.

   

3.55%, 5/26/2023

    250,000       263,393  

HSBC Holdings plc

   

4.00%, 3/30/2022

    510,000       535,822  

3.80%, 3/11/2025(a)

    250,000       270,813  

4.25%, 8/18/2025

    540,000       598,696  

3.90%, 5/25/2026

    200,000       223,886  

4.29%, 9/12/2026(a)

    250,000       280,596  

4.04%, 3/13/2028(a)

    500,000       558,782  

3.97%, 5/22/2030(a)

    300,000       336,716  

Huntington Bancshares, Inc.

   

4.00%, 5/15/2025

    200,000       226,619  

ING Groep NV

   

3.55%, 4/9/2024

    200,000       217,988  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Banks – (continued)  

4.55%, 10/2/2028

  $ 350,000     $ 420,736  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

   

3.21%, 4/1/2023(a)

    250,000       259,805  

3.38%, 5/1/2023

    520,000       555,496  

3.56%, 4/23/2024(a)

    300,000       321,414  

3.88%, 9/10/2024

    302,000       334,905  

3.90%, 7/15/2025

    250,000       282,920  

2.95%, 10/1/2026

    450,000       496,246  

4.13%, 12/15/2026

    149,000       172,896  

3.78%, 2/1/2028(a)

    425,000       483,267  

4.01%, 4/23/2029(a)

    130,000       150,993  

4.20%, 7/23/2029(a)

    450,000       530,098  

2.74%, 10/15/2030(a)

    200,000       214,157  

4.49%, 3/24/2031(a)

    200,000       242,310  

KeyBank NA

   

2.40%, 6/9/2022

    250,000       258,090  

KeyCorp

   

4.10%, 4/30/2028

    200,000       233,650  

Lloyds Banking Group plc

   

4.05%, 8/16/2023

    300,000       325,874  

2.91%, 11/7/2023(a)

    300,000       312,167  

4.38%, 3/22/2028

    200,000       232,161  

3.57%, 11/7/2028(a)

    200,000       219,831  

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc.

   

2.67%, 7/25/2022

    850,000       882,276  

3.76%, 7/26/2023

    50,000       54,183  

3.41%, 3/7/2024

    50,000       54,152  

2.19%, 2/25/2025

    200,000       209,795  

3.68%, 2/22/2027

    350,000       394,518  

3.29%, 7/25/2027

    750,000       831,324  

3.74%, 3/7/2029

    200,000       230,085  

Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

   

2.95%, 2/28/2022

    475,000       490,794  

3.55%, 3/5/2023

    450,000       480,402  

4.02%, 3/5/2028

    590,000       680,708  

3.15%, 7/16/2030(a)

    200,000       217,845  

National Australia Bank Ltd.

   

2.80%, 1/10/2022

    250,000       257,433  

3.63%, 6/20/2023

    250,000       270,813  

PNC Bank NA

   

3.50%, 6/8/2023

    250,000       269,161  

3.25%, 1/22/2028

    250,000       279,768  

PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)

   

3.30%, 3/8/2022

    380,000       394,194  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

348    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Banks – (continued)  

3.90%, 4/29/2024

  $ 50,000     $ 55,122  

3.15%, 5/19/2027

    80,000       89,277  

Royal Bank of Canada

   

2.75%, 2/1/2022

    200,000       205,922  

1.95%, 1/17/2023

    350,000       361,822  

4.65%, 1/27/2026

    250,000       293,902  

Santander Holdings USA, Inc.

   

4.50%, 7/17/2025

    440,000       488,515  

Santander UK Group Holdings plc

   

3.82%, 11/3/2028(a)

    200,000       221,397  

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc.

   

3.10%, 1/17/2023

    450,000       475,283  

2.70%, 7/16/2024

    500,000       532,233  

2.35%, 1/15/2025

    250,000       264,062  

3.78%, 3/9/2026

    250,000       284,088  

2.63%, 7/14/2026

    600,000       645,172  

3.36%, 7/12/2027

    450,000       499,116  

2.75%, 1/15/2030

    200,000       213,423  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

   

3.25%, 3/11/2024

    450,000       488,359  

Truist Bank

   

2.80%, 5/17/2022

    250,000       259,143  

3.30%, 5/15/2026

    200,000       222,947  

Truist Financial Corp.

   

3.05%, 6/20/2022

    200,000       208,305  

2.85%, 10/26/2024

    150,000       162,184  

4.00%, 5/1/2025

    210,000       238,326  

US Bancorp

   

3.38%, 2/5/2024

    200,000       217,266  

3.95%, 11/17/2025

    200,000       230,046  

3.00%, 7/30/2029

    200,000       221,086  

Wells Fargo & Co.

   

3.50%, 3/8/2022

    500,000       520,705  

2.63%, 7/22/2022

    500,000       518,059  

3.07%, 1/24/2023

    250,000       257,604  

4.48%, 1/16/2024

    325,000       360,100  

3.55%, 9/29/2025

    450,000       501,219  

4.10%, 6/3/2026

    500,000       565,991  

3.58%, 5/22/2028(a)

    250,000       277,706  

2.88%, 10/30/2030(a)

    450,000       479,318  

2.57%, 2/11/2031(a)

    200,000       208,448  

4.48%, 4/4/2031(a)

    200,000       240,293  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Banks – (continued)  

Westpac Banking Corp.

   

2.75%, 1/11/2023

  $ 600,000     $ 630,894  

3.40%, 1/25/2028

    400,000       457,258  

2.65%, 1/16/2030

    125,000       137,376  
              46,862,190  
Beverages – 0.6%  

Anheuser-Busch InBev Worldwide, Inc.

   

3.50%, 6/1/2030

    200,000       226,796  

Coca-Cola Co. (The)

   

3.45%, 3/25/2030

    200,000       235,031  

Diageo Capital plc

   

2.38%, 10/24/2029

    200,000       213,130  

Keurig Dr Pepper, Inc.

   

4.60%, 5/25/2028

    200,000       239,703  

PepsiCo, Inc.

   

2.38%, 10/6/2026

    300,000       324,669  
              1,239,329  
Biotechnology – 2.1%  

AbbVie, Inc.

   

2.60%, 11/21/2024(b)

    1,000,000       1,064,149  

3.60%, 5/14/2025

    952,000       1,054,266  

3.20%, 5/14/2026

    100,000       110,525  

2.95%, 11/21/2026(b)

    500,000       546,484  

4.25%, 11/14/2028

    400,000       472,709  

Amgen, Inc.

   

2.20%, 2/21/2027

    300,000       315,615  

2.45%, 2/21/2030

    300,000       316,722  

Biogen, Inc.

   

4.05%, 9/15/2025

    300,000       340,987  
              4,221,457  
Building Products – 0.7%  

Carrier Global Corp.

   

2.24%, 2/15/2025(b)

    501,000       523,010  

Johnson Controls International plc

   

3.62%, 7/2/2024(c)

    200,000       217,152  

Lennox International, Inc.

   

1.35%, 8/1/2025

    200,000       202,444  

Masco Corp.

   

4.45%, 4/1/2025

    200,000       229,222  

4.38%, 4/1/2026

    200,000       233,075  
              1,404,903  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      349  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Capital Markets – 6.7%  

Ares Capital Corp.

   

3.88%, 1/15/2026

  $ 1,000,000     $ 1,026,122  

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (The)

   

Series 0012, 3.65%, 2/4/2024

    300,000       328,243  

2.45%, 8/17/2026

    300,000       326,578  

3.00%, 10/30/2028

    143,000       158,305  

BGC Partners, Inc.

   

3.75%, 10/1/2024

    200,000       202,696  

BlackRock, Inc.

   

3.20%, 3/15/2027

    200,000       227,216  

Brookfield Finance, Inc.

   

4.85%, 3/29/2029

    200,000       239,311  

Cboe Global Markets, Inc.

   

3.65%, 1/12/2027

    200,000       226,497  

Charles Schwab Corp. (The)

   

3.20%, 1/25/2028

    100,000       111,759  

4.00%, 2/1/2029

    400,000       474,171  

CME Group, Inc.

   

3.00%, 3/15/2025

    275,000       301,291  

Deutsche Bank AG

   

3.70%, 5/30/2024

    295,000       313,001  

4.10%, 1/13/2026

    100,000       108,009  

E*TRADE Financial Corp.

   

2.95%, 8/24/2022

    200,000       208,382  

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

   

3.00%, 4/26/2022

    500,000       506,197  

3.63%, 1/22/2023

    600,000       640,366  

4.00%, 3/3/2024

    500,000       551,181  

3.85%, 7/8/2024

    500,000       548,257  

3.50%, 1/23/2025

    465,000       508,878  

4.25%, 10/21/2025

    500,000       568,622  

3.69%, 6/5/2028(a)

    250,000       282,057  

2.60%, 2/7/2030

    200,000       211,425  

3.80%, 3/15/2030

    500,000       577,435  

Jefferies Group LLC

   

4.15%, 1/23/2030

    200,000       228,288  

Lazard Group LLC

   

3.75%, 2/13/2025

    250,000       271,645  

Legg Mason, Inc.

   

4.75%, 3/15/2026

    200,000       237,278  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Capital Markets – (continued)  

Moody’s Corp.

   

2.63%, 1/15/2023

  $ 200,000     $ 209,264  

Morgan Stanley

   

2.63%, 11/17/2021

    400,000       409,561  

3.75%, 2/25/2023

    800,000       859,035  

3.88%, 1/27/2026

    200,000       227,489  

3.13%, 7/27/2026

    107,000       118,155  

4.35%, 9/8/2026

    650,000       755,846  

3.95%, 4/23/2027

    100,000       113,025  

2.70%, 1/22/2031(a)

    100,000       106,708  

Nomura Holdings, Inc.

   

2.68%, 7/16/2030

    250,000       255,845  

S&P Global, Inc.

   

2.95%, 1/22/2027

    200,000       220,706  

State Street Corp.

   

3.10%, 5/15/2023

    200,000       213,405  

3.55%, 8/18/2025

    300,000       339,546  

2.40%, 1/24/2030

    100,000       108,896  

TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.

   

3.75%, 4/1/2024

    300,000       330,564  
              13,651,255  
Chemicals – 1.2%  

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

   

3.35%, 7/31/2024

    121,000       132,413  

Celanese US Holdings LLC

   

3.50%, 5/8/2024

    200,000       215,308  

Ecolab, Inc.

   

2.70%, 11/1/2026

    200,000       222,393  

4.80%, 3/24/2030

    150,000       190,580  

FMC Corp.

   

3.20%, 10/1/2026

    200,000       220,927  

Linde, Inc.

   

3.20%, 1/30/2026

    200,000       223,203  

LYB International Finance II BV

   

3.50%, 3/2/2027

    200,000       220,253  

PPG Industries, Inc.

   

2.40%, 8/15/2024

    200,000       212,054  

RPM International, Inc.

   

3.75%, 3/15/2027

    100,000       109,847  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

   

2.75%, 6/1/2022

    156,000       161,142  

3.45%, 6/1/2027

    400,000       449,233  

2.95%, 8/15/2029

    100,000       109,713  
              2,467,066  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

350    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.6%  

Cintas Corp. No. 2

   

2.90%, 4/1/2022

  $ 97,000     $ 100,386  

3.25%, 6/1/2022

    250,000       259,463  

3.70%, 4/1/2027

    50,000       57,139  

RELX Capital, Inc.

   

3.00%, 5/22/2030

    200,000       216,297  

Republic Services, Inc.

   

2.50%, 8/15/2024

    67,000       71,215  

3.95%, 5/15/2028

    100,000       116,439  

Waste Management, Inc.

   

3.15%, 11/15/2027

    350,000       393,847  
              1,214,786  
Communications Equipment – 0.5%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

   

2.20%, 9/20/2023

    300,000       315,321  

2.95%, 2/28/2026

    100,000       111,382  

Juniper Networks, Inc.

   

4.50%, 3/15/2024

    89,000       99,119  

Motorola Solutions, Inc.

   

4.60%, 2/23/2028

    100,000       116,764  

4.60%, 5/23/2029

    300,000       352,928  
              995,514  
Construction Materials – 0.3%  

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.

   

3.50%, 12/15/2027

    250,000       280,047  

Vulcan Materials Co.

   

4.50%, 4/1/2025

    200,000       228,458  
              508,505  
Consumer Finance – 4.3%  

AerCap Ireland Capital DAC

   

3.95%, 2/1/2022

    200,000       203,414  

3.50%, 5/26/2022

    200,000       203,145  

4.50%, 9/15/2023

    500,000       519,592  

4.88%, 1/16/2024

    300,000       314,007  

3.88%, 1/23/2028

    350,000       330,908  

Ally Financial, Inc.

   

3.05%, 6/5/2023

    400,000       418,456  

3.88%, 5/21/2024

    600,000       645,795  

American Express Co.

   

2.50%, 8/1/2022

    200,000       207,040  

3.00%, 10/30/2024

    690,000       747,179  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Consumer Finance – (continued)  

Capital One Financial Corp.

   

3.50%, 6/15/2023

  $ 820,000     $ 877,717  

3.90%, 1/29/2024

    50,000       54,569  

3.30%, 10/30/2024

    200,000       217,056  

3.20%, 2/5/2025

    850,000       918,433  

4.20%, 10/29/2025

    110,000       122,458  

3.75%, 7/28/2026

    300,000       329,644  

3.75%, 3/9/2027

    150,000       167,852  

Discover Financial Services

   

4.10%, 2/9/2027

    400,000       448,660  

General Motors Financial Co., Inc.

   

5.25%, 3/1/2026

    500,000       571,115  

4.35%, 1/17/2027

    400,000       438,952  

Synchrony Financial

   

4.25%, 8/15/2024

    426,000       466,327  

4.50%, 7/23/2025

    200,000       222,424  

3.70%, 8/4/2026

    85,000       91,789  

5.15%, 3/19/2029

    200,000       235,526  
              8,752,058  
Containers & Packaging – 0.3%  

Amcor Finance USA, Inc.

   

4.50%, 5/15/2028

    300,000       354,093  

Avery Dennison Corp.

   

3.35%, 4/15/2023

    50,000       52,346  

Packaging Corp. of America

   

4.50%, 11/1/2023

    200,000       220,745  
              627,184  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.6%  

Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.

   

3.13%, 3/15/2026

    130,000       145,199  

Blackstone

   

3.65%, 7/14/2023(b)

    150,000       151,525  

GE Capital Funding LLC

   

4.40%, 5/15/2030(b)

    200,000       218,861  

National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corp.

   

2.40%, 3/15/2030

    200,000       216,500  

Synchrony Bank

   

3.00%, 6/15/2022

    250,000       258,329  

Voya Financial, Inc.

   

5.65%, 5/15/2053(a)

    200,000       206,601  
              1,197,015  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      351  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 1.7%  

AT&T, Inc.

   

3.40%, 5/15/2025

  $ 550,000     $ 606,554  

4.30%, 2/15/2030

    45,000       52,542  

2.75%, 6/1/2031

    140,000       145,575  

Deutsche Telekom International Finance BV

   

8.75%, 6/15/2030(c)

    200,000       310,870  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

   

2.63%, 8/15/2026

    80,000       87,019  

4.13%, 3/16/2027

    700,000       822,447  

4.33%, 9/21/2028

    1,000,000       1,201,185  

1.68%, 10/30/2030(b)

    313,000       309,952  
              3,536,144  
Electric Utilities – 4.2%  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

   

Series J,
4.30%, 12/1/2028

    45,000       53,131  

Appalachian Power Co.

   

Series X, 3.30%, 6/1/2027

    96,000       105,513  

Avangrid, Inc.

   

3.15%, 12/1/2024

    100,000       108,968  

3.20%, 4/15/2025

    250,000       274,791  

Duke Energy Corp.

   

3.15%, 8/15/2027

    200,000       219,694  

Edison International

   

4.95%, 4/15/2025

    500,000       553,860  

5.75%, 6/15/2027

    200,000       227,372  

Emera US Finance LP

   

3.55%, 6/15/2026

    150,000       166,501  

Enel Chile SA

   

4.88%, 6/12/2028

    250,000       292,344  

Eversource Energy

   

Series L,
2.90%, 10/1/2024

    300,000       323,623  

Series M,
3.30%, 1/15/2028

    100,000       110,972  

FirstEnergy Corp.

   

Series B,
3.90%, 7/15/2027

    500,000       534,784  

Fortis, Inc.

   

3.06%, 10/4/2026

    200,000       218,662  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Electric Utilities – (continued)  

Interstate Power and Light Co.

   

3.25%, 12/1/2024

  $ 200,000     $ 218,832  

ITC Holdings Corp.

   

2.70%, 11/15/2022

    200,000       208,666  

3.35%, 11/15/2027

    200,000       221,149  

MidAmerican Energy Co.

   

3.70%, 9/15/2023

    172,000       186,874  

3.65%, 4/15/2029

    100,000       117,610  

NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, Inc.

   

2.80%, 1/15/2023

    250,000       262,069  

2.75%, 5/1/2025

    750,000       808,863  

3.55%, 5/1/2027

    500,000       562,333  

3.50%, 4/1/2029

    300,000       339,255  

NSTAR Electric Co.

   

3.20%, 5/15/2027

    300,000       334,096  

Pacific Gas and Electric Co.

   

3.45%, 7/1/2025

    400,000       417,152  

4.55%, 7/1/2030

    100,000       107,969  

Pinnacle West Capital Corp.

   

1.30%, 6/15/2025

    150,000       152,512  

PPL Capital Funding, Inc.

   

4.20%, 6/15/2022

    50,000       52,535  

Sierra Pacific Power Co.

   

2.60%, 5/1/2026

    209,000       226,842  

Southern Co. (The)

   

3.25%, 7/1/2026

    384,000       428,335  

Series A,
3.70%, 4/30/2030

    250,000       284,184  

Southwestern Electric Power Co.

   

Series M,
4.10%, 9/15/2028

    200,000       232,769  

Union Electric Co.

   

2.95%, 6/15/2027

    100,000       110,071  

Virginia Electric and Power Co.

   

Series A,
3.50%, 3/15/2027

    100,000       113,633  
              8,575,964  
Electrical Equipment – 0.7%  

ABB Finance USA, Inc.

   

3.38%, 4/3/2023

    250,000       267,432  

Eaton Corp.

   

2.75%, 11/2/2022

    450,000       471,049  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

352    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Electrical Equipment – (continued)  

Emerson Electric Co.

   

0.88%, 10/15/2026

  $ 200,000     $ 198,194  

Hubbell, Inc.

   

3.35%, 3/1/2026

    200,000       216,035  

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

   

2.88%, 3/1/2025

    250,000       271,818  
              1,424,528  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.8%  

Allegion US Holding Co., Inc.

   

3.20%, 10/1/2024

    200,000       214,208  

Amphenol Corp.

   

2.05%, 3/1/2025

    200,000       209,526  

Arrow Electronics, Inc.

   

4.00%, 4/1/2025

    400,000       437,362  

Keysight Technologies, Inc.

   

4.60%, 4/6/2027

    200,000       233,219  

Trimble, Inc.

   

4.90%, 6/15/2028

    250,000       293,496  

Tyco Electronics Group SA

   

3.70%, 2/15/2026

    200,000       226,515  
              1,614,326  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.1%  

Baker Hughes a GE Co. LLC

   

3.34%, 12/15/2027

    10,000       10,727  

Helmerich & Payne, Inc.

   

4.65%, 3/15/2025

    200,000       219,684  
              230,411  
Entertainment – 0.4%  

Activision Blizzard, Inc.

   

3.40%, 9/15/2026

    300,000       339,412  

Electronic Arts, Inc.

   

4.80%, 3/1/2026

    100,000       118,603  

Walt Disney Co. (The)

   

1.75%, 8/30/2024

    300,000       311,566  
              769,581  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 4.6%  

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.

   

3.45%, 4/30/2025

    200,000       221,437  

2.75%, 12/15/2029

    100,000       107,602  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

American Tower Corp.

   

3.80%, 8/15/2029

  $ 193,000     $ 220,027  

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

   

3.45%, 6/1/2025

    200,000       222,752  

3.50%, 11/15/2025

    150,000       168,610  

Boston Properties LP

   

3.65%, 2/1/2026

    255,000       284,779  

4.50%, 12/1/2028

    100,000       117,251  

Brandywine Operating Partnership LP

   

4.10%, 10/1/2024

    250,000       262,720  

Brixmor Operating Partnership LP

   

4.13%, 5/15/2029

    300,000       325,983  

Camden Property Trust

   

2.80%, 5/15/2030

    150,000       162,203  

CubeSmart LP

   

4.00%, 11/15/2025

    250,000       279,719  

CyrusOne LP

   

2.90%, 11/15/2024

    200,000       212,579  

Duke Realty LP

   

3.25%, 6/30/2026

    250,000       276,755  

EPR Properties

   

4.75%, 12/15/2026

    250,000       227,131  

Equinix, Inc.

   

5.38%, 5/15/2027

    250,000       272,642  

ERP Operating LP

   

4.63%, 12/15/2021

    200,000       207,168  

3.25%, 8/1/2027

    45,000       49,740  

Essex Portfolio LP

   

3.88%, 5/1/2024

    200,000       218,222  

GLP Capital LP

   

5.38%, 11/1/2023

    55,000       59,030  

5.38%, 4/15/2026

    300,000       333,754  

Healthpeak Properties, Inc.

   

3.00%, 1/15/2030

    200,000       215,144  

Highwoods Realty LP

   

4.20%, 4/15/2029

    100,000       111,526  

Host Hotels & Resorts LP

   

Series E,
4.00%, 6/15/2025

    250,000       260,626  

Hudson Pacific Properties LP

   

3.25%, 1/15/2030

    100,000       102,667  

Kilroy Realty LP

   

4.38%, 10/1/2025

    200,000       221,508  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      353  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

Kite Realty Group LP

   

4.00%, 10/1/2026

  $ 100,000     $ 98,213  

LifeStorage LP

   

3.50%, 7/1/2026

    200,000       224,930  

Mid-America Apartments LP

   

3.95%, 3/15/2029

    50,000       57,508  

National Retail Properties, Inc.

   

3.90%, 6/15/2024

    250,000       270,109  

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.

   

4.38%, 8/1/2023

    250,000       267,812  

4.50%, 4/1/2027

    150,000       162,741  

3.63%, 10/1/2029

    150,000       151,536  

Public Storage

   

3.09%, 9/15/2027

    200,000       222,681  

Realty Income Corp.

   

4.13%, 10/15/2026

    300,000       349,347  

Simon Property Group LP

   

3.38%, 10/1/2024

    600,000       647,208  

Spirit Realty LP

   

4.45%, 9/15/2026

    200,000       216,768  

UDR, Inc.

   

3.50%, 7/1/2027

    200,000       220,053  

Ventas Realty LP

   

3.50%, 2/1/2025

    50,000       54,488  

4.00%, 3/1/2028

    150,000       165,720  

VEREIT Operating Partnership LP

   

4.63%, 11/1/2025

    200,000       222,169  

Welltower, Inc.

   

4.25%, 4/1/2026

    550,000       632,169  

WP Carey, Inc.

   

4.00%, 2/1/2025

    150,000       165,044  
              9,270,071  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.7%  

Costco Wholesale Corp.

   

2.75%, 5/18/2024

    300,000       323,485  

3.00%, 5/18/2027

    175,000       195,393  

1.38%, 6/20/2027

    300,000       306,166  

Sysco Corp.

   

3.75%, 10/1/2025

    200,000       222,609  

Walmart, Inc.

   

2.85%, 7/8/2024

    200,000       216,530  

3.70%, 6/26/2028

    150,000       175,668  

3.25%, 7/8/2029

    42,000       48,641  
              1,488,492  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Food Products – 2.1%  

Bunge Ltd. Finance Corp.

   

3.75%, 9/25/2027

  $ 200,000     $ 218,924  

Campbell Soup Co.

   

3.95%, 3/15/2025

    200,000       223,222  

4.15%, 3/15/2028

    250,000       289,726  

Conagra Brands, Inc.

   

4.85%, 11/1/2028

    200,000       245,732  

General Mills, Inc.

   

4.00%, 4/17/2025

    250,000       282,346  

4.20%, 4/17/2028

    200,000       234,779  

JM Smucker Co. (The)

   

3.38%, 12/15/2027

    300,000       335,150  

Kellogg Co.

   

3.25%, 4/1/2026

    150,000       167,045  

3.40%, 11/15/2027

    500,000       560,106  

McCormick & Co., Inc.

   

3.15%, 8/15/2024

    200,000       216,582  

3.40%, 8/15/2027

    200,000       223,365  

Mondelez International, Inc.

   

2.75%, 4/13/2030

    200,000       215,926  

Unilever Capital Corp.

   

2.60%, 5/5/2024

    700,000       745,731  

2.90%, 5/5/2027

    200,000       221,743  

3.50%, 3/22/2028

    100,000       115,646  
              4,296,023  
Gas Utilities – 0.3%  

Dominion Energy Gas Holdings LLC

   

Series A, 2.50%, 11/15/2024

    60,000       63,748  

3.60%, 12/15/2024

    80,000       88,071  

National Fuel Gas Co.

   

5.20%, 7/15/2025

    200,000       218,829  

5.50%, 1/15/2026

    275,000       301,245  
              671,893  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.8%  

Abbott Laboratories

   

3.75%, 11/30/2026

    100,000       116,169  

Baxter International, Inc.

   

2.60%, 8/15/2026

    200,000       217,285  

Becton Dickinson and Co.

   

3.73%, 12/15/2024

    100,000       110,343  

3.70%, 6/6/2027

    200,000       226,683  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

354    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – (continued)  

Boston Scientific Corp.

   

3.75%, 3/1/2026

  $ 250,000     $ 283,684  

DH Europe Finance II Sarl

   

2.20%, 11/15/2024

    250,000       263,991  

Stryker Corp.

   

3.50%, 3/15/2026

    200,000       225,629  

1.95%, 6/15/2030

    100,000       101,612  

Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.

   

3.55%, 3/20/2030

    63,000       69,926  
              1,615,322  
Health Care Providers & Services – 1.5%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

   

3.40%, 5/15/2024

    250,000       271,444  

3.45%, 12/15/2027

    200,000       226,704  

CVS Health Corp.

   

4.30%, 3/25/2028

    550,000       637,295  

HCA, Inc.

   

5.25%, 6/15/2026

    250,000       291,517  

4.50%, 2/15/2027

    67,000       75,816  

Humana, Inc.

   

3.95%, 3/15/2027

    300,000       342,003  

McKesson Corp.

   

3.80%, 3/15/2024

    250,000       273,265  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

   

2.88%, 3/15/2022

    500,000       514,224  

2.95%, 10/15/2027

    250,000       277,768  

3.88%, 12/15/2028

    55,000       65,244  
              2,975,280  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.4%  

Hyatt Hotels Corp.

   

4.85%, 3/15/2026

    200,000       213,965  

Las Vegas Sands Corp.

   

3.20%, 8/8/2024

    400,000       404,866  

3.50%, 8/18/2026

    200,000       202,594  

Marriott International, Inc.

   

3.60%, 4/15/2024

    150,000       154,731  

Series EE, 5.75%, 5/1/2025

    110,000       122,425  

Series R, 3.13%, 6/15/2026

    400,000       401,613  

McDonald’s Corp.

   

3.80%, 4/1/2028

    150,000       173,521  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

Sands China Ltd.

   

4.60%, 8/8/2023

  $ 500,000     $ 533,595  

5.13%, 8/8/2025

    400,000       431,638  

Starbucks Corp.

   

3.50%, 3/1/2028

    200,000       226,531  
              2,865,479  
Household Durables – 0.2%  

DR Horton, Inc.

   

4.38%, 9/15/2022

    200,000       212,067  

2.50%, 10/15/2024

    200,000       211,503  
              423,570  
Household Products –0.9%  

Church & Dwight Co., Inc.

   

2.88%, 10/1/2022

    250,000       261,614  

Clorox Co. (The)

   

3.10%, 10/1/2027

    200,000       223,690  

Colgate-Palmolive Co.

   

3.25%, 3/15/2024

    250,000       272,974  

Kimberly-Clark Corp.

   

2.75%, 2/15/2026

    200,000       219,641  

Procter & Gamble Co. (The)

   

3.10%, 8/15/2023

    150,000       161,610  

2.80%, 3/25/2027

    185,000       205,693  

3.00%, 3/25/2030

    400,000       460,632  
              1,805,854  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.3%  

3M Co.

   

2.00%, 6/26/2022

    200,000       205,667  

2.25%, 3/15/2023

    70,000       73,142  

2.88%, 10/15/2027

    200,000       221,582  

3.38%, 3/1/2029

    200,000       229,970  

Carlisle Cos., Inc.

   

3.75%, 12/1/2027

    200,000       225,169  

Honeywell International, Inc.

   

1.85%, 11/1/2021

    80,000       81,107  

2.50%, 11/1/2026

    300,000       328,885  

2.70%, 8/15/2029

    100,000       110,334  

Roper Technologies, Inc.

   

3.65%, 9/15/2023

    540,000       584,981  

3.80%, 12/15/2026

    200,000       229,612  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      355  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Industrial Conglomerates – (continued)  

Trane Technologies Luxembourg Finance SA

   

3.50%, 3/21/2026

  $ 250,000     $ 281,893  
              2,572,342  
Insurance – 3.4%  

Aflac, Inc.

   

2.88%, 10/15/2026

    100,000       110,187  

Allied World Assurance Co. Holdings Ltd.

   

4.35%, 10/29/2025

    200,000       214,984  

Allstate Corp. (The)

   

Series B, 5.75%, 8/15/2053(a)

    200,000       212,595  

American International Group, Inc.

   

4.88%, 6/1/2022

    200,000       213,960  

3.90%, 4/1/2026

    100,000       114,133  

4.25%, 3/15/2029

    150,000       177,246  

Aon Corp.

   

2.80%, 5/15/2030

    250,000       267,985  

Aon plc

   

3.88%, 12/15/2025

    400,000       456,441  

Assurant, Inc.

   

3.70%, 2/22/2030

    100,000       105,494  

Brighthouse Financial, Inc.

   

3.70%, 6/22/2027

    200,000       210,985  

Brown & Brown, Inc.

   

4.20%, 9/15/2024

    200,000       221,693  

Chubb INA Holdings, Inc.

   

3.15%, 3/15/2025

    270,000       297,087  

CNA Financial Corp.

   

4.50%, 3/1/2026

    15,000       17,572  

3.45%, 8/15/2027

    275,000       307,377  

Enstar Group Ltd.

   

4.50%, 3/10/2022

    200,000       207,251  

Fidelity National Financial, Inc.

   

5.50%, 9/1/2022

    68,000       73,546  

First American Financial Corp.

   

4.60%, 11/15/2024

    200,000       222,525  

Lincoln National Corp.

   

3.80%, 3/1/2028

    100,000       112,536  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Insurance – (continued)  

Manulife Financial Corp.

   

4.15%, 3/4/2026

  $ 200,000     $ 233,123  

Markel Corp.

   

3.63%, 3/30/2023

    200,000       213,267  

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc.

   

3.50%, 6/3/2024

    16,000       17,465  

3.50%, 3/10/2025

    75,000       82,983  

3.75%, 3/14/2026

    75,000       85,221  

4.38%, 3/15/2029

    200,000       240,806  

MetLife, Inc.

   

3.05%, 12/15/2022(c)

    250,000       264,382  

Old Republic International Corp.

   

4.88%, 10/1/2024

    200,000       225,453  

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

   

2.13%, 6/15/2030

    100,000       103,230  

Progressive Corp. (The)

   

2.45%, 1/15/2027

    200,000       216,156  

Prudential Financial, Inc.

   

2.10%, 3/10/2030

    300,000       314,245  

5.63%, 6/15/2043(a)

    150,000       160,182  

5.20%, 3/15/2044(a)

    10,000       10,505  

5.38%, 5/15/2045(a)

    500,000       541,186  

Reinsurance Group of America, Inc.

   

3.15%, 6/15/2030

    100,000       109,678  

RenaissanceRe Finance, Inc.

   

3.45%, 7/1/2027

    100,000       108,223  

Trinity Acquisition plc

   

4.40%, 3/15/2026

    200,000       231,024  

Willis North America, Inc.

   

3.60%, 5/15/2024

    150,000       163,744  
              6,864,470  
Interactive Media & Services – 0.6%  

Alphabet, Inc.

   

2.00%, 8/15/2026

    147,000       156,966  

0.80%, 8/15/2027

    85,000       84,187  

Baidu, Inc.

   

3.63%, 7/6/2027

    200,000       219,240  

4.38%, 3/29/2028

    500,000       572,330  

Weibo Corp.

   

3.50%, 7/5/2024

    200,000       209,154  
              1,241,877  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

356    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.4%  

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.

   

3.60%, 11/28/2024

  $ 800,000     $ 876,216  

3.40%, 12/6/2027

    300,000       334,928  

Amazon.com, Inc.

   

3.15%, 8/22/2027

    300,000       340,295  

Booking Holdings, Inc.

   

3.60%, 6/1/2026

    640,000       710,584  

eBay, Inc.

   

3.45%, 8/1/2024

    120,000       130,733  

3.60%, 6/5/2027

    200,000       223,776  

Expedia Group, Inc.

   

4.50%, 8/15/2024

    200,000       212,910  
              2,829,442  
IT Services – 2.0%  

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

   

3.40%, 6/27/2026

    200,000       223,074  

International Business Machines Corp.

   

3.50%, 5/15/2029

    100,000       114,406  

Mastercard, Inc.

   

2.00%, 3/3/2025

    250,000       264,961  

2.95%, 11/21/2026

    300,000       335,924  

2.95%, 6/1/2029

    150,000       168,393  

PayPal Holdings, Inc.

   

2.20%, 9/26/2022

    620,000       641,059  

2.65%, 10/1/2026

    100,000       108,838  

2.85%, 10/1/2029

    100,000       109,315  

Visa, Inc.

   

2.80%, 12/14/2022

    600,000       629,087  

3.15%, 12/14/2025

    650,000       723,535  

2.05%, 4/15/2030

    550,000       580,808  

Western Union Co. (The)

   

2.85%, 1/10/2025

    200,000       211,224  
              4,110,624  
Leisure Products –0.1%  

Hasbro, Inc.

   

3.55%, 11/19/2026

    200,000       215,630  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.4%  

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

   

3.88%, 7/15/2023

    200,000       216,330  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – (continued)  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

   

2.95%, 9/19/2026

  $ 450,000     $ 499,686  
              716,016  
Machinery – 0.7%  

Cummins, Inc.

   

3.65%, 10/1/2023

    100,000       108,835  

Flowserve Corp.

   

4.00%, 11/15/2023

    84,000       87,937  

Fortive Corp.

   

3.15%, 6/15/2026

    100,000       110,061  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

   

2.65%, 11/15/2026

    200,000       221,151  

nVent Finance Sarl

   

4.55%, 4/15/2028

    100,000       106,921  

Otis Worldwide Corp.

   

2.06%, 4/5/2025

    300,000       315,385  

2.29%, 4/5/2027

    200,000       212,441  

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

   

4.00%, 3/15/2060(a)

    100,000       104,534  

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp.

   

4.95%, 9/15/2028(c)

    150,000       173,311  
              1,440,576  
Media – 0.9%  

Charter Communications Operating LLC

   

4.91%, 7/23/2025

    500,000       576,399  

4.20%, 3/15/2028

    500,000       565,290  

Comcast Corp.

   

4.15%, 10/15/2028

    350,000       416,661  

Discovery Communications LLC

   

3.95%, 3/20/2028

    95,000       107,002  

Omnicom Group, Inc.

   

3.60%, 4/15/2026

    100,000       112,199  
              1,777,551  
Metals & Mining – 0.9%  

BHP Billiton Finance USA Ltd.

   

3.85%, 9/30/2023

    300,000       329,606  

Kinross Gold Corp.

   

5.95%, 3/15/2024

    150,000       170,289  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      357  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

Rio Tinto Finance USA Ltd.

   

3.75%, 6/15/2025

  $ 300,000     $ 337,789  

7.13%, 7/15/2028

    200,000       280,913  

Steel Dynamics, Inc.

   

2.80%, 12/15/2024

    300,000       318,688  

Vale Overseas Ltd.

   

6.25%, 8/10/2026

    379,000       452,697  
              1,889,982  
Multiline Retail – 0.3%              

Dollar General Corp.

   

3.88%, 4/15/2027

    400,000       458,242  

Target Corp.

   

3.38%, 4/15/2029

    200,000       232,794  
              691,036  
Multi-Utilities – 1.9%              

Ameren Corp.

   

2.50%, 9/15/2024

    200,000       212,686  

Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co.

   

3.75%, 11/15/2023

    100,000       109,114  

4.05%, 4/15/2025(b)

    600,000       682,377  

3.25%, 4/15/2028

    100,000       112,493  

Black Hills Corp.

   

3.15%, 1/15/2027

    200,000       215,723  

CMS Energy Corp.

   

3.45%, 8/15/2027

    200,000       223,565  

Dominion Energy, Inc.

   

3.07%, 8/15/2024(c)

    200,000       216,068  

Series A, 3.30%, 3/15/2025

    250,000       274,993  

5.75%, 10/1/2054(a)

    200,000       216,390  

DTE Energy Co.

   

Series C,
2.53%, 10/1/2024(c)

    2,000       2,125  

2.85%, 10/1/2026

    200,000       217,298  

NiSource, Inc.

   

3.60%, 5/1/2030

    300,000       341,308  

Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.

   

2.65%, 11/15/2022

    200,000       208,997  

2.88%, 6/15/2024

    200,000       215,224  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Multi-Utilities – (continued)              

Sempra Energy

   

3.55%, 6/15/2024

  $ 200,000     $ 217,561  

3.25%, 6/15/2027

    200,000       216,305  

3.40%, 2/1/2028

    97,000       105,778  
              3,788,005  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 5.8%  

Boardwalk Pipelines LP

   

5.95%, 6/1/2026

    200,000       231,322  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

   

3.85%, 6/1/2027

    400,000       423,471  

Cheniere Corpus Christi Holdings LLC

   

5.13%, 6/30/2027

    500,000       561,007  

Columbia Pipeline Group, Inc.

   

4.50%, 6/1/2025

    150,000       173,031  

ConocoPhillips Co.

   

4.95%, 3/15/2026

    300,000       357,344  

Enable Midstream Partners LP

   

4.95%, 5/15/2028

    250,000       240,145  

Enbridge, Inc.

   

4.00%, 10/1/2023

    200,000       216,294  

3.70%, 7/15/2027

    200,000       221,100  

3.13%, 11/15/2029

    200,000       210,725  

5.50%, 7/15/2077(a)

    250,000       239,038  

Energy Transfer Operating LP

   

5.88%, 1/15/2024

    500,000       547,447  

5.50%, 6/1/2027

    200,000       222,113  

Enterprise Products Operating LLC

   

3.35%, 3/15/2023

    670,000       709,948  

3.75%, 2/15/2025

    200,000       221,940  

4.15%, 10/16/2028

    250,000       288,673  

HollyFrontier Corp.

   

5.88%, 4/1/2026

    200,000       212,946  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

   

4.30%, 3/1/2028

    200,000       226,290  

Magellan Midstream Partners LP

   

5.00%, 3/1/2026

    250,000       293,852  

MPLX LP

   

4.00%, 2/15/2025

    100,000       108,806  

4.13%, 3/1/2027

    350,000       383,478  

ONEOK Partners LP

   

4.90%, 3/15/2025

    400,000       436,980  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

358    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Phillips 66

   

3.85%, 4/9/2025

  $ 250,000     $ 275,342  

Phillips 66 Partners LP

   

3.55%, 10/1/2026

    200,000       212,322  

Plains All American Pipeline LP

   

4.65%, 10/15/2025

    150,000       160,181  

Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC

   

5.63%, 3/1/2025

    700,000       801,890  

4.20%, 3/15/2028

    120,000       130,359  

Spectra Energy Partners LP

   

4.75%, 3/15/2024

    640,000       712,029  

TC PipeLines LP

   

4.38%, 3/13/2025

    100,000       110,188  

Total Capital International SA

   

3.46%, 2/19/2029

    200,000       227,705  

TransCanada PipeLines Ltd.

   

4.88%, 1/15/2026

    94,000       110,398  

4.25%, 5/15/2028

    200,000       229,653  

Transcanada Trust

   

Series 16-A,
5.87%, 8/15/2076(a)

    300,000       319,123  

5.30%, 3/15/2077(a)

    600,000       596,547  

Valero Energy Corp.

   

1.20%, 3/15/2024

    62,000       60,785  

3.65%, 3/15/2025

    200,000       212,777  

3.40%, 9/15/2026

    250,000       263,597  

4.35%, 6/1/2028

    500,000       536,153  

Valero Energy Partners LP

   

4.50%, 3/15/2028

    200,000       214,610  
              11,699,609  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.1%  

Suzano Austria GmbH

   

6.00%, 1/15/2029

    200,000       232,402  
Pharmaceuticals – 2.8%  

AstraZeneca plc

   

3.38%, 11/16/2025

    300,000       336,762  

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

   

3.63%, 5/15/2024

    300,000       329,631  

Eli Lilly and Co.

   

2.35%, 5/15/2022

    250,000       257,778  

3.38%, 3/15/2029

    200,000       230,969  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

GlaxoSmithKline Capital, Inc.

   

3.88%, 5/15/2028

  $ 200,000     $ 235,411  

Johnson & Johnson

   

2.45%, 3/1/2026

    500,000       542,972  

2.95%, 3/3/2027

    150,000       168,138  

Merck & Co., Inc.

   

2.35%, 2/10/2022

    350,000       359,651  

2.80%, 5/18/2023

    200,000       212,664  

2.75%, 2/10/2025

    365,000       395,984  

Novartis Capital Corp.

   

3.40%, 5/6/2024

    403,000       442,542  

1.75%, 2/14/2025

    350,000       366,212  

3.00%, 11/20/2025

    700,000       775,282  

2.20%, 8/14/2030

    200,000       212,853  

Pfizer, Inc.

   

1.70%, 5/28/2030

    200,000       205,102  

Upjohn, Inc.

   

2.30%, 6/22/2027(b)

    200,000       207,187  

Zoetis, Inc.

   

3.25%, 2/1/2023

    150,000       158,172  

3.00%, 9/12/2027

    145,000       160,050  
              5,597,360  
Professional Services – 0.3%  

Equifax, Inc.

   

2.60%, 12/1/2024

    200,000       213,063  

IHS Markit Ltd.

   

4.25%, 5/1/2029

    150,000       172,495  

Verisk Analytics, Inc.

   

4.00%, 6/15/2025

    250,000       281,856  
              667,414  
Real Estate Management & Development – 0.1%  

CBRE Services, Inc.

   

4.88%, 3/1/2026

    200,000       235,003  
Road & Rail – 1.3%              

Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC

   

3.05%, 3/15/2022

    200,000       206,063  

3.85%, 9/1/2023

    300,000       325,739  

3.25%, 6/15/2027

    224,000       252,537  

Canadian National Railway Co.

   

2.95%, 11/21/2024

    250,000       268,858  

Canadian Pacific Railway Co.

   

3.70%, 2/1/2026

    20,000       22,428  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      359  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Road & Rail – (continued)              

CSX Corp.

   

3.25%, 6/1/2027

  $ 100,000     $ 111,947  

4.25%, 3/15/2029

    200,000       239,095  

JB Hunt Transport Services, Inc.

   

3.88%, 3/1/2026

    300,000       344,957  

Norfolk Southern Corp.

   

3.15%, 6/1/2027

    200,000       220,188  

Union Pacific Corp.

   

3.00%, 4/15/2027

    300,000       330,224  

3.95%, 9/10/2028

    250,000       293,408  
              2,615,444  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 1.9%  

Analog Devices, Inc.

   

3.50%, 12/5/2026

    405,000       458,523  

Broadcom Corp.

   

3.13%, 1/15/2025

    30,000       32,080  

3.88%, 1/15/2027

    300,000       331,431  

Broadcom, Inc.

   

4.75%, 4/15/2029

    110,000       127,737  

5.00%, 4/15/2030

    300,000       353,420  

Intel Corp.

   

3.90%, 3/25/2030

    300,000       359,423  

KLA Corp.

   

4.65%, 11/1/2024

    200,000       227,685  

Lam Research Corp.

   

3.75%, 3/15/2026

    200,000       229,813  

Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.

   

3.45%, 6/15/2027

    200,000       222,516  

Micron Technology, Inc.

   

4.19%, 2/15/2027

    500,000       565,202  

NVIDIA Corp.

   

3.20%, 9/16/2026

    300,000       337,533  

QUALCOMM, Inc.

   

3.25%, 5/20/2027

    200,000       222,835  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

   

2.90%, 11/3/2027

    250,000       278,046  
              3,746,244  
Software – 1.7%  

Adobe, Inc.

   

3.25%, 2/1/2025

    250,000       276,482  

2.30%, 2/1/2030

    250,000       268,357  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Software – (continued)  

Autodesk, Inc.

   

3.50%, 6/15/2027

  $ 200,000     $ 225,267  

Citrix Systems, Inc.

   

4.50%, 12/1/2027

    200,000       227,902  

Microsoft Corp.

   

2.38%, 2/12/2022

    640,000       656,329  

2.70%, 2/12/2025

    140,000       152,002  

3.13%, 11/3/2025

    360,000       400,348  

2.40%, 8/8/2026

    100,000       108,589  

3.30%, 2/6/2027

    250,000       284,251  

Oracle Corp.

   

2.65%, 7/15/2026

    400,000       436,085  

3.25%, 11/15/2027

    300,000       337,701  
              3,373,313  
Specialty Retail – 1.9%  

AutoZone, Inc.

   

3.25%, 4/15/2025

    540,000       589,900  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

   

2.63%, 6/1/2022

    400,000       414,563  

3.35%, 9/15/2025

    133,000       149,662  

3.00%, 4/1/2026

    330,000       367,429  

2.50%, 4/15/2027

    200,000       216,894  

2.80%, 9/14/2027

    200,000       220,583  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

   

4.00%, 4/15/2025

    300,000       340,195  

3.38%, 9/15/2025

    100,000       111,362  

3.10%, 5/3/2027

    500,000       558,491  

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc.

   

3.55%, 3/15/2026

    300,000       337,955  

3.60%, 9/1/2027

    200,000       225,780  

Ross Stores, Inc.

   

4.70%, 4/15/2027

    46,000       54,051  

TJX Cos., Inc. (The)

   

3.88%, 4/15/2030

    200,000       237,285  
              3,824,150  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 2.7%  

Apple, Inc.

   

2.40%, 5/3/2023

    1,700,000       1,785,755  

3.45%, 5/6/2024

    165,000       181,714  

3.25%, 2/23/2026

    518,000       579,484  

2.05%, 9/11/2026

    250,000       266,524  

3.35%, 2/9/2027

    80,000       90,689  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

360    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

3.20%, 5/11/2027

  $ 625,000     $ 704,526  

2.90%, 9/12/2027

    500,000       557,483  

1.65%, 5/11/2030

    640,000       654,738  

HP, Inc.

 

 

3.00%, 6/17/2027

    150,000       161,521  

NetApp, Inc.

 

 

1.88%, 6/22/2025

    200,000       206,765  

Seagate HDD Cayman

 

 

4.88%, 6/1/2027

    252,000       281,605  
              5,470,804  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.3%  

NIKE, Inc.

   

2.38%, 11/1/2026

    485,000       528,534  
Tobacco – 1.6%  

Altria Group, Inc.

 

 

2.85%, 8/9/2022

    160,000       166,623  

4.00%, 1/31/2024

    100,000       109,731  

2.63%, 9/16/2026

    160,000       170,962  

4.80%, 2/14/2029

    300,000       352,600  

3.40%, 5/6/2030

    300,000       326,478  

BAT Capital Corp.

 

 

3.22%, 8/15/2024

    500,000       536,756  

3.22%, 9/6/2026

    400,000       430,512  

3.56%, 8/15/2027

    200,000       215,968  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

 

 

2.88%, 5/1/2024

    500,000       537,154  

1.50%, 5/1/2025

    68,000       70,156  

Reynolds American, Inc.

 

 

4.45%, 6/12/2025

    200,000       226,006  
              3,142,946  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.6%  

Air Lease Corp.

 

 

3.00%, 9/15/2023

    405,000       413,166  

3.75%, 6/1/2026

    150,000       154,336  

Aircastle Ltd.

 

 

4.40%, 9/25/2023

    250,000       251,810  

4.25%, 6/15/2026

    200,000       188,321  

GATX Corp.

 

 

4.55%, 11/7/2028

    200,000       235,149  
              1,242,782  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Water Utilities – 0.1%  

American Water Capital Corp.

 

 

2.95%, 9/1/2027

  $ 200,000     $ 220,082  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 0.3%  

T-Mobile USA, Inc.

 

 

3.75%, 4/15/2027(b)

    364,000       406,825  

3.88%, 4/15/2030(b)

    150,000       168,691  
              575,516  
Total Corporate Bonds
(Cost $192,605,363)

 

    200,083,895  
Total Investments – 98.9%
(Cost $192,605,363)

 

    200,083,895  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.1%

 

    2,313,514  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

    202,397,409  

 

(a)  

Security issued at a fixed coupon rate, which converts to a variable rate at a future date. Rate shown is the rate in effect as of period end.

 

(b) 

Securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The value of these securities is determined by valuations supplied by a pricing service or brokers, or, if not available, in accordance with procedures established by the Board of Trustees.

 

(c) 

Step bond. Interest rate is a fixed rate for an initial period that either resets at a specific date or may reset in the future at a contingent upon predetermined trigger. The interest rate shown was the current rate as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 7,620,438  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (258,997

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 7,361,441  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 192,722,454  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      361  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – 98.9%  
Aerospace & Defense – 1.2%  

Boeing Co. (The)

   

5.81%, 5/1/2050

  $ 150,000     $ 177,057  

L3Harris Technologies, Inc.

   

5.05%, 4/27/2045

    20,000       26,706  

Lockheed Martin Corp.

   

4.09%, 9/15/2052

    125,000       160,684  

Northrop Grumman Corp.

   

4.75%, 6/1/2043

    135,000       174,945  
              539,392  
Auto Components – 0.1%  

Aptiv plc

   

5.40%, 3/15/2049

    50,000       58,083  
Banks – 7.0%              

Bank of America Corp.

   

4.24%, 4/24/2038(a)

    230,000       278,256  

5.00%, 1/21/2044

    90,000       123,020  

Citigroup, Inc.

   

5.88%, 2/22/2033

    100,000       130,642  

8.13%, 7/15/2039

    22,000       38,245  

5.88%, 1/30/2042

    35,000       51,071  

4.75%, 5/18/2046

    285,000       356,954  

4.65%, 7/23/2048

    195,000       253,192  

Fifth Third Bancorp

   

8.25%, 3/1/2038

    125,000       204,929  

HSBC Holdings plc

   

6.50%, 5/2/2036

    200,000       269,853  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

   

6.40%, 5/15/2038

    100,000       152,551  

Lloyds Banking Group plc

   

4.34%, 1/9/2048

    200,000       236,964  

Regions Financial Corp.

   

7.38%, 12/10/2037

    100,000       146,789  

Wachovia Corp.

   

5.50%, 8/1/2035

    400,000       519,597  

Wells Fargo & Co.

   

5.38%, 11/2/2043

    265,000       349,937  

5.01%, 4/4/2051(a)

    100,000       135,759  
              3,247,759  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Beverages – 2.4%  

Anheuser-Busch Cos. LLC

   

4.90%, 2/1/2046

  $ 50,000     $ 61,345  

Anheuser-Busch InBev Worldwide, Inc.

   

5.45%, 1/23/2039

    250,000       323,915  

4.35%, 6/1/2040

    180,000       212,553  

5.80%, 1/23/2059

    50,000       70,728  

Brown-Forman Corp.

   

4.50%, 7/15/2045

    50,000       65,225  

Coca-Cola Femsa SAB de CV

   

5.25%, 11/26/2043

    150,000       203,460  

Constellation Brands, Inc.

   

5.25%, 11/15/2048

    75,000       100,758  

Molson Coors Beverage Co.

   

5.00%, 5/1/2042

    50,000       57,060  
              1,095,044  
Biotechnology – 4.0%  

AbbVie, Inc.

   

4.40%, 11/6/2042

    295,000       353,270  

4.70%, 5/14/2045

    130,000       158,037  

4.45%, 5/14/2046

    300,000       358,925  

Amgen, Inc.

   

3.15%, 2/21/2040

    200,000       211,086  

5.15%, 11/15/2041

    28,000       37,526  

4.40%, 5/1/2045

    130,000       158,889  

4.66%, 6/15/2051

    125,000       162,228  

2.77%, 9/1/2053(b)

    37,000       35,177  

Biogen, Inc.

   

5.20%, 9/15/2045

    200,000       260,406  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

   

4.75%, 3/1/2046

    100,000       127,242  
              1,862,786  
Building Products – 0.6%  

Johnson Controls International plc

   

6.00%, 1/15/2036

    200,000       271,216  
Capital Markets – 2.2%              

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

   

4.02%, 10/31/2038(a)

    130,000       152,074  

4.75%, 10/21/2045

    85,000       112,027  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

362    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares®  Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Capital Markets – (continued)              

Jefferies Group LLC

   

6.50%, 1/20/2043

  $ 200,000     $ 258,379  

Moody’s Corp.

   

5.25%, 7/15/2044

    100,000       134,893  

Morgan Stanley

   

6.38%, 7/24/2042

    75,000       117,007  

4.30%, 1/27/2045

    60,000       77,692  

Raymond James Financial, Inc.

   

4.95%, 7/15/2046

    45,000       59,429  

S&P Global, Inc.

   

2.30%, 8/15/2060

    100,000       89,546  
              1,001,047  
Chemicals – 2.0%  

Ecolab, Inc.

   

5.50%, 12/8/2041

    100,000       142,343  

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc.

   

5.00%, 9/26/2048

    100,000       124,754  

LyondellBasell Industries NV

   

4.63%, 2/26/2055

    100,000       112,682  

Nutrien Ltd.

   

6.13%, 1/15/2041

    200,000       275,578  

Sherwin-Williams Co. (The)

   

4.50%, 6/1/2047

    145,000       181,945  

3.30%, 5/15/2050

    100,000       106,827  
              944,129  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 0.1%  

Republic Services, Inc.

   

3.05%, 3/1/2050

    50,000       51,974  
Communications Equipment – 1.2%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

   

5.90%, 2/15/2039

    285,000       425,750  

5.50%, 1/15/2040

    100,000       145,739  
              571,489  
Construction & Engineering –0.2%  

Valmont Industries, Inc.

   

5.00%, 10/1/2044

    100,000       109,804  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Construction Materials – 0.4%              

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.

   

4.25%, 12/15/2047

  $ 50,000     $ 56,999  

Vulcan Materials Co.

   

4.50%, 6/15/2047

    100,000       117,927  
              174,926  
Consumer Finance – 0.5%  

Ally Financial, Inc.

   

8.00%, 11/1/2031

    167,000       230,978  
Containers & Packaging – 0.4%              

International Paper Co.

   

7.30%, 11/15/2039

    100,000       148,640  

Sonoco Products Co.

   

5.75%, 11/1/2040

    20,000       26,483  
              175,123  
Diversified Financial Services –0.6%  

GE Capital International Funding Co. Unlimited Co.

   

4.42%, 11/15/2035

    200,000       216,507  

Voya Financial, Inc.

   

4.80%, 6/15/2046

    50,000       61,151  
              277,658  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 4.4%  

AT&T, Inc.

   

4.50%, 5/15/2035

    220,000       256,876  

4.30%, 12/15/2042

    320,000       357,632  

4.35%, 6/15/2045

    315,000       349,673  

Bell Canada

   

4.30%, 7/29/2049

    25,000       30,651  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

   

4.27%, 1/15/2036

    539,000       659,612  

4.52%, 9/15/2048

    100,000       128,787  

4.00%, 3/22/2050

    200,000       241,863  
              2,025,094  
Electric Utilities – 6.2%  

AEP Texas, Inc.

   

Series H, 3.45%, 1/15/2050

    130,000       140,230  

American Electric Power Co., Inc.

   

3.25%, 3/1/2050

    150,000       152,614  

Arizona Public Service Co.

   

4.35%, 11/15/2045

    150,000       189,042  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      363  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Electric Utilities – (continued)  

Exelon Corp.

   

4.45%, 4/15/2046

  $ 165,000     $ 200,779  

Georgia Power Co.

   

4.30%, 3/15/2042

    200,000       238,741  

Series B, 3.70%, 1/30/2050

    50,000       56,298  

Indiana Michigan Power Co.

   

6.05%, 3/15/2037

    100,000       139,109  

Interstate Power and Light Co.

   

6.25%, 7/15/2039

    150,000       214,860  

MidAmerican Energy Co.

   

4.25%, 7/15/2049

    200,000       256,809  

3.15%, 4/15/2050

    100,000       110,261  

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co.

   

4.15%, 4/1/2047

    125,000       147,628  

PPL Capital Funding, Inc.

   

5.00%, 3/15/2044

    100,000       125,922  

Southern California Edison Co.

   

4.50%, 9/1/2040

    125,000       141,553  

Southern Co. (The)

   

4.40%, 7/1/2046

    150,000       180,031  

Southwestern Electric Power Co.

   

Series L, 3.85%, 2/1/2048

    100,000       110,098  

Virginia Electric and Power Co.

   

8.88%, 11/15/2038

    200,000       357,114  

Wisconsin Public Service Corp.

   

4.75%, 11/1/2044

    100,000       129,736  
              2,890,825  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.4%  

Corning, Inc.

   

4.75%, 3/15/2042

    45,000       55,358  

4.38%, 11/15/2057

    125,000       145,810  
              201,168  
Energy Equipment & Services – 0.4%  

Halliburton Co.

   

4.85%, 11/15/2035

    185,000       194,458  
Entertainment – 0.2%              

Walt Disney Co. (The)

   

3.80%, 5/13/2060

    75,000       86,372  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.7%  

ERP Operating LP

   

4.50%, 7/1/2044

  $ 20,000     $ 25,056  

Federal Realty Investment Trust

   

4.50%, 12/1/2044

    25,000       28,112  

Kimco Realty Corp.

   

3.70%, 10/1/2049

    100,000       97,814  

Simon Property Group LP

   

4.25%, 10/1/2044

    100,000       105,962  

Ventas Realty LP

   

5.70%, 9/30/2043

    50,000       61,296  
              318,240  
Food & Staples Retailing – 0.9%  

Kroger Co. (The)

   

4.45%, 2/1/2047

    45,000       54,889  

3.95%, 1/15/2050

    100,000       116,968  

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.

 

 

4.80%, 11/18/2044

    150,000       165,233  

4.10%, 4/15/2050

    100,000       101,633  
              438,723  
Food Products – 0.9%  

Campbell Soup Co.

   

3.13%, 4/24/2050

    100,000       100,462  

General Mills, Inc.

 

 

4.70%, 4/17/2048

    50,000       67,041  

JM Smucker Co. (The)

 

 

3.55%, 3/15/2050

    50,000       53,314  

Kellogg Co.

 

 

Series B, 7.45%, 4/1/2031

    95,000       139,612  

Mondelez International, Inc.

 

 

2.63%, 9/4/2050

    50,000       47,571  
              408,000  
Gas Utilities – 1.2%  

Atmos Energy Corp.

   

5.50%, 6/15/2041

    100,000       138,918  

4.13%, 10/15/2044

    15,000       18,438  

4.30%, 10/1/2048

    100,000       128,475  

Dominion Energy Gas Holdings LLC

 

 

4.60%, 12/15/2044

    100,000       122,269  

ONE Gas, Inc.

 

 

4.50%, 11/1/2048

    100,000       126,583  

Southern California Gas Co.

 

 

Series VV, 4.30%, 1/15/2049

    20,000       25,397  
              560,080  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

364    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 1.0%  

Baxter International, Inc.

   

3.50%, 8/15/2046

  $ 100,000     $ 111,701  

Becton Dickinson and Co.

 

 

4.67%, 6/6/2047

    100,000       123,972  

DH Europe Finance II Sarl

 

 

3.40%, 11/15/2049

    50,000       57,133  

Koninklijke Philips NV

 

 

5.00%, 3/15/2042

    135,000       175,557  
              468,363  
Health Care Providers & Services – 1.6%  

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

   

4.30%, 12/15/2047

    100,000       115,544  

Cardinal Health, Inc.

 

 

4.37%, 6/15/2047

    150,000       164,092  

CVS Health Corp.

 

 

5.05%, 3/25/2048

    150,000       190,549  

Humana, Inc.

 

 

4.95%, 10/1/2044

    115,000       151,425  

3.95%, 8/15/2049

    50,000       59,143  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

 

 

3.88%, 8/15/2059

    50,000       60,947  
              741,700  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 1.2%  

McDonald’s Corp.

   

6.30%, 3/1/2038

    75,000       110,979  

4.45%, 3/1/2047

    200,000       246,167  

Starbucks Corp.

 

 

4.45%, 8/15/2049

    150,000       182,853  
              539,999  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.6%
 

Exelon Generation Co. LLC

   

5.60%, 6/15/2042

    100,000       113,207  

Southern Power Co.

 

 

5.15%, 9/15/2041

    150,000       175,676  
              288,883  
Industrial Conglomerates – 0.9%  

General Electric Co.

   

4.35%, 5/1/2050

    100,000       106,718  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Industrial Conglomerates – (continued)  

Honeywell International, Inc.

 

 

5.70%, 3/15/2036

  $ 100,000     $ 141,125  

Trane Technologies Global Holding Co. Ltd.

 

 

5.75%, 6/15/2043

    20,000       27,756  

Trane Technologies Luxembourg Finance SA

 

 

4.50%, 3/21/2049

    100,000       127,737  
              403,336  
Insurance – 5.4%  

Aflac, Inc.

   

6.45%, 8/15/2040

    50,000       69,320  

Alleghany Corp.

 

 

4.90%, 9/15/2044

    75,000       93,593  

Allstate Corp. (The)

 

 

4.20%, 12/15/2046

    150,000       190,260  

6.50%, 5/15/2057(a)

    15,000       19,601  

American International Group, Inc.

 

 

3.88%, 1/15/2035

    110,000       127,319  

Aon plc

 

 

4.60%, 6/14/2044

    55,000       70,463  

4.75%, 5/15/2045

    100,000       131,697  

Arch Capital Group Ltd.

 

 

7.35%, 5/1/2034

    150,000       226,047  

Berkshire Hathaway Finance Corp.

 

 

5.75%, 1/15/2040

    65,000       98,632  

4.25%, 1/15/2049

    150,000       190,921  

Brighthouse Financial, Inc.

 

 

4.70%, 6/22/2047

    50,000       48,734  

Chubb Corp. (The)

 

 

6.00%, 5/11/2037

    30,000       44,153  

Manulife Financial Corp.

 

 

5.38%, 3/4/2046

    30,000       42,161  

Markel Corp.

 

 

5.00%, 4/5/2046

    150,000       197,070  

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc.

 

 

4.35%, 1/30/2047

    20,000       25,761  

4.90%, 3/15/2049

    165,000       229,286  

MetLife, Inc.

 

 

6.40%, 12/15/2036

    60,000       74,618  

4.88%, 11/13/2043

    50,000       66,442  

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

 

 

6.05%, 10/15/2036

    25,000       35,234  

Progressive Corp. (The)

 

 

4.13%, 4/15/2047

    100,000       128,486  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      365  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Insurance – (continued)  

Prudential Financial, Inc.

 

 

3.94%, 12/7/2049

  $ 45,000     $ 51,241  

Travelers Cos., Inc. (The)

 

 

4.10%, 3/4/2049

    70,000       88,335  

W R Berkley Corp.

 

 

4.75%, 8/1/2044

    100,000       126,309  

Willis North America, Inc.

 

 

3.88%, 9/15/2049

    100,000       116,884  
              2,492,567  
Interactive Media & Services – 0.1%  

Alphabet, Inc.

   

2.25%, 8/15/2060

    75,000       67,202  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.5%  

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.

 

 

4.00%, 12/6/2037

    270,000       318,046  

4.40%, 12/6/2057

    50,000       65,475  

Amazon.com, Inc.

 

 

4.25%, 8/22/2057

    165,000       218,818  

2.70%, 6/3/2060

    50,000       51,010  

eBay, Inc.

 

 

4.00%, 7/15/2042

    35,000       38,991  
              692,340  
IT Services – 2.1%  

International Business Machines Corp.

   

4.25%, 5/15/2049

    100,000       123,718  

Mastercard, Inc.

 

 

3.65%, 6/1/2049

    200,000       241,361  

Visa, Inc.

 

 

4.30%, 12/14/2045

    170,000       223,116  

3.65%, 9/15/2047

    300,000       369,402  
              957,597  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.1%  

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

   

4.10%, 8/15/2047

    40,000       50,576  
Machinery – 0.5%  

Cummins, Inc.

 

 

4.88%, 10/1/2043

    50,000       67,100  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Machinery – (continued)  

Fortive Corp.

 

 

4.30%, 6/15/2046

  $ 25,000     $ 29,598  

Illinois Tool Works, Inc.

 

 

3.90%, 9/1/2042

    25,000       30,560  

Snap-on, Inc.

 

 

3.10%, 5/1/2050

    100,000       106,366  
              233,624  
Media – 4.7%  

Charter Communications Operating LLC

   

5.38%, 4/1/2038

    400,000       478,817  

6.48%, 10/23/2045

    250,000       337,908  

3.70%, 4/1/2051

    50,000       48,887  

Comcast Corp.

 

 

4.70%, 10/15/2048

    55,000       73,516  

Discovery Communications LLC

 

 

5.20%, 9/20/2047

    200,000       238,604  

4.65%, 5/15/2050

    125,000       141,349  

Fox Corp.

 

 

5.58%, 1/25/2049

    150,000       205,259  

Time Warner Cable LLC

 

 

7.30%, 7/1/2038

    200,000       280,026  

6.75%, 6/15/2039

    100,000       134,046  

5.88%, 11/15/2040

    100,000       124,149  

ViacomCBS, Inc.

 

 

5.85%, 9/1/2043

    100,000       126,285  
              2,188,846  
Metals & Mining – 2.6%  

Barrick PD Australia Finance Pty. Ltd.

   

5.95%, 10/15/2039

    250,000       353,669  

BHP Billiton Finance USA Ltd.

 

 

5.00%, 9/30/2043

    245,000       340,364  

Rio Tinto Finance USA Ltd.

 

 

5.20%, 11/2/2040

    65,000       92,248  

Vale Overseas Ltd.

 

 

6.88%, 11/21/2036

    100,000       134,511  

6.88%, 11/10/2039

    200,000       274,750  
              1,195,542  
Multiline Retail – 0.1%  

Dollar General Corp.

   

4.13%, 4/3/2050

    50,000       60,173  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

366    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Multi-Utilities – 3.1%  

Ameren Illinois Co.

 

 

4.50%, 3/15/2049

  $ 200,000     $ 263,688  

Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co.

 

 

6.13%, 4/1/2036

    200,000       287,244  

4.25%, 10/15/2050(b)

    150,000       186,383  

Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, Inc.

 

 

Series A, 4.13%, 5/15/2049

    100,000       121,085  

4.50%, 5/15/2058

    130,000       168,286  

Consumers Energy Co.

 

 

2.50%, 5/1/2060

    100,000       94,016  

Southern Co. Gas Capital Corp.

 

 

5.88%, 3/15/2041

    150,000       206,311  

3.95%, 10/1/2046

    84,000       93,741  
              1,420,754  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 9.6%  

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

   

6.25%, 3/15/2038

    45,000       52,443  

4.95%, 6/1/2047

    50,000       53,165  

Columbia Pipeline Group, Inc.

 

 

5.80%, 6/1/2045

    50,000       64,816  

Devon Energy Corp.

 

 

5.60%, 7/15/2041

    110,000       113,321  

Enbridge Energy Partners LP

 

 

5.50%, 9/15/2040

    100,000       117,979  

Enbridge, Inc.

 

 

5.50%, 12/1/2046

    125,000       157,325  

Energy Transfer Operating LP

 

 

6.50%, 2/1/2042

    200,000       213,937  

6.25%, 4/15/2049

    200,000       211,473  

Enterprise Products Operating LLC

 

 

5.95%, 2/1/2041

    180,000       229,640  

4.45%, 2/15/2043

    300,000       323,446  

4.85%, 3/15/2044

    230,000       260,621  

4.25%, 2/15/2048

    85,000       91,525  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

 

 

4.33%, 3/19/2050

    50,000       60,559  

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP

 

 

6.95%, 1/15/2038

    100,000       129,113  

5.50%, 3/1/2044

    200,000       230,431  

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

 

 

5.55%, 6/1/2045

    225,000       263,800  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Magellan Midstream Partners LP

 

 

5.15%, 10/15/2043

  $ 15,000     $ 17,613  

4.20%, 10/3/2047

    145,000       149,649  

4.85%, 2/1/2049

    100,000       113,267  

Marathon Petroleum Corp.

 

 

6.50%, 3/1/2041

    100,000       116,894  

MPLX LP

 

 

5.50%, 2/15/2049

    100,000       110,997  

ONEOK Partners LP

 

 

6.13%, 2/1/2041

    100,000       103,917  

ONEOK, Inc.

 

 

5.20%, 7/15/2048

    100,000       97,380  

Phillips 66

 

 

5.88%, 5/1/2042

    90,000       111,606  

Phillips 66 Partners LP

 

 

4.90%, 10/1/2046

    75,000       75,598  

Plains All American Pipeline LP

 

 

5.15%, 6/1/2042

    185,000       170,101  

TransCanada PipeLines Ltd.

 

 

6.20%, 10/15/2037

    225,000       304,737  

7.63%, 1/15/2039

    150,000       228,104  

Valero Energy Corp.

 

 

6.63%, 6/15/2037

    200,000       235,477  

4.90%, 3/15/2045

    50,000       50,644  
              4,459,578  
Personal Products – 0.2%  

Estee Lauder Cos., Inc. (The)

   

3.70%, 8/15/2042

    100,000       105,262  
Pharmaceuticals – 3.8%  

Eli Lilly and Co.

 

 

3.95%, 3/15/2049

    50,000       62,092  

4.15%, 3/15/2059

    145,000       188,209  

Johnson & Johnson

 

 

5.85%, 7/15/2038

    150,000       227,845  

3.70%, 3/1/2046

    255,000       316,136  

Merck & Co., Inc.

 

 

3.70%, 2/10/2045

    145,000       172,296  

Novartis Capital Corp.

 

 

4.40%, 5/6/2044

    120,000       160,325  

Pfizer, Inc.

 

 

5.60%, 9/15/2040

    100,000       142,556  

Upjohn, Inc.

 

 

3.85%, 6/22/2040(b)

    200,000       215,787  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      367  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Zoetis, Inc.

 

 

4.45%, 8/20/2048

  $ 135,000     $ 173,725  

3.00%, 5/15/2050

    100,000       105,452  
              1,764,423  
Professional Services – 0.1%  

Verisk Analytics, Inc.

   

3.63%, 5/15/2050

    50,000       55,692  
Road & Rail – 4.0%  

Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC

 

 

5.15%, 9/1/2043

    204,000       278,332  

4.90%, 4/1/2044

    300,000       404,141  

4.15%, 12/15/2048

    100,000       124,768  

Canadian National Railway Co.

 

 

6.38%, 11/15/2037

    100,000       153,208  

Canadian Pacific Railway Co.

 

 

6.13%, 9/15/2115

    150,000       225,992  

CSX Corp.

 

 

4.50%, 8/1/2054

    100,000       127,508  

Kansas City Southern

 

 

4.30%, 5/15/2043

    100,000       106,340  

Norfolk Southern Corp.

 

 

5.10%, 8/1/2118

    50,000       63,003  

Union Pacific Corp.

 

 

4.10%, 9/15/2067

    325,000       376,217  
              1,859,509  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment – 1.0%  

KLA Corp.

   

3.30%, 3/1/2050

    100,000       105,531  

NVIDIA Corp.

 

 

3.50%, 4/1/2050

    200,000       233,357  

Texas Instruments, Inc.

 

 

4.15%, 5/15/2048

    100,000       130,957  
              469,845  
Software – 3.0%  

Microsoft Corp.

   

3.70%, 8/8/2046

    100,000       123,106  

3.95%, 8/8/2056

    269,000       346,337  

2.68%, 6/1/2060

    56,000       57,457  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Software – (continued)  

Oracle Corp.

 

 

6.13%, 7/8/2039

  $ 105,000     $ 156,371  

4.13%, 5/15/2045

    225,000       265,054  

3.60%, 4/1/2050

    100,000       110,195  

4.38%, 5/15/2055

    165,000       204,537  

3.85%, 4/1/2060

    125,000       142,411  
              1,405,468  
Specialty Retail – 3.1%  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

   

5.88%, 12/16/2036

    250,000       370,087  

5.95%, 4/1/2041

    150,000       225,865  

4.88%, 2/15/2044

    150,000       205,235  

4.25%, 4/1/2046

    100,000       127,708  

Lowe’s Cos., Inc.

 

 

4.55%, 4/5/2049

    400,000       518,011  
              1,446,906  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 3.3%  

Apple, Inc.

   

4.38%, 5/13/2045

    200,000       265,254  

4.65%, 2/23/2046

    190,000       259,160  

2.95%, 9/11/2049

    100,000       107,566  

Dell International LLC

 

 

8.10%, 7/15/2036(b)

    400,000       540,822  

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

 

 

6.35%, 10/15/2045(c)

    100,000       128,140  

HP, Inc.

 

 

6.00%, 9/15/2041

    185,000       225,739  
              1,526,681  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.3%  

NIKE, Inc.

   

3.38%, 3/27/2050

    100,000       115,321  
Tobacco – 5.4%  

Altria Group, Inc.

 

 

5.80%, 2/14/2039

    200,000       254,970  

4.25%, 8/9/2042

    240,000       258,859  

4.50%, 5/2/2043

    100,000       109,886  

5.38%, 1/31/2044

    125,000       154,718  

5.95%, 2/14/2049

    150,000       199,361  

BAT Capital Corp.

 

 

4.39%, 8/15/2037

    400,000       428,565  

4.54%, 8/15/2047

    200,000       210,836  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

368    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Tobacco – (continued)  

Philip Morris International, Inc.

 

 

4.13%, 3/4/2043

  $ 230,000     $ 270,136  

4.25%, 11/10/2044

    250,000       299,320  

Reynolds American, Inc.

 

 

6.15%, 9/15/2043

    100,000       123,687  

5.85%, 8/15/2045

    150,000       183,562  
              2,493,900  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.3%  

WW Grainger, Inc.

   

4.60%, 6/15/2045

    100,000       128,234  
Water Utilities – 0.7%  

American Water Capital Corp.

 

 

4.30%, 12/1/2042

    50,000       61,287  

3.75%, 9/1/2047

    150,000       175,335  

4.20%, 9/1/2048

    70,000       86,931  
              323,553  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 0.4%  

T-Mobile USA, Inc.

   

4.50%, 4/15/2050(b)

    100,000       116,471  

Vodafone Group plc

 

 

5.25%, 5/30/2048

    50,000       64,854  
        181,325  
Total Corporate Bonds
(Cost $43,999,329)

 

    45,871,567  
Total Investments – 98.9%
(Cost $43,999,329)

 

    45,871,567  

Other assets less liabilities – 1.1%

 

    488,844  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

    46,360,411  

 

(a) 

Security issued at a fixed coupon rate, which converts to a variable rate at a future date. Rate shown is the rate in effect as of period end.

 

(b)

Securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The value of these securities is determined by valuations supplied by a pricing service or brokers, or, if not available, in accordance with procedures established by the Board of Trustees.

(c)

Step bond. Interest rate is a fixed rate for an initial period that either resets at a specific date or may reset in the future at a contingent upon predetermined trigger. The interest rate shown was the current rate as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,165,640  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (298,198

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 1,867,442  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 44,004,125  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      369  


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – 97.2%  
Aerospace & Defense – 3.0%  

BWX Technologies, Inc.

   

4.13%, 6/30/2028(a)

  $ 200,000     $ 202,625  

F-Brasile SpA

   

Series NR,
7.38%, 8/15/2026(a)

    320,000       278,400  

Howmet Aerospace, Inc.

   

6.75%, 1/15/2028

    150,000       171,363  

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.

   

6.50%, 11/30/2025(a)

    100,000       104,615  

Rolls-Royce plc

   

5.75%, 10/15/2027(a)

    200,000       202,750  

Signature Aviation US Holdings, Inc.

   

5.38%, 5/1/2026(a)

    200,000       202,500  

Spirit AeroSystems, Inc.

   

3.95%, 6/15/2023

    190,000       169,931  

7.50%, 4/15/2025(a)

    455,000       459,264  

4.60%, 6/15/2028

    350,000       291,746  

TransDigm UK Holdings plc

   

6.88%, 5/15/2026

    305,000       304,428  

TransDigm, Inc.

   

6.50%, 5/15/2025

    200,000       200,375  

6.25%, 3/15/2026(a)

    805,000       840,215  

6.38%, 6/15/2026

    415,000       414,616  

7.50%, 3/15/2027

    315,000       325,880  

5.50%, 11/15/2027

    1,095,000       1,071,074  

Triumph Group, Inc.

   

8.88%, 6/1/2024(a)

    100,000       106,342  

6.25%, 9/15/2024(a)

    390,000       337,549  
              5,683,673  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.2%  

Cargo Aircraft Management, Inc.

   

4.75%, 2/1/2028(a)

    100,000       101,813  

Western Global Airlines LLC

   

10.38%, 8/15/2025(a)

    265,000       274,932  
              376,745  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Airlines – 0.8%              

Delta Air Lines, Inc.

   

2.90%, 10/28/2024

  $ 550,000     $ 479,226  

7.38%, 1/15/2026

    800,000       828,877  

United Airlines Holdings, Inc.

   

4.25%, 10/1/2022

    160,000       145,688  
              1,453,791  
Auto Components – 1.6%  

Allison Transmission, Inc.

   

5.00%, 10/1/2024(a)

    150,000       151,530  

4.75%, 10/1/2027(a)

    100,000       103,250  

5.88%, 6/1/2029(a)

    200,000       219,023  

Clarios Global LP

   

6.25%, 5/15/2026(a)

    375,000       393,296  

8.50%, 5/15/2027(a)

    775,000       809,720  

Dana Financing Luxembourg Sarl

   

6.50%, 6/1/2026(a)

    5,000       5,206  

Dealer Tire LLC

   

8.00%, 2/1/2028(a)

    225,000       230,625  

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (The)

   

5.13%, 11/15/2023

    425,000       423,355  

4.88%, 3/15/2027

    275,000       268,147  

Icahn Enterprises LP

   

6.25%, 5/15/2026

    375,000       389,940  

JB Poindexter & Co., Inc.

   

7.13%, 4/15/2026(a)

    30,000       31,991  
              3,026,083  
Automobiles – 2.0%              

Ford Motor Co.

   

8.50%, 4/21/2023

    925,000       1,022,444  

9.00%, 4/22/2025

    925,000       1,091,204  

4.35%, 12/8/2026

    45,000       45,394  

6.63%, 10/1/2028

    365,000       409,256  

6.38%, 2/1/2029

    150,000       156,656  

9.63%, 4/22/2030

    100,000       134,411  

8.90%, 1/15/2032

    225,000       273,937  

5.29%, 12/8/2046

    125,000       118,401  

Mclaren Finance plc

   

5.75%, 8/1/2022(a)

    200,000       184,500  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

370    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Automobiles – (continued)              

PM General Purchaser LLC

   

9.50%, 10/1/2028(a)

  $ 395,000     $ 413,269  
              3,849,472  
Banks – 1.1%              

UniCredit SpA

   

7.30%, 4/2/2034(a) (b)

    200,000       229,144  

5.46%, 6/30/2035(a) (b)

    1,760,000       1,785,906  
              2,015,050  
Beverages – 0.1%              

Primo Water Holdings, Inc.

   

5.50%, 4/1/2025(a)

    280,000       289,450  
Biotechnology – 0.1%              

Horizon Therapeutics USA, Inc.

   

5.50%, 8/1/2027(a)

    220,000       234,478  
Building Products – 0.5%              

Associated Materials LLC

   

9.00%, 9/1/2025(a)

    100,000       105,750  

BMC East LLC

   

5.50%, 10/1/2024(a)

    75,000       77,016  

Forterra Finance LLC

   

6.50%, 7/15/2025(a)

    150,000       158,719  

Patrick Industries, Inc.

   

7.50%, 10/15/2027(a)

    200,000       217,186  

PGT Innovations, Inc.

   

6.75%, 8/1/2026(a)

    130,000       137,938  

Standard Industries, Inc.

   

3.38%, 1/15/2031(a)

    220,000       214,408  
              911,017  
Capital Markets – 1.4%              

Advisor Group Holdings, Inc.

   

10.75%, 8/1/2027(a)

    635,000       638,451  

Deutsche Bank AG

   

4.88%, 12/1/2032(b)

    200,000       193,913  

Donnelley Financial Solutions, Inc.

   

8.25%, 10/15/2024

    30,000       31,534  

FS Energy & Power Fund

   

7.50%, 8/15/2023(a)

    310,000       277,483  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Capital Markets – (continued)         

LPL Holdings, Inc.

   

5.75%, 9/15/2025(a)

  $ 130,000     $ 134,920  

MSCI, Inc.

   

4.00%, 11/15/2029(a)

    200,000       209,070  

Nomura Holdings, Inc.

   

2.65%, 1/16/2025

    1,050,000       1,107,331  
              2,592,702  
Chemicals – 2.3%              

Anagram International, Inc.

   

10.00%, 8/15/2026(a)(c)

    58,825       48,433  

Chemours Co. (The)

   

7.00%, 5/15/2025

    185,000       186,572  

5.38%, 5/15/2027

    5,000       4,916  

Cornerstone Chemical Co.

   

6.75%, 8/15/2024(a)

    285,000       268,939  

FXI Holdings, Inc.

   

7.88%, 11/1/2024(a)

    305,000       285,937  

12.25%, 11/15/2026(a)

    552,000       577,787  

Gates Global LLC

   

6.25%, 1/15/2026(a)

    210,000       217,701  

GCP Applied Technologies, Inc.

   

5.50%, 4/15/2026(a)

    100,000       102,856  

Hexion, Inc.

   

7.88%, 7/15/2027(a)

    265,000       275,434  

Illuminate Buyer LLC

   

9.00%, 7/1/2028(a)

    305,000       326,731  

Innophos Holdings, Inc.

   

9.38%, 2/15/2028(a)

    175,000       187,797  

Methanex Corp.

   

4.25%, 12/1/2024

    175,000       176,006  

Neon Holdings, Inc.

   

10.13%, 4/1/2026(a)

    200,000       212,500  

NOVA Chemicals Corp.

   

5.25%, 8/1/2023(a)

    150,000       149,717  

Olin Corp.

   

9.50%, 6/1/2025(a)

    200,000       236,774  

5.63%, 8/1/2029

    100,000       103,499  

Rain CII Carbon LLC

   

7.25%, 4/1/2025(a)

    300,000       296,813  

TPC Group, Inc.

   

10.50%, 8/1/2024(a)

    670,000       560,777  

Trinseo Materials Operating SCA

   

5.38%, 9/1/2025(a)

    180,000       183,038  
              4,402,227  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      371  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Commercial Services & Supplies – 3.4%  

Allied Universal Holdco LLC

   

9.75%, 7/15/2027(a)

  $ 505,000     $ 539,471  

Aptim Corp.

   

7.75%, 6/15/2025(a)

    300,000       184,844  

APX Group, Inc.

   

7.63%, 9/1/2023

    150,000       151,462  

6.75%, 2/15/2027(a)

    290,000       302,688  

Aramark Services, Inc.

   

6.38%, 5/1/2025(a)

    375,000       393,799  

4.75%, 6/1/2026

    225,000       223,931  

Brink’s Co. (The)

   

5.50%, 7/15/2025(a)

    200,000       208,417  

Cimpress plc

   

7.00%, 6/15/2026(a)

    380,000       379,453  

Covanta Holding Corp.

   

5.88%, 7/1/2025

    110,000       114,137  

6.00%, 1/1/2027

    100,000       104,500  

Garda World Security Corp.

   

8.75%, 5/15/2025(a)

    260,000       259,510  

9.50%, 11/1/2027(a)

    150,000       160,378  

GFL Environmental, Inc.

   

4.25%, 6/1/2025(a)

    150,000       153,281  

IAA, Inc.

   

5.50%, 6/15/2027(a)

    100,000       105,313  

Intrado Corp.

   

8.50%, 10/15/2025(a)

    560,000       505,240  

KAR Auction Services, Inc.

   

5.13%, 6/1/2025(a)

    180,000       181,575  

Matthews International Corp.

   

5.25%, 12/1/2025(a)

    180,000       171,656  

Nielsen Co. Luxembourg SARL (The)

 

 

5.00%, 2/1/2025(a)

    110,000       113,198  

Nielsen Finance LLC

   

5.88%, 10/1/2030(a)

    125,000       131,484  

Pitney Bowes, Inc.

   

5.95%, 4/1/2023(d)

    150,000       149,797  

4.63%, 3/15/2024

    77,000       74,979  

Prime Security Services Borrower LLC

 

 

6.25%, 1/15/2028(a)

    635,000       642,550  

Ritchie Bros Auctioneers, Inc.

   

5.38%, 1/15/2025(a)

    100,000       103,063  

Stericycle, Inc.

   

5.38%, 7/15/2024(a)

    100,000       104,224  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Commercial Services & Supplies – (continued)  

TMS International Holding Corp.

   

7.25%, 8/15/2025(a)

  $ 100,000     $ 95,750  

Vericast Corp.

   

8.38%, 8/15/2022(a)

    495,000       487,575  

12.50%, 5/1/2024(a)

    312,372       319,400  

Waste Pro USA, Inc.

   

5.50%, 2/15/2026(a)

    150,000       151,936  
              6,513,611  
Communications Equipment – 0.1%  

Avaya, Inc.

   

6.13%, 9/15/2028(a)

    125,000       128,672  
Construction & Engineering – 1.1%  

AECOM

   

5.13%, 3/15/2027

    200,000       219,452  

Brand Industrial Services, Inc.

   

8.50%, 7/15/2025(a)

    625,000       588,875  

Fluor Corp.

   

3.50%, 12/15/2024

    280,000       254,386  

New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co., Inc.

   

9.75%, 7/15/2028(a)

    115,000       124,775  

Pike Corp.

   

5.50%, 9/1/2028(a)

    325,000       333,193  

PowerTeam Services LLC

   

9.03%, 12/4/2025(a)

    480,000       509,700  
              2,030,381  
Consumer Finance – 0.9%  

Credit Acceptance Corp.

   

6.63%, 3/15/2026

  $ 400,000     $ 416,500  

Enova International, Inc.

   

8.50%, 9/1/2024(a)

    130,000       119,749  

FirstCash, Inc.

   

4.63%, 9/1/2028(a)

    100,000       101,687  

Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC

   

5.88%, 8/2/2021

    10,000       10,225  

4.13%, 8/4/2025

    370,000       368,218  

4.54%, 8/1/2026

    200,000       203,750  

5.11%, 5/3/2029

    200,000       208,000  

PRA Group, Inc.

   

7.38%, 9/1/2025(a)

    100,000       105,088  

TMX Finance LLC

   

11.13%, 4/1/2023(a)

    130,000       120,074  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

372    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Consumer Finance – (continued)  

Voyager Aviation Holdings LLC

   

9.00%, 8/15/2021(a)(d)

  $ 290,000     $ 142,825  
              1,796,116  
Containers & Packaging – 1.7%  

Ball Corp.

   

2.88%, 8/15/2030

    140,000       138,600  

Berry Global, Inc.

   

5.63%, 7/15/2027(a)

    200,000       209,604  

Flex Acquisition Co., Inc.

   

7.88%, 7/15/2026(a)

    430,000       435,547  

Graham Packaging Co., Inc.

   

7.13%, 8/15/2028(a)

    340,000       355,937  

Greif, Inc.

   

6.50%, 3/1/2027(a)

    100,000       105,062  

Intelligent Packaging Ltd. Finco, Inc.

   

6.00%, 9/15/2028(a)

    195,000       198,778  

Intertape Polymer Group, Inc.

   

7.00%, 10/15/2026(a)

    50,000       52,678  

Mauser Packaging Solutions Holding Co.

   

7.25%, 4/15/2025(a)

    880,000       850,036  

Pactiv LLC

   

8.38%, 4/15/2027

    175,000       193,123  

Plastipak Holdings, Inc.

   

6.25%, 10/15/2025(a)

    230,000       230,719  

Trident TPI Holdings, Inc.

   

6.63%, 11/1/2025(a)

    100,000       99,615  

Trivium Packaging Finance BV

   

8.50%, 8/15/2027(a)(d)

    400,000       428,790  
              3,298,489  
Distributors – 0.5%  

Resideo Funding, Inc.

   

6.13%, 11/1/2026(a)

    150,000       145,125  

Wolverine Escrow LLC

   

9.00%, 11/15/2026(a)

    625,000       477,937  

13.13%, 11/15/2027(a)

    600,000       409,500  
              1,032,562  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Diversified Consumer Services – 0.3%  

Carriage Services, Inc.

   

6.63%, 6/1/2026(a)

  $ 100,000     $ 105,462  

Graham Holdings Co.

   

5.75%, 6/1/2026(a)

    140,000       147,281  

Midas Intermediate Holdco II LLC

   

7.88%, 10/1/2022(a)

    30,000       24,675  

Service Corp. International

   

5.13%, 6/1/2029

    200,000       218,904  
              496,322  
Diversified Financial Services – 0.5%  

ACE Cash Express, Inc.

   

12.00%, 12/15/2022(a)

    45,000       32,062  

CNG Holdings, Inc.

   

12.50%, 6/15/2024(a)

    111,000       97,957  

Fairstone Financial, Inc.

   

7.88%, 7/15/2024(a)

    100,000       102,802  

Jefferies Finance LLC

   

6.25%, 6/3/2026(a)

    200,000       204,020  

Sabre GLBL, Inc.

   

5.25%, 11/15/2023(a)

    250,000       245,625  

9.25%, 4/15/2025(a)

    185,000       204,194  

Shift4 Payments LLC

   

4.63%, 11/1/2026(a)

    125,000       126,913  
              1,013,573  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – 4.6%  

Altice France Holding SA

   

10.50%, 5/15/2027(a)

    615,000       679,191  

6.00%, 2/15/2028(a)

    750,000       723,266  

CCO Holdings LLC

   

5.13%, 5/1/2027(a)

    610,000       641,314  

5.00%, 2/1/2028(a)

    760,000       799,140  

5.38%, 6/1/2029(a)

    450,000       487,638  

4.75%, 3/1/2030(a)

    545,000       573,940  

4.50%, 8/15/2030(a)

    425,000       442,217  

4.25%, 2/1/2031(a)

    460,000       471,978  

CenturyLink, Inc.

   

Series G,
6.88%, 1/15/2028

    250,000       278,390  

DKT Finance ApS

   

9.38%, 6/17/2023(a)

    200,000       204,271  

Koninklijke KPN NV

   

7.00%, 3/28/2073(a) (b)

    100,000       104,884  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      373  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Diversified Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

Sprint Capital Corp.

   

6.88%, 11/15/2028

  $ 180,000     $ 228,037  

8.75%, 3/15/2032

    350,000       524,038  

Switch Ltd.

   

3.75%, 9/15/2028(a)

    125,000       125,391  

Telesat Canada

   

6.50%, 10/15/2027(a)

    375,000       373,650  

Virgin Media Finance plc

   

5.00%, 7/15/2030(a)

    840,000       836,850  

Virgin Media Secured Finance plc

   

5.50%, 8/15/2026(a)

    200,000       208,445  

5.50%, 5/15/2029(a)

    200,000       214,000  

Zayo Group Holdings, Inc.

   

6.13%, 3/1/2028(a)

    775,000       783,114  
              8,699,754  
Electric Utilities – 0.8%  

Bruce Mansfield Unit 1 Pass-Through Trust

   

Series 2007,
8.88%, 8/1/2023(e)

    200,000       1,200  

Emera, Inc.

   

Series 16-A,
6.75%, 6/15/2076(b)

    35,000       38,823  

NRG Energy, Inc.

   

7.25%, 5/15/2026

    200,000       211,698  

6.63%, 1/15/2027

    310,000       326,727  

5.75%, 1/15/2028

    285,000       307,893  

Terraform Global Operating LLC

   

6.13%, 3/1/2026(a)

    75,000       76,017  

Vistra Operations Co. LLC

   

5.50%, 9/1/2026(a)

    250,000       259,063  

5.63%, 2/15/2027(a)

    320,000       334,067  
              1,555,488  
Electrical Equipment – 0.1%  

EnerSys

   

5.00%, 4/30/2023(a)

    100,000       103,062  
Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components – 0.1%  

TTM Technologies, Inc.

   

5.63%, 10/1/2025(a)

    125,000       128,893  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Energy Equipment & Services – 1.9%  

CSI Compressco LP

   

7.50%, 4/1/2025(a)

  $ 23,000     $ 20,266  

10.00%, 4/1/2026(a)(c)

    72,763       52,534  

Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc.

   

3.45%, 11/1/2023(e)

    90,000       6,178  

7.88%, 8/15/2025(e)

    310,000       21,700  

Exterran Energy Solutions LP

   

8.13%, 5/1/2025

    150,000       126,547  

Nabors Industries Ltd.

   

7.25%, 1/15/2026(a)

    725,000       291,359  

Oceaneering International, Inc.

   

4.65%, 11/15/2024

    225,000       182,812  

6.00%, 2/1/2028

    225,000       167,063  

Precision Drilling Corp.

   

7.75%, 12/15/2023

    100,000       74,312  

7.13%, 1/15/2026(a)

    425,000       269,263  

SESI LLC

   

7.13%, 12/15/2021(a)(d)

    390,000       91,163  

Tervita Corp.

   

7.63%, 12/1/2021(a)

    80,000       77,000  

Transocean Guardian Ltd.

   

5.88%, 1/15/2024(a)

    666,900       408,476  

Transocean Poseidon Ltd.

   

6.88%, 2/1/2027(a)

    430,000       323,575  

Transocean, Inc.

   

11.50%, 1/30/2027(a)

    1,218,000       404,955  

USA Compression Partners LP

   

6.88%, 4/1/2026

    255,000       253,339  

Vantage Drilling International

   

9.25%, 11/15/2023(a)

    200,000       107,729  

Weatherford International Ltd.

   

11.00%, 12/1/2024(a)

    1,350,000       802,089  
              3,680,360  
Entertainment – 1.3%  

Allen Media LLC

   

10.50%, 2/15/2028(a)

    150,000       145,852  

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.

   

4.88%, 11/1/2024(a)

    395,000       380,930  

5.63%, 3/15/2026(a)

    300,000       286,950  

4.75%, 10/15/2027(a)

    605,000       556,978  

Netflix, Inc.

   

5.88%, 11/15/2028

    440,000       526,495  

5.38%, 11/15/2029(a)

    125,000       146,563  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

374    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Entertainment – (continued)  

4.88%, 6/15/2030(a)

  $ 395,000     $ 451,534  
              2,495,302  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 3.4%  

Brookfield Property REIT, Inc.

   

5.75%, 5/15/2026(a)

    650,000       540,719  

CoreCivic, Inc.

   

4.63%, 5/1/2023

    100,000       91,750  

4.75%, 10/15/2027

    150,000       117,375  

Diversified Healthcare Trust

   

9.75%, 6/15/2025

    80,000       88,109  

ESH Hospitality, Inc.

   

5.25%, 5/1/2025(a)

    330,000       330,487  

4.63%, 10/1/2027(a)

    350,000       343,437  

FelCor Lodging LP

   

6.00%, 6/1/2025

    190,000       187,368  

GEO Group, Inc. (The)

   

5.88%, 10/15/2024

    517,000       359,685  

Iron Mountain, Inc.

   

5.25%, 3/15/2028(a)

    450,000       462,094  

4.88%, 9/15/2029(a)

    355,000       359,082  

iStar, Inc.

   

4.75%, 10/1/2024

    400,000       382,710  

MGM Growth Properties Operating Partnership LP

   

5.75%, 2/1/2027

    75,000       81,052  

MPT Operating Partnership LP

   

5.25%, 8/1/2026

    100,000       104,000  

4.63%, 8/1/2029

    100,000       104,872  

Park Intermediate Holdings LLC

   

7.50%, 6/1/2025(a)

    300,000       314,063  

SBA Communications Corp.

   

4.00%, 10/1/2022

    125,000       126,328  

Service Properties Trust

   

5.00%, 8/15/2022

    275,000       272,250  

4.50%, 6/15/2023

    100,000       96,438  

4.35%, 10/1/2024

    100,000       88,625  

Uniti Group LP

   

6.00%, 4/15/2023(a)

    185,000       187,775  

8.25%, 10/15/2023

    595,000       587,190  

7.88%, 2/15/2025(a)

    765,000       812,822  

VICI Properties LP

   

4.25%, 12/1/2026(a)

    295,000       300,435  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – (continued)  

4.63%, 12/1/2029(a)

  $ 150,000     $ 156,105  
              6,494,771  
Food & Staples Retailing – 1.4%  

Albertsons Cos., Inc.

   

4.63%, 1/15/2027(a)

    535,000       552,227  

5.88%, 2/15/2028(a)

    665,000       704,361  

Fresh Market, Inc. (The)

   

9.75%, 5/1/2023(a)

    480,000       460,202  

KeHE Distributors LLC

   

8.63%, 10/15/2026(a)

    100,000       107,734  

Rite Aid Corp.

   

8.00%, 11/15/2026(a)

    565,000       567,119  

SEG Holding LLC

   

5.63%, 10/15/2028(a)

    125,000       127,663  

US Foods, Inc.

   

5.88%, 6/15/2024(a)

    100,000       99,813  
              2,619,119  
Food Products – 3.3%              

Chobani LLC

   

7.50%, 4/15/2025(a)

    180,000       185,289  

Del Monte Foods, Inc.

   

11.88%, 5/15/2025(a)

    310,000       331,119  

Dole Food Co., Inc.

   

7.25%, 6/15/2025(a)

    65,000       65,237  

Kraft Heinz Foods Co.

   

6.88%, 1/26/2039

    90,000       120,678  

7.13%, 8/1/2039(a)

    105,000       141,995  

6.50%, 2/9/2040

    70,000       89,112  

5.00%, 6/4/2042

    200,000       220,092  

5.20%, 7/15/2045

    300,000       332,822  

4.38%, 6/1/2046

    440,000       452,346  

4.88%, 10/1/2049(a)

    220,000       232,958  

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.

   

4.88%, 11/1/2026(a)

    215,000       223,704  

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp.

   

5.75%, 3/15/2025(a)

    500,000       512,500  

Post Holdings, Inc.

   

5.00%, 8/15/2026(a)

    500,000       519,367  

5.75%, 3/1/2027(a)

    600,000       630,126  

5.63%, 1/15/2028(a)

    355,000       375,191  

5.50%, 12/15/2029(a)

    455,000       492,549  

4.63%, 4/15/2030(a)

    805,000       828,144  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      375  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Food Products – (continued)              

Sigma Holdco BV

   

7.88%, 5/15/2026(a)

  $ 310,000     $ 306,068  

Simmons Foods, Inc.

   

5.75%, 11/1/2024(a)

    125,000       123,906  
              6,183,203  
Gas Utilities – 0.2%  

AmeriGas Partners LP

   

5.63%, 5/20/2024

    150,000       159,750  

Suburban Propane Partners LP

   

5.50%, 6/1/2024

    110,000       111,547  

5.88%, 3/1/2027

    150,000       154,969  
              426,266  
Health Care Equipment & Supplies – 0.7%  

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc.

   

4.38%, 9/15/2027(a)

    225,000       233,157  

Hologic, Inc.

   

4.63%, 2/1/2028(a)

    250,000       262,031  

Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc.

   

7.25%, 2/1/2028(a)

    415,000       434,453  

Teleflex, Inc.

   

4.88%, 6/1/2026

    150,000       156,534  

Varex Imaging Corp.

   

7.88%, 10/15/2027(a)

    200,000       204,000  
              1,290,175  
Health Care Providers & Services – 3.9%  

AdaptHealth LLC

   

6.13%, 8/1/2028(a)

    230,000       239,487  

AHP Health Partners, Inc.

   

9.75%, 7/15/2026(a)

    330,000       350,975  

Air Methods Corp.

   

8.00%, 5/15/2025(a)

    325,000       238,435  

Centene Corp.

   

4.63%, 12/15/2029

    500,000       545,015  

DaVita, Inc.

   

4.63%, 6/1/2030(a)

    400,000       407,108  

Encompass Health Corp.

   

4.50%, 2/1/2028

    300,000       307,743  

4.75%, 2/1/2030

    265,000       276,477  

Envision Healthcare Corp.

   

8.75%, 10/15/2026(a)

    645,000       305,446  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Health Care Providers & Services – (continued)  

Global Medical Response, Inc.

   

6.50%, 10/1/2025(a)

  $ 240,000     $ 237,300  

Hadrian Merger Sub, Inc.

   

8.50%, 5/1/2026(a)

    55,000       53,821  

HCA, Inc.

   

7.69%, 6/15/2025

    150,000       179,422  

3.50%, 9/1/2030

    325,000       332,737  

Legacy LifePoint Health LLC

   

6.75%, 4/15/2025(a)

    150,000       159,000  

MEDNAX, Inc.

   

6.25%, 1/15/2027(a)

    255,000       263,535  

Molina Healthcare, Inc.

   

5.38%, 11/15/2022(d)

    150,000       156,153  

4.38%, 6/15/2028(a)

    155,000       159,030  

One Call Corp.

   

10.00%, 10/1/2024(a)

    110,000       95,150  

Prime Healthcare Services, Inc.

   

7.25%, 11/1/2025(a)

    125,000       126,131  

Providence Service Corp. (The)

   

5.88%, 11/15/2025(a)

    100,000       101,938  

Radiology Partners, Inc.

   

9.25%, 2/1/2028(a)

    455,000       486,158  

Select Medical Corp.

   

6.25%, 8/15/2026(a)

    300,000       316,962  

Surgery Center Holdings, Inc.

   

10.00%, 4/15/2027(a)

    335,000       358,241  

Team Health Holdings, Inc.

   

6.38%, 2/1/2025(a)

    490,000       304,143  

Tenet Healthcare Corp.

   

7.00%, 8/1/2025

    100,000       102,438  

4.88%, 1/1/2026(a)

    175,000       177,742  

6.25%, 2/1/2027(a)

    200,000       207,940  

6.13%, 10/1/2028(a)

    290,000       281,844  

US Renal Care, Inc.

   

10.63%, 7/15/2027(a)

    330,000       352,275  

West Street Merger Sub, Inc.

   

6.38%, 9/1/2025(a)

    285,000       289,809  
              7,412,455  
Health Care Technology – 0.2%  

IQVIA, Inc.

   

5.00%, 10/15/2026(a)

    300,000       311,481  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

376    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – 9.4%  

1011778 BC ULC

   

5.00%, 10/15/2025(a)

  $ 741,000     $ 760,007  

Arrow Bidco LLC

   

9.50%, 3/15/2024(a)

    190,000       156,968  

Boyd Gaming Corp.

   

6.38%, 4/1/2026

    173,000       179,742  

6.00%, 8/15/2026

    165,000       169,661  

Caesars Entertainment, Inc.

   

6.25%, 7/1/2025(a)

    100,000       102,562  

8.13%, 7/1/2027(a)

    800,000       836,000  

Carnival Corp.

   

11.50%, 4/1/2023(a)

    1,035,000       1,138,288  

Cedar Fair LP

   

5.38%, 4/15/2027

    835,000       774,984  

Churchill Downs, Inc.

   

5.50%, 4/1/2027(a)

    100,000       103,794  

Cirsa Finance International SARL

   

7.88%, 12/20/2023(a)

    310,000       282,875  

Dave & Buster’s, Inc.

   

7.63%, 11/1/2025(a)

    125,000       122,969  

Downstream Development Authority of the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma

   

10.50%, 2/15/2023(a)

    75,000       70,023  

Enterprise Development Authority (The)

   

12.00%, 7/15/2024(a)

    130,000       144,300  

Golden Nugget, Inc.

   

6.75%, 10/15/2024(a)

    1,130,000       958,263  

8.75%, 10/1/2025(a)

    225,000       185,203  

Hilton Domestic Operating Co., Inc.

   

4.25%, 9/1/2024

    275,000       274,490  

5.13%, 5/1/2026

    850,000       863,651  

4.88%, 1/15/2030

    500,000       515,312  

Hilton Worldwide Finance LLC

   

4.88%, 4/1/2027

    150,000       152,025  

International Game Technology plc

   

6.50%, 2/15/2025(a)

    300,000       321,750  

6.25%, 1/15/2027(a)

    72,000       76,635  

5.25%, 1/15/2029(a)

    100,000       99,160  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

IRB Holding Corp.

   

6.75%, 2/15/2026(a)

  $ 430,000     $ 431,612  

Jacobs Entertainment, Inc.

   

7.88%, 2/1/2024(a)

    230,000       226,238  

KFC Holding Co.

   

5.25%, 6/1/2026(a)

    200,000       207,040  

4.75%, 6/1/2027(a)

    500,000       518,885  

LTF Merger Sub, Inc.

   

8.50%, 6/15/2023(a)

    165,000       150,563  

Marriott Ownership Resorts, Inc.

   

6.50%, 9/15/2026

    300,000       309,516  

Merlin Entertainments Ltd.

   

5.75%, 6/15/2026(a)

    600,000       554,136  

NCL Corp. Ltd.

   

12.25%, 5/15/2024(a)

    270,000       300,037  

Peninsula Pacific Entertainment LLC

   

8.50%, 11/15/2027(a)

    315,000       328,232  

Powdr Corp.

   

6.00%, 8/1/2025(a)

    100,000       101,205  

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

   

5.25%, 11/15/2022

    245,000       219,238  

9.13%, 6/15/2023(a)

    655,000       682,838  

11.50%, 6/1/2025(a)

    400,000       458,500  

Scientific Games International, Inc.

   

8.63%, 7/1/2025(a)

    200,000       208,186  

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, Inc.

   

9.50%, 8/1/2025(a)

    325,000       341,859  

Silversea Cruise Finance Ltd.

   

7.25%, 2/1/2025(a)

    245,000       247,064  

Six Flags Entertainment Corp.

   

5.50%, 4/15/2027(a)

    450,000       419,198  

Speedway Motorsports LLC

   

4.88%, 11/1/2027(a)

    215,000       204,788  

Sugarhouse HSP Gaming Prop Mezz LP

   

5.88%, 5/15/2025(a)

    100,000       97,115  

Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

   

6.75%, 6/1/2027(a)

    260,000       263,758  

Viking Cruises Ltd.

   

6.25%, 5/15/2025(a)

    330,000       258,603  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      377  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure – (continued)  

13.00%, 5/15/2025(a)

  $ 305,000     $ 345,984  

5.88%, 9/15/2027(a)

    585,000       457,397  

Wyndham Destinations, Inc.

   

5.65%, 4/1/2024(d)

    160,000       164,103  

6.00%, 4/1/2027(d)

    70,000       72,319  

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

   

5.38%, 4/15/2026(a)

    180,000       182,588  

Wynn Las Vegas LLC

   

4.25%, 5/30/2023(a)

    100,000       95,563  

5.50%, 3/1/2025(a)

    705,000       676,359  

5.25%, 5/15/2027(a)

    585,000       545,147  

Wynn Resorts Finance LLC

   

5.13%, 10/1/2029(a)

    235,000       225,306  

Yum! Brands, Inc.

   

4.75%, 1/15/2030(a)

    150,000       161,475  
              17,743,514  
Household Durables – 1.2%  

American Greetings Corp.

   

8.75%, 4/15/2025(a)

    110,000       107,651  

Ashton Woods USA LLC

   

6.75%, 8/1/2025(a)

    150,000       155,047  

6.63%, 1/15/2028(a)

    150,000       151,125  

Brookfield Residential Properties, Inc.

   

6.38%, 5/15/2025(a)

    110,000       110,951  

6.25%, 9/15/2027(a)

    765,000       785,330  

CD&R Smokey Buyer, Inc.

   

6.75%, 7/15/2025(a)

    145,000       153,156  

KB Home

   

6.88%, 6/15/2027

    100,000       118,250  

LGI Homes, Inc.

   

6.88%, 7/15/2026(a)

    100,000       104,750  

Newell Brands, Inc.

   

5.87%, 4/1/2036(d)

    179,000       210,325  

PulteGroup, Inc.

   

6.38%, 5/15/2033

    150,000       191,854  

Taylor Morrison Communities, Inc.

   

5.75%, 1/15/2028(a)

    100,000       111,312  

TopBuild Corp.

   

5.63%, 5/1/2026(a)

    100,000       102,813  
              2,302,564  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Independent Power and Renewable Electricity
Producers – 0.5%
 

Clearway Energy Operating LLC

   

5.75%, 10/15/2025

  $ 150,000     $ 157,406  

Talen Energy Supply LLC

   

6.50%, 6/1/2025

    300,000       179,183  

10.50%, 1/15/2026(a)

    515,000       352,453  

6.63%, 1/15/2028(a)

    50,000       47,897  

TransAlta Corp.

   

4.50%, 11/15/2022

    120,000       124,500  
              861,439  
Insurance – 1.7%  

Acrisure LLC

   

7.00%, 11/15/2025(a)

    235,000       235,852  

10.13%, 8/1/2026(a)

    240,000       266,361  

Alliant Holdings Intermediate LLC

   

6.75%, 10/15/2027(a)

    575,000       604,722  

Assurant, Inc.

   

7.00%, 3/27/2048(b)

    160,000       174,434  

AssuredPartners, Inc.

   

7.00%, 8/15/2025(a)

    280,000       288,572  

Fidelity & Guaranty Life Holdings, Inc.

   

5.50%, 5/1/2025(a)

    30,000       34,435  

GTCR AP Finance, Inc.

   

8.00%, 5/15/2027(a)

    275,000       294,250  

Liberty Mutual Group, Inc.

   

7.80%, 3/15/2037(a)

    275,000       337,872  

NFP Corp.

   

6.88%, 8/15/2028(a)

    1,040,000       1,010,100  
              3,246,598  
Interactive Media & Services – 0.2%  

TripAdvisor, Inc.

   

7.00%, 7/15/2025(a)

    310,000       323,059  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 1.0%  

ANGI Group LLC

   

3.88%, 8/15/2028(a)

    330,000       326,906  

Getty Images, Inc.

   

9.75%, 3/1/2027(a)

    150,000       152,034  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

378    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – (continued)  

Go Daddy Operating Co. LLC

   

5.25%, 12/1/2027(a)

  $ 200,000     $ 209,875  

Match Group Holdings II LLC

   

4.63%, 6/1/2028(a)

    200,000       207,445  

5.63%, 2/15/2029(a)

    235,000       253,800  

Photo Holdings Merger Sub, Inc.

   

8.50%, 10/1/2026(a)

    485,000       451,884  

QVC, Inc.

   

4.38%, 3/15/2023

    250,000       259,688  

5.45%, 8/15/2034

    100,000       99,000  
              1,960,632  
IT Services – 1.1%  

Banff Merger Sub, Inc.

   

9.75%, 9/1/2026(a)

    570,000       599,925  

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.

   

3.88%, 9/1/2028(a)

    280,000       284,725  

Cablevision Lightpath LLC

   

5.63%, 9/15/2028(a)

    125,000       126,484  

Flexential Intermediate Corp.

   

11.25%, 8/1/2024(a)

    155,000       156,647  

Northwest Fiber LLC

   

10.75%, 6/1/2028(a)

    150,000       170,250  

Presidio Holdings, Inc.

   

8.25%, 2/1/2028(a)

    300,000       318,937  

Unisys Corp.

   

6.88%, 11/1/2027(a)

    125,000       129,688  

VeriSign, Inc.

   

4.75%, 7/15/2027

    300,000       318,563  
              2,105,219  
Leisure Products – 0.0%(f)  

Vista Outdoor, Inc.

   

5.88%, 10/1/2023

    75,000       75,930  
Life Sciences Tools & Services – 0.1%  

Avantor, Inc.

   

6.00%, 10/1/2024(a)

    100,000       104,515  

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.

   

5.50%, 4/1/2026(a)

    100,000       104,687  
              209,202  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Machinery – 1.7%  

Apex Tool Group LLC

   

9.00%, 2/15/2023(a)

  $ 45,000     $ 41,681  

Cleaver-Brooks, Inc.

   

7.88%, 3/1/2023(a)

    100,000       96,614  

Granite US Holdings Corp.

   

11.00%, 10/1/2027(a)

    150,000       156,375  

Husky III Holding Ltd.

   

13.00%, 2/15/2025(a)(c)

    250,000       265,156  

JPW Industries Holding Corp.

   

9.00%, 10/1/2024(a)

    100,000       92,500  

Manitowoc Co., Inc. (The)

   

9.00%, 4/1/2026(a)

    185,000       190,242  

Maxim Crane Works Holdings Capital LLC

   

10.13%, 8/1/2024(a)

    215,000       218,248  

Meritor, Inc.

   

6.25%, 2/15/2024

    100,000       102,125  

Mueller Water Products, Inc.

   

5.50%, 6/15/2026(a)

    100,000       103,644  

Navistar International Corp.

   

6.63%, 11/1/2025(a)

    400,000       414,080  

Park-Ohio Industries, Inc.

   

6.63%, 4/15/2027

    210,000       202,167  

Terex Corp.

   

5.63%, 2/1/2025(a)

    265,000       269,472  

Titan Acquisition Ltd.

   

7.75%, 4/15/2026(a)

    245,000       245,000  

Vertical Holdco GmbH

   

7.63%, 7/15/2028(a)

    400,000       415,750  

Vertical US Newco, Inc.

   

5.25%, 7/15/2027(a)

    150,000       154,661  

Wabash National Corp.

   

5.50%, 10/1/2025(a)

    100,000       100,386  

Welbilt, Inc.

   

9.50%, 2/15/2024

    110,000       111,879  

Werner FinCo. LP

   

8.75%, 7/15/2025(a)

    150,000       140,797  
              3,320,777  
Marine – 0.2%  

Stena AB

   

7.00%, 2/1/2024(a)

    310,000       295,630  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      379  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Media – 8.8%              

Advantage Sales & Marketing, Inc.

   

6.50%, 11/15/2028(a)

  $ 125,000     $ 122,344  

Belo Corp.

   

7.25%, 9/15/2027

    250,000       275,890  

CSC Holdings LLC

   

7.50%, 4/1/2028(a)

    600,000       657,750  

5.75%, 1/15/2030(a)

    450,000       481,635  

Diamond Sports Group LLC

   

5.38%, 8/15/2026(a)

    1,973,000       1,156,671  

6.63%, 8/15/2027(a)

    1,115,000       446,446  

DISH DBS Corp.

   

5.00%, 3/15/2023

    625,000       630,481  

5.88%, 11/15/2024

    785,000       790,888  

7.75%, 7/1/2026

    1,725,000       1,830,656  

GCI LLC

   

4.75%, 10/15/2028(a)

    240,000       248,178  

Gray Television, Inc.

   

5.88%, 7/15/2026(a)

    175,000       182,475  

7.00%, 5/15/2027(a)

    195,000       210,600  

iHeartCommunications, Inc.

   

6.38%, 5/1/2026

    100,000       104,312  

8.38%, 5/1/2027

    990,000       962,305  

5.25%, 8/15/2027(a)

    265,000       262,019  

Liberty Interactive LLC

   

8.50%, 7/15/2029

    190,000       205,876  

8.25%, 2/1/2030

    300,000       325,313  

Meredith Corp.

   

6.88%, 2/1/2026

    872,000       724,305  

Midcontinent Communications

   

5.38%, 8/15/2027(a)

    65,000       67,904  

National CineMedia LLC

   

5.88%, 4/15/2028(a)

    350,000       245,000  

Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.

   

5.63%, 7/15/2027(a)

    200,000       208,813  

Outfront Media Capital LLC

   

6.25%, 6/15/2025(a)

    90,000       92,025  

Quebecor Media, Inc.

   

5.75%, 1/15/2023

    170,000       182,920  

Radiate Holdco LLC

   

6.50%, 9/15/2028(a)

    750,000       775,312  

Sinclair Television Group, Inc.

   

5.63%, 8/1/2024(a)

    130,000       129,980  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Media – (continued)              

5.13%, 2/15/2027(a)

  $ 155,000     $ 146,088  

5.50%, 3/1/2030(a)

    325,000       306,082  

Sirius XM Radio, Inc.

   

5.50%, 7/1/2029(a)

    200,000       218,065  

TEGNA, Inc.

   

4.63%, 3/15/2028(a)

    200,000       197,716  

5.00%, 9/15/2029

    150,000       152,016  

Terrier Media Buyer, Inc.

   

8.88%, 12/15/2027(a)

    650,000       665,678  

Univision Communications, Inc.

   

5.13%, 2/15/2025(a)

    1,015,000       999,141  

6.63%, 6/1/2027(a)

    700,000       709,187  

UPC Holding BV

   

5.50%, 1/15/2028(a)

    310,000       320,656  

Urban One, Inc.

   

7.38%, 4/15/2022(a)

    35,000       32,673  

Videotron Ltd.

   

5.13%, 4/15/2027(a)

    300,000       318,000  

Ziggo Bond Co. BV

   

6.00%, 1/15/2027(a)

    775,000       805,516  

Ziggo BV

   

5.50%, 1/15/2027(a)

    445,000       462,509  
              16,653,425  
Metals & Mining – 2.0%  

Alcoa Nederland Holding BV

   

6.13%, 5/15/2028(a)

    200,000       215,083  

Allegheny Technologies, Inc.

   

7.88%, 8/15/2023(d)

    250,000       253,014  

Arconic Corp.

   

6.13%, 2/15/2028(a)

    100,000       105,551  

Big River Steel LLC

   

6.63%, 1/31/2029(a)

    585,000       603,647  

Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc.

   

9.88%, 10/17/2025(a)

    350,000       400,750  

5.88%, 6/1/2027

    90,000       87,618  

Commercial Metals Co.

   

5.75%, 4/15/2026

    85,000       88,014  

Compass Minerals International, Inc.

   

6.75%, 12/1/2027(a)

    140,000       152,097  

FMG Resources August 2006 Pty. Ltd.

   

4.50%, 9/15/2027(a)

    55,000       58,994  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

380    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Metals & Mining – (continued)  

IAMGOLD Corp.

   

5.75%, 10/15/2028(a)

  $ 295,000     $ 295,605  

Infrabuild Australia Pty. Ltd.

   

12.00%, 10/1/2024(a)

    200,000       199,000  

Joseph T Ryerson & Son, Inc.

   

8.50%, 8/1/2028(a)

    291,000       312,367  

JW Aluminum Continuous Cast Co.

   

10.25%, 6/1/2026(a)

    150,000       158,034  

Kaiser Aluminum Corp.

   

6.50%, 5/1/2025(a)

    150,000       159,375  

4.63%, 3/1/2028(a)

    325,000       320,674  

Mineral Resources Ltd.

   

8.13%, 5/1/2027(a)

    170,000       185,725  

Northwest Acquisitions ULC

   

7.13%, 11/1/2022(a)(e)

    255,000       2,869  

Warrior Met Coal, Inc.

   

8.00%, 11/1/2024(a)

    115,000       114,515  
              3,712,932  
Mortgage Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) – 0.3%  

New Residential Investment Corp.

   

6.25%, 10/15/2025(a)

    220,000       210,787  

Starwood Property Trust, Inc.

   

5.00%, 12/15/2021

    128,000       127,680  

4.75%, 3/15/2025

    200,000       194,625  
              533,092  
Multiline Retail – 0.4%  

Macy’s, Inc.

   

8.38%, 6/15/2025(a)

    650,000       679,601  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 10.7%  

Antero Midstream Partners LP

   

5.38%, 9/15/2024

    700,000       656,390  

5.75%, 3/1/2027(a)

    540,000       487,012  

Antero Resources Corp.

   

5.13%, 12/1/2022

    300,000       278,250  

Ascent Resources Utica Holdings LLC

   

7.00%, 11/1/2026(a)

    310,000       274,815  

9.00%, 11/1/2027(a)

    250,000       243,750  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Berry Petroleum Co. LLC

   

7.00%, 2/15/2026(a)

  $ 140,000     $ 95,851  

Blue Racer Midstream LLC

   

6.13%, 11/15/2022(a)

    100,000       97,472  

Buckeye Partners LP

   

5.60%, 10/15/2044

    100,000       86,563  

Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP

   

7.63%, 1/15/2022

    11,000       10,928  

7.75%, 4/15/2023

    150,000       144,547  

9.25%, 7/15/2024(a)

    19,000       20,805  

11.00%, 4/15/2025(a)

    220,000       213,444  

Cenovus Energy, Inc.

   

3.80%, 9/15/2023

    190,000       193,091  

4.25%, 4/15/2027

    200,000       203,777  

6.75%, 11/15/2039

    125,000       139,144  

Centennial Resource Production LLC

   

6.88%, 4/1/2027(a)

    345,000       127,790  

Cheniere Energy Partners LP

   

5.25%, 10/1/2025

    430,000       437,826  

5.63%, 10/1/2026

    260,000       267,358  

Citgo Holding, Inc.

   

9.25%, 8/1/2024(a)

    490,000       411,600  

CITGO Petroleum Corp.

   

7.00%, 6/15/2025(a)

    280,000       259,756  

CNX Resources Corp.

   

7.25%, 3/14/2027(a)

    240,000       253,505  

Comstock Resources, Inc.

   

7.50%, 5/15/2025(a)

    280,000       278,656  

9.75%, 8/15/2026

    630,000       664,650  

Crestwood Midstream Partners LP

   

6.25%, 4/1/2023(d)

    150,000       145,677  

5.75%, 4/1/2025

    100,000       91,750  

5.63%, 5/1/2027(a)

    150,000       131,719  

CVR Energy, Inc.

   

5.75%, 2/15/2028(a)

    450,000       308,250  

DCP Midstream LP

   

Series A, 7.38%, 12/15/2022(b)(g)

    250,000       162,677  

Energy Ventures Gom LLC

   

11.00%, 2/15/2023(a)

    100,000       74,114  

EnLink Midstream LLC

   

5.38%, 6/1/2029

    50,000       42,900  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      381  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

EnLink Midstream Partners LP

   

Series C, 6.00%, 12/15/2022(b)(g)

  $ 50,000     $ 21,250  

4.15%, 6/1/2025

    745,000       642,719  

5.45%, 6/1/2047

    185,000       119,286  

Enviva Partners LP

   

6.50%, 1/15/2026(a)

    220,000       232,512  

EQM Midstream Partners LP

   

6.00%, 7/1/2025(a)

    175,000       179,594  

Genesis Energy LP

   

6.50%, 10/1/2025

    125,000       103,984  

7.75%, 2/1/2028

    565,000       469,481  

Global Partners LP

   

6.88%, 1/15/2029(a)

    125,000       129,053  

Gran Tierra Energy International Holdings Ltd.

   

6.25%, 2/15/2025(a)

    400,000       141,000  

Harvest Midstream I LP

   

7.50%, 9/1/2028(a)

    375,000       373,125  

Hilcorp Energy I LP

   

5.00%, 12/1/2024(a)

    300,000       278,594  

6.25%, 11/1/2028(a)

    235,000       216,087  

Indigo Natural Resources LLC

   

6.88%, 2/15/2026(a)

    110,000       108,350  

Ithaca Energy North Sea plc

   

9.38%, 7/15/2024(a)

    200,000       174,498  

Magnolia Oil & Gas Operating LLC

   

6.00%, 8/1/2026(a)

    150,000       144,000  

Martin Midstream Partners LP

   

11.50%, 2/28/2025(a)

    115,000       104,937  

Matador Resources Co.

   

5.88%, 9/15/2026

    280,000       225,750  

MEG Energy Corp.

   

7.00%, 3/31/2024(a)

    222,000       211,455  

7.13%, 2/1/2027(a)

    475,000       428,559  

Moss Creek Resources Holdings, Inc.

   

10.50%, 5/15/2027(a)

    300,000       155,568  

Murphy Oil Corp.

   

6.88%, 8/15/2024

    128,000       114,720  

5.75%, 8/15/2025

    180,000       148,319  

5.88%, 12/1/2027

    360,000       284,407  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Natural Resource Partners LP

   

9.13%, 6/30/2025(a)

  $ 150,000     $ 134,422  

Neptune Energy Bondco plc

   

6.63%, 5/15/2025(a)

    200,000       174,500  

NGL Energy Partners LP

   

7.50%, 11/1/2023

    445,000       240,952  

6.13%, 3/1/2025

    225,000       113,062  

7.50%, 4/15/2026

    285,000       147,022  

Oasis Petroleum, Inc.

   

6.88%, 3/15/2022(e)

    200,000       39,700  

6.25%, 5/1/2026(a)(e)

    100,000       22,000  

Occidental Petroleum Corp.

   

6.95%, 7/1/2024

    120,000       113,700  

3.45%, 7/15/2024

    35,000       28,437  

8.00%, 7/15/2025

    115,000       112,341  

5.55%, 3/15/2026

    250,000       217,855  

3.40%, 4/15/2026

    575,000       450,832  

3.20%, 8/15/2026

    350,000       271,031  

8.50%, 7/15/2027

    215,000       205,728  

6.63%, 9/1/2030

    100,000       87,780  

6.45%, 9/15/2036

    325,000       263,737  

6.60%, 3/15/2046

    250,000       207,448  

Par Petroleum LLC

   

7.75%, 12/15/2025(a)

    100,000       81,365  

Parkland Corp.

   

5.88%, 7/15/2027(a)

    390,000       403,244  

PBF Holding Co. LLC

   

9.25%, 5/15/2025(a)

    395,000       351,125  

7.25%, 6/15/2025

    270,000       112,556  

6.00%, 2/15/2028(a)

    895,000       346,209  

PBF Logistics LP

   

6.88%, 5/15/2023

    100,000       78,750  

QEP Resources, Inc.

   

5.38%, 10/1/2022

    290,000       255,744  

Range Resources Corp.

   

5.00%, 3/15/2023

    360,000       349,954  

4.88%, 5/15/2025

    400,000       372,000  

Rockies Express Pipeline LLC

   

6.88%, 4/15/2040(a)

    90,000       92,700  

Rockpoint Gas Storage Canada Ltd.

   

7.00%, 3/31/2023(a)

    100,000       93,063  

Ruby Pipeline LLC

   

7.25%, 4/1/2022(a)(d)

    125,758       107,982  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

382    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – (continued)  

Seven Generations Energy Ltd.

   

5.38%, 9/30/2025(a)

  $ 225,000     $ 214,955  

SM Energy Co.

   

6.75%, 9/15/2026

    100,000       38,856  

Southwestern Energy Co.

   

6.45%, 1/23/2025(d)

    665,000       667,494  

7.75%, 10/1/2027

    175,000       181,234  

Summit Midstream Holdings LLC

   

5.50%, 8/15/2022

    100,000       80,750  

5.75%, 4/15/2025

    300,000       195,344  

Sunoco LP

   

4.88%, 1/15/2023

    350,000       353,901  

Tallgrass Energy Partners LP

   

5.50%, 9/15/2024(a)

    250,000       240,870  

5.50%, 1/15/2028(a)

    350,000       322,663  

Topaz Solar Farms LLC

   

5.75%, 9/30/2039(a)

    96,618       109,845  

Vine Oil & Gas LP

   

9.75%, 4/15/2023(a)

    550,000       414,563  

W&T Offshore, Inc.

   

9.75%, 11/1/2023(a)

    215,000       140,288  
              20,247,317  
Paper & Forest Products – 0.3%  

Mercer International, Inc.

   

7.38%, 1/15/2025

    450,000       458,440  

Schweitzer-Mauduit International, Inc.

   

6.88%, 10/1/2026(a)

    100,000       105,856  
              564,296  
Personal Products – 0.1%  

Avon Products, Inc.

   

7.00%, 3/15/2023(d)

    110,000       119,006  

Prestige Brands, Inc.

   

5.13%, 1/15/2028(a)

    145,000       150,891  
            269,897  
Pharmaceuticals – 1.4%  

Bausch Health Americas, Inc.

   

9.25%, 4/1/2026(a)

    380,000       419,444  

8.50%, 1/31/2027(a)

    500,000       547,417  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Pharmaceuticals – (continued)  

Bausch Health Cos., Inc.

   

6.13%, 4/15/2025(a)

  $ 815,000     $ 837,616  

7.00%, 1/15/2028(a)

    170,000       180,063  

Catalent Pharma Solutions, Inc.

   

4.88%, 1/15/2026(a)

    200,000       204,712  

Cheplapharm Arzneimittel GmbH

   

5.50%, 1/15/2028(a)

    125,000       126,745  

Elanco Animal Health, Inc.

   

5.90%, 8/28/2028(d)

    100,000       116,707  

HLF Financing Sarl LLC

   

7.25%, 8/15/2026(a)

    265,000       273,198  
              2,705,902  
Professional Services – 0.2%  

AMN Healthcare, Inc.

   

5.13%, 10/1/2024(a)

    110,000       112,844  

4.63%, 10/1/2027(a)

    110,000       112,681  

ASGN, Inc.

   

4.63%, 5/15/2028(a)

    100,000       102,998  
              328,523  
Real Estate Management & Development – 1.1%  

Forestar Group, Inc.

   

8.00%, 4/15/2024(a)

    320,000       333,966  

5.00%, 3/1/2028(a)

    150,000       149,260  

Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC

   

5.75%, 12/1/2025(a)

    100,000       101,750  

Howard Hughes Corp. (The)

   

5.38%, 8/1/2028(a)

    450,000       455,344  

Hunt Cos., Inc.

   

6.25%, 2/15/2026(a)

    430,000       414,049  

Kennedy-Wilson, Inc.

   

5.88%, 4/1/2024

    425,000       410,656  

Newmark Group, Inc.

   

6.13%, 11/15/2023

    135,000       142,985  

Realogy Group LLC

   

4.88%, 6/1/2023(a)

    110,000       109,794  
              2,117,804  
Road & Rail – 1.1%              

AerCap Global Aviation Trust

   

6.50%, 6/15/2045(a) (b)

    200,000       177,500  

Algeco Global Finance plc

   

8.00%, 2/15/2023(a)

    310,000       307,866  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      383  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Road & Rail – (continued)              

Capitol Investment Merger Sub 2 LLC

   

10.00%, 8/1/2024(a)

  $ 125,000     $ 132,877  

Kenan Advantage Group, Inc. (The)

   

7.88%, 7/31/2023(a)

    160,000       160,583  

Uber Technologies, Inc.

   

7.50%, 9/15/2027(a)

    1,085,000       1,135,453  

6.25%, 1/15/2028(a)

    200,000       203,000  
              2,117,279  
Semiconductors & Semiconductor
Equipment – 0.0%(f)
 

Entegris, Inc.

   

4.63%, 2/10/2026(a)

    100,000       102,875  
Software – 2.4%              

ACI Worldwide, Inc.

   

5.75%, 8/15/2026(a)

    200,000       211,712  

Blackboard, Inc.

   

10.38%, 11/15/2024(a)

    150,000       151,969  

Camelot Finance SA

   

4.50%, 11/1/2026(a)

    225,000       234,422  

Castle US Holding Corp.

   

9.50%, 2/15/2028(a)

    190,000       180,945  

CDK Global, Inc.

   

5.88%, 6/15/2026

    50,000       52,156  

4.88%, 6/1/2027

    50,000       51,910  

Change Healthcare Holdings LLC

   

5.75%, 3/1/2025(a)

    340,000       340,279  

Granite Merger Sub 2, Inc.

   

11.00%, 7/15/2027(a)

    175,000       190,389  

j2 Cloud Services LLC

   

6.00%, 7/15/2025(a)

    245,000       256,907  

Logan Merger Sub, Inc.

   

5.50%, 9/1/2027(a)

    625,000       634,375  

Open Text Corp.

   

5.88%, 6/1/2026(a)

    300,000       312,375  

Open Text Holdings, Inc.

   

4.13%, 2/15/2030(a)

    210,000       218,261  

PTC, Inc.

   

3.63%, 2/15/2025(a)

    180,000       183,600  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Software – (continued)              

SS&C Technologies, Inc.

   

5.50%, 9/30/2027(a)

  $ 510,000     $ 542,681  

Veritas US, Inc.

   

10.50%, 2/1/2024(a)

    1,020,000       949,768  
              4,511,749  
Specialty Retail – 3.2%  

AAG FH LP

   

9.75%, 7/15/2024(a)

    100,000       94,250  

Abercrombie & Fitch Management Co.

   

8.75%, 7/15/2025(a)

    150,000       160,594  

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc.

   

4.50%, 3/1/2028(a)

    250,000       254,844  

Carvana Co.

   

5.88%, 10/1/2028(a)

    125,000       123,620  

eG Global Finance plc

   

6.75%, 2/7/2025(a)

    500,000       490,750  

8.50%, 10/30/2025(a)

    200,000       204,900  

Gap, Inc. (The)

   

8.88%, 5/15/2027(a)

    350,000       400,645  

J Crew Brand LLC

   

13.00%, 9/15/2021(a)(e)

    30,000       16,200  

Ken Garff Automotive LLC

   

4.88%, 9/15/2028(a)

    125,000       124,087  

L Brands, Inc.

   

5.63%, 10/15/2023

    165,000       172,751  

5.25%, 2/1/2028

    175,000       172,703  

7.50%, 6/15/2029

    367,000       393,446  

6.63%, 10/1/2030(a)

    225,000       236,672  

Michaels Stores, Inc.

   

8.00%, 7/15/2027(a)

    185,000       190,863  

4.75%, 10/1/2027(a)

    100,000       97,900  

Murphy Oil USA, Inc.

   

5.63%, 5/1/2027

    50,000       52,678  

Party City Holdings, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD 6 Month + 5.00%, 5.75% Floor), 5.75%, 7/15/2025(a)(h)

    108,825       76,722  

PetSmart, Inc.

   

5.88%, 6/1/2025(a)

    34,000       34,821  

Sally Holdings LLC

   

5.63%, 12/1/2025

    300,000       297,975  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

384    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Specialty Retail – (continued)  

Sonic Automotive, Inc.

   

6.13%, 3/15/2027

  $ 150,000     $ 155,062  

Staples, Inc.

   

7.50%, 4/15/2026(a)

    1,290,000       1,208,304  

10.75%, 4/15/2027(a)

    625,000       497,656  

TPro Acquisition Corp.

   

11.00%, 10/15/2024(a)

    190,000       191,425  

White Cap Buyer LLC

   

6.88%, 10/15/2028(a)

    425,000       436,422  
              6,085,290  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 0.7%  

Dell International LLC

   

7.13%, 6/15/2024(a)

    25,000       25,932  

Diebold Nixdorf, Inc.

   

9.38%, 7/15/2025(a)

    165,000       175,416  

NCR Corp.

   

6.13%, 9/1/2029(a)

    355,000       372,462  

Western Digital Corp.

   

4.75%, 2/15/2026

    130,000       140,179  

Xerox Corp.

   

6.75%, 12/15/2039

    25,000       26,395  

Xerox Holdings Corp.

   

5.50%, 8/15/2028(a)

    655,000       647,844  
              1,388,228  
Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods – 0.5%  

Eagle Intermediate Global Holding BV

   

7.50%, 5/1/2025(a)

    550,000       387,750  

G-III Apparel Group Ltd.

   

7.88%, 8/15/2025(a)

    265,000       269,306  

William Carter Co. (The)

   

5.63%, 3/15/2027(a)

    100,000       105,125  

Wolverine World Wide, Inc.

   

5.00%, 9/1/2026(a)

    200,000       202,125  
              964,306  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – 0.8%  

Freedom Mortgage Corp.

   

7.63%, 5/1/2026(a)

    395,000       394,261  

Ladder Capital Finance Holdings LLLP

   

REIT, 5.25%, 3/15/2022(a)

    115,000       111,982  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Thrifts & Mortgage Finance – (continued)  

REIT, 4.25%, 2/1/2027(a)

  $ 100,000     $ 86,625  

NMI Holdings, Inc.

   

7.38%, 6/1/2025(a)

    100,000       109,144  

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc.

   

5.38%, 10/15/2025(a)

    125,000       127,619  

Provident Funding Associates LP

   

6.38%, 6/15/2025(a)

    180,000       177,484  

Quicken Loans LLC

   

3.63%, 3/1/2029(a)

    200,000       197,375  

Radian Group, Inc.

   

6.63%, 3/15/2025

    270,000       292,781  
              1,497,271  
Tobacco – 0.4%  

Vector Group Ltd.

   

6.13%, 2/1/2025(a)

    415,000       414,741  

10.50%, 11/1/2026(a)

    270,000       278,606  
              693,347  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.6%  

Ahern Rentals, Inc.

   

7.38%, 5/15/2023(a)

    360,000       232,425  

Brightstar Escrow Corp.

   

9.75%, 10/15/2025(a)

    125,000       124,964  

Fortress Transportation & Infrastructure Investors LLC

   

6.75%, 3/15/2022(a)

    270,000       268,566  

6.50%, 10/1/2025(a)

    400,000       395,542  

9.75%, 8/1/2027(a)

    50,000       53,312  

HD Supply, Inc.

   

5.38%, 10/15/2026(a)

    100,000       104,791  
              1,179,600  
Transportation Infrastructure – 0.2%  

North Queensland Export Terminal Pty. Ltd.

   

4.45%, 12/15/2022(a)

    315,000       296,257  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – 1.4%  

C&W Senior Financing DAC

   

7.50%, 10/15/2026(a)

    100,000       105,590  

6.88%, 9/15/2027(a)

    470,000       496,085  

Connect Finco SARL

   

6.75%, 10/1/2026(a)

    825,000       832,219  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      385  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Wireless Telecommunication Services – (continued)  

Hughes Satellite Systems Corp.

   

6.63%, 8/1/2026

  $ 105,000     $ 114,102  

Sprint Corp.

   

7.13%, 6/15/2024

    250,000       287,865  

7.63%, 2/15/2025

    40,000       47,275  

7.63%, 3/1/2026

    40,000       48,739  

T-Mobile USA, Inc.

   

6.50%, 1/15/2026

    500,000       521,625  

4.50%, 2/1/2026

    5,000       5,134  

Vodafone Group plc

   

7.00%, 4/4/2079(b)

    200,000       237,520  
              2,696,154  
Total Corporate Bonds (Cost $186,120,049)

 

    184,334,452  
    Shares        
COMMON STOCKS – 0.0%(f)  
Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels – 0.0%(f)  

Whiting Petroleum Corp.*
(Cost $31)

    1       11  
Total Investments – 97.2% (Cost $186,120,080)

 

    184,334,463  

Other assets less liabilities – 2.8%

 

    5,288,472  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 189,622,935  

 

*

Non-income producing security.

 

(a) 

Securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The value of these securities is determined by valuations supplied by a pricing service or brokers, or, if not available, in accordance with procedures established by the Board of Trustees.

 

(b) 

Security issued at a fixed coupon rate, which converts to a variable rate at a future date. Rate shown is the rate in effect as of period end.

 

(c) 

Payment in-kind security.

 

(d) 

Step bond. Interest rate is a fixed rate for an initial period that either resets at a specific date or may reset in the future at a contingent upon predetermined trigger. The interest rate shown was the current rate as of October 31, 2020.

 

(e) 

Issuer has defaulted on terms of debt obligation. Income is not being accrued.

(f) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(g) 

Perpetual security. The rate reflected was the rate in effect on October 31, 2020. The maturity date reflects the next call date.

 

(h) 

Variable or floating rate security, linked to the referenced benchmark. The interest rate shown is the rate in effect as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

ICE – Intercontinental Exchange

LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate

SCA – Limited partnership with share capital

USD – US Dollar

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 4,678,611  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (6,813,726

Net unrealized depreciation

  $ (2,135,115

Federal income tax cost

  $ 186,469,578  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

386    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – 84.3%  
Aerospace & Defense – 0.4%  

Boeing Co. (The)

   

2.30%, 8/1/2021

  $ 580,000     $ 586,089  

8.75%, 8/15/2021

    827,000       876,513  

Northrop Grumman Corp.

   

3.50%, 3/15/2021

    204,000       206,391  
              1,668,993  
Agricultural & Farm Machinery – 0.3%  

CNH Industrial Capital LLC

   

3.88%, 10/15/2021

    500,000       513,457  

1.95%, 7/2/2023

    730,000       742,899  
              1,256,356  
Agricultural Products – 0.5%  

Cargill, Inc.

   

1.38%, 7/23/2023(a)

    2,100,000       2,148,961  
Air Freight & Logistics – 0.4%  

FedEx Corp.

   

2.63%, 8/1/2022

    1,000,000       1,036,750  

United Parcel Service, Inc.

   

2.05%, 4/1/2021

    895,000       901,530  
              1,938,280  
Apparel, Accessories & Luxury Goods – 0.3%  

VF Corp.

   

2.05%, 4/23/2022

    1,500,000       1,535,125  
Application Software – 0.2%  

Intuit, Inc.

   

0.65%, 7/15/2023

    1,040,000       1,047,912  
Asset Management & Custody Banks – 0.2%  

Ameriprise Financial, Inc.

   

3.00%, 3/22/2022

    900,000       933,118  
Automobile Manufacturers – 3.8%  

BMW US Capital LLC

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.41%), 0.63%, 4/12/2021(a) (b)

    1,500,000       1,502,050  

3.80%, 4/6/2023(a)

    1,500,000       1,612,509  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Automobile Manufacturers – (continued)  

Daimler Finance North America LLC

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.45%), 0.71%, 2/22/2021(a) (b)

  $ 3,565,000     $ 3,567,760  

3.00%, 2/22/2021(a)

    650,000       654,906  

2.88%, 3/10/2021(a)

    2,100,000       2,118,151  

2.00%, 7/6/2021(a)

    1,025,000       1,035,171  

Hyundai Capital America

   

2.85%, 11/1/2022(a)

    1,270,000       1,314,691  

1.25%, 9/18/2023(a)

    910,000       912,774  

Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.63%), 0.86%, 9/21/2021(a) (b)

    762,000       757,811  

Toyota Motor Corp.

   

2.16%, 7/2/2022

    1,000,000       1,030,587  

Volkswagen Group of America Finance LLC

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.77%),
1.02%, 11/13/2020(a) (b)

    3,500,000       3,500,700  
              18,007,110  
Automotive Retail – 0.5%  

AutoZone, Inc.

   

3.70%, 4/15/2022

    2,000,000       2,077,719  
Biotechnology – 0.5%  

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

   

0.75%, 9/29/2023

    2,300,000       2,305,941  
Broadcasting – 0.2%  

Fox Corp.

   

3.67%, 1/25/2022

    800,000       831,972  
Cable & Satellite – 0.2%  

Comcast Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.63%),
0.87%, 4/15/2024(b)

    1,100,000       1,112,549  
Communications Equipment – 0.7%  

Cisco Systems, Inc.

   

2.20%, 2/28/2021

    3,336,000       3,357,435  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      387  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Consumer Finance – 5.8%              

American Express Co.

   

3.00%, 2/22/2021

  $ 520,000     $ 523,169  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.53%), 0.81%, 5/17/2021(b)

    2,812,000       2,818,565  

American Honda Finance Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.35%), 0.60%, 6/11/2021(b)

    1,200,000       1,202,409  

1.70%, 9/9/2021

    500,000       506,064  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.37%), 0.61%, 5/10/2023(b)

    2,500,000       2,502,344  

0.88%, 7/7/2023

    2,670,000       2,693,111  

Capital One Financial Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.95%), 1.19%, 3/9/2022(b)

    235,000       237,086  

Caterpillar Financial Services Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.23%), 0.48%, 3/15/2021(b)

    160,000       160,149  

Series I, (ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.39%), 0.67%, 5/17/2021(b)

    1,275,000       1,277,694  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.28%), 0.53%, 9/7/2021(b)

    2,091,000       2,095,514  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.22%), 0.45%, 1/6/2022(b)

    2,710,000       2,713,574  

General Motors Financial Co., Inc.

   

3.45%, 1/14/2022

    1,020,000       1,046,961  

John Deere Capital Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.26%), 0.51%, 9/10/2021(b)

    1,554,000       1,557,521  

0.40%, 10/10/2023

    1,200,000       1,201,423  

PACCAR Financial Corp.

   

2.00%, 9/26/2022

    200,000       206,185  

2.65%, 4/6/2023

    1,000,000       1,055,766  

0.80%, 6/8/2023

    380,000       383,242  

0.35%, 8/11/2023

    900,000       899,508  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Consumer Finance – (continued)  

Toyota Motor Credit Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.29%), 0.51%, 10/7/2021(b)

  $ 1,200,000     $ 1,202,705  

1.15%, 5/26/2022

    3,000,000       3,038,279  
              27,321,269  
Data Processing & Outsourced Services – 1.4%  

PayPal Holdings, Inc.

   

2.20%, 9/26/2022

    900,000       930,570  

1.35%, 6/1/2023

    5,640,000       5,764,089  
              6,694,659  
Diversified Banks – 24.1%              

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.

   

2.30%, 6/1/2021

    4,010,000       4,059,933  

2.05%, 11/21/2022

    1,900,000       1,965,160  

Bank of America Corp.

   

2.63%, 4/19/2021

    3,000,000       3,032,491  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.38%), 0.59%, 1/23/2022(b)

    1,742,000       1,743,045  

(SOFR + 0.73%),
0.81%, 10/24/2024(b)

    4,000,000       4,006,551  

Bank of Montreal

   

Series D,
3.10%, 4/13/2021

    1,650,000       1,671,415  

2.90%, 3/26/2022

    2,500,000       2,590,081  

Bank of Nova Scotia (The)

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.29%), 0.52%, 1/8/2021(b)

    670,000       670,371  

1.63%, 5/1/2023

    2,000,000       2,054,678  

Banque Federative du Credit Mutuel SA

   

2.13%, 11/21/2022(a)

    1,400,000       1,446,391  

Barclays Bank plc

   

1.70%, 5/12/2022

    1,090,000       1,110,698  

BNP Paribas SA

   

5.00%, 1/15/2021

    1,195,000       1,206,461  

2.95%, 5/23/2022(a)

    1,300,000       1,348,715  

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

   

(SOFR + 0.80%),
0.89%, 3/17/2023(b)

    2,400,000       2,416,582  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

388    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Diversified Banks – (continued)  

Citibank NA

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.57%), 0.78%, 7/23/2021(b)

  $ 900,000     $ 902,672  

3.16%, 2/19/2022(c)

    2,000,000       2,016,702  

Citigroup, Inc.

   

2.70%, 3/30/2021

    500,000       504,941  

Cooperatieve Rabobank UA

   

2.50%, 1/19/2021

    1,130,000       1,135,624  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.43%), 0.64%, 4/26/2021(b)

    1,380,000       1,382,617  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.48%), 0.70%, 1/10/2023(b)

    1,000,000       1,005,534  

DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

   

2.85%, 4/16/2022(a)

    1,200,000       1,239,764  

HSBC Holdings plc

   

3.26%, 3/13/2023(c)

    1,100,000       1,137,328  

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

   

4.63%, 5/10/2021

    1,600,000       1,636,431  

3.21%, 4/1/2023(c)

    1,000,000       1,039,219  

2.78%, 4/25/2023(c)

    100,000       103,488  

1.51%, 6/1/2024(c)

    3,650,000       3,730,563  

Lloyds Banking Group plc

   

2.86%, 3/17/2023(c)

    2,600,000       2,674,864  

1.33%, 6/15/2023(c)

    400,000       403,328  

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.65%), 0.86%, 7/26/2021(b)

    695,000       697,957  

3.22%, 3/7/2022

    1,200,000       1,244,743  

2.62%, 7/18/2022

    3,970,000       4,118,697  

Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.61%), 0.86%, 9/8/2024(b)

    3,100,000       3,100,529  

National Australia Bank Ltd.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.71%), 0.96%, 11/4/2021(a) (b)

    2,000,000       2,012,462  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.41%),
0.66%, 12/13/2022(a) (b)

    1,000,000       1,004,259  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Diversified Banks – (continued)  

Nordea Bank Abp

   

1.00%, 6/9/2023(a)

  $ 640,000     $ 649,103  

Royal Bank of Canada

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.73%), 0.98%, 2/1/2022(b)

    1,813,000       1,829,029  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.36%), 0.58%, 1/17/2023(b)

    1,000,000       1,003,388  

(SOFR + 0.45%),
0.54%, 10/26/2023(b)

    3,500,000       3,502,083  

1.15%, 6/10/2025

    1,300,000       1,321,883  

Santander UK Group Holdings plc

   

2.88%, 8/5/2021

    5,500,000       5,601,420  

Santander UK plc

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.62%), 0.87%, 6/1/2021(b)

    672,000       673,966  

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB

   

2.63%, 3/15/2021

    850,000       857,601  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.43%), 0.71%, 5/17/2021(a) (b)

    1,110,000       1,112,545  

2.20%, 12/12/2022(a)

    600,000       622,293  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.32%), 0.57%, 9/1/2023(a) (b)

    3,000,000       2,996,426  

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc.

   

2.06%, 7/14/2021

    1,941,000       1,965,373  

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank Ltd.

   

0.80%, 9/12/2023(a)

    1,300,000       1,305,771  

Svenska Handelsbanken AB

   

2.45%, 3/30/2021

    300,000       302,705  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.47%), 0.73%, 5/24/2021(b)

    2,800,000       2,807,503  

3.35%, 5/24/2021

    2,480,000       2,523,104  

0.63%, 6/30/2023(a)

    1,500,000       1,505,592  

Swedbank AB

   

1.30%, 6/2/2023(a)

    400,000       407,439  

0.60%, 9/25/2023(a)

    2,470,000       2,468,024  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      389  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Diversified Banks – (continued)  

Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.27%), 0.52%, 3/17/2021(b)

  $ 1,125,000     $ 1,126,198  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.43%), 0.68%, 6/11/2021(b)

    4,150,000       4,160,883  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.30%), 0.51%, 7/30/2021(b)

    2,300,000       2,304,290  

0.45%, 9/11/2023

    2,000,000       1,997,780  

US Bank NA

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.31%), 0.56%, 2/4/2021(b)

    2,500,000       2,501,334  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.18%), 0.39%, 1/21/2022(b)

    2,000,000       2,003,087  

Wells Fargo & Co.

   

3.07%, 1/24/2023

    600,000       618,248  

Westpac Banking Corp.

   

2.65%, 1/25/2021

    105,000       105,580  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.85%), 1.07%, 1/11/2022(b)

    1,500,000       1,512,723  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.57%), 0.79%, 1/11/2023(b)

    1,035,000       1,043,653  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.39%), 0.61%, 1/13/2023(b)

    1,100,000       1,105,859  

2.00%, 1/13/2023

    510,000       528,026  
              112,877,203  
Diversified Capital Markets – 1.8%  

Credit Suisse AG

   

2.10%, 11/12/2021

    700,000       712,424  

(SOFR + 0.45%),
0.54%, 2/4/2022(b)

    4,000,000       4,004,319  

2.80%, 4/8/2022

    2,300,000       2,380,845  

Macquarie Bank Ltd.

   

2.10%, 10/17/2022(a)

    700,000       721,932  

UBS Group AG

   

3.49%, 5/23/2023(a)

    620,000       646,369  
              8,465,889  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Diversified Chemicals – 0.7%  

LYB International Finance III LLC

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 1.00%), 1.23%, 10/1/2023(b)

  $ 3,240,000     $ 3,242,352  
Electric Utilities – 2.5%              

Duke Energy Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.50%), 0.76%, 5/14/2021(a) (b)

    2,000,000       2,004,467  

1.80%, 9/1/2021

    315,000       318,353  

3.55%, 9/15/2021

    150,000       153,017  

2.40%, 8/15/2022

    250,000       258,349  

Duke Energy Florida LLC

   

Series A, (ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.25%), 0.48%, 11/26/2021(b)

    600,000       600,831  

Duke Energy Progress LLC

   

Series A, (ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.18%), 0.43%, 2/18/2022(b)

    2,600,000       2,600,586  

Florida Power & Light Co.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.38%), 0.60%, 7/28/2023(b)

    940,000       940,478  

NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, Inc.

   

2.40%, 9/1/2021

    2,487,000       2,530,065  

2.90%, 4/1/2022

    1,352,000       1,398,618  

PPL Electric Utilities Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.25%), 0.47%, 9/28/2023(b)

    850,000       850,540  
              11,655,304  
Financial Exchanges & Data – 0.6%  

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.

   

0.70%, 6/15/2023

    1,600,000       1,611,104  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.65%), 0.90%, 6/15/2023(b)

    1,300,000       1,304,183  
              2,915,287  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

390    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Food Retail – 0.9%  

Kroger Co. (The)

   

3.30%, 1/15/2021

  $ 3,003,000     $ 3,014,059  

2.60%, 2/1/2021

    1,235,000       1,238,604  
              4,252,663  
Gas Utilities – 0.6%  

CenterPoint Energy Resources Corp.

   

3.55%, 4/1/2023

    750,000       803,207  

Dominion Energy Gas Holdings LLC

   

2.80%, 11/15/2020

    550,000       550,400  

Series A, (ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.60%), 0.85%, 6/15/2021(b)

    1,300,000       1,304,112  
              2,657,719  
Health Care Distributors – 0.2%  

McKesson Corp.

   

3.65%, 11/30/2020

    762,000       763,951  
Health Care Equipment – 0.7%  

DH Europe Finance II Sarl

   

2.05%, 11/15/2022

    3,300,000       3,405,774  
Health Care Services – 1.0%  

CVS Health Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.72%), 0.96%, 3/9/2021(b)

    1,000,000       1,002,030  

3.35%, 3/9/2021

    2,514,000       2,540,210  

2.13%, 6/1/2021

    620,000       625,402  

2.75%, 12/1/2022

    610,000       635,330  

3.70%, 3/9/2023

    44,000       47,115  
              4,850,087  
Home Improvement Retail – 0.1%  

Home Depot, Inc. (The)

   

4.40%, 4/1/2021

    395,000       397,696  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.31%), 0.56%, 3/1/2022(b)

    210,000       210,682  
              608,378  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Homebuilding – 0.2%  

DR Horton, Inc.

   

2.55%, 12/1/2020

  $ 1,047,000     $ 1,048,580  
Household Appliances – 0.5%  

Whirlpool Corp.

   

4.85%, 6/15/2021

    2,448,000       2,512,534  
Industrial Conglomerates – 1.1%  

Honeywell International, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.23%), 0.50%, 8/19/2022(b)

    1,700,000       1,702,393  

Roper Technologies, Inc.

   

3.00%, 12/15/2020

    3,169,000       3,168,710  

0.45%, 8/15/2022

    290,000       290,552  
              5,161,655  
Industrial Machinery – 0.8%  

Otis Worldwide Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.45%), 0.68%, 4/5/2023(b)

    3,705,000       3,706,164  
Insurance Brokers – 0.4%  

Aon Corp.

   

2.20%, 11/15/2022

    1,752,000       1,814,859  
Integrated Oil & Gas – 3.4%  

BP Capital Markets America, Inc.

   

2.94%, 4/6/2023

    300,000       317,154  

BP Capital Markets plc

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.25%), 0.51%, 11/24/2020(b)

    1,766,000       1,766,381  

Chevron Corp.

   

1.14%, 5/11/2023

    1,280,000       1,303,194  

Chevron USA, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.20%), 0.46%, 8/11/2023(b)

    6,770,000       6,780,791  

Exxon Mobil Corp.

   

1.57%, 4/15/2023

    1,751,000       1,800,264  

Total Capital International SA

   

2.22%, 7/12/2021

    3,700,000       3,745,231  
              15,713,015  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      391  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Integrated Telecommunication Services – 1.8%  

AT&T, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.95%), 1.19%, 7/15/2021(b)

  $ 2,891,000     $ 2,909,084  

Orange SA

   

4.13%, 9/14/2021

    1,750,000       1,806,514  

Verizon Communications, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 1.00%), 1.24%, 3/16/2022(b)

    3,870,000       3,920,915  
              8,636,513  
Internet & Direct Marketing Retail – 0.2%  

Amazon.com, Inc.

   

0.40%, 6/3/2023

    1,120,000       1,122,673  
Investment Banking & Brokerage – 3.1%  

Charles Schwab Corp. (The)

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.32%), 0.57%, 5/21/2021(b)

    3,965,000       3,970,036  

3.25%, 5/21/2021

    590,000       598,329  

Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)

   

2.63%, 4/25/2021

    930,000       938,519  

2.35%, 11/15/2021

    2,510,000       2,511,674  

Morgan Stanley

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 1.40%), 1.61%, 4/21/2021(b)

    1,500,000       1,509,319  

5.50%, 7/28/2021

    3,610,000       3,746,377  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.93%), 1.15%, 7/22/2022(b)

    244,000       245,189  

(SOFR + 0.70%),
0.79%, 1/20/2023(b)

    1,200,000       1,204,379  
              14,723,822  
IT Consulting & Other Services – 0.8%  

IBM Credit LLC

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.47%), 0.73%, 11/30/2020(b)

    110,000       110,038  

2.65%, 2/5/2021

    600,000       603,739  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
IT Consulting & Other Services – (continued)  

International Business Machines Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.40%), 0.65%, 5/13/2021(b)

  $ 3,000,000     $ 3,005,849  
              3,719,626  
Life & Health Insurance – 1.8%  

Athene Global Funding

   

1.20%, 10/13/2023(a)

    2,400,000       2,404,569  

Jackson National Life Global Funding

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.48%), 0.73%, 6/11/2021(a) (b)

    500,000       501,057  

MetLife, Inc.

   

3.05%, 12/15/2022(d)

    500,000       528,764  

Protective Life Global Funding

   

0.63%, 10/13/2023(a)

    1,900,000       1,904,135  

Prudential Financial, Inc.

   

4.50%, 11/15/2020

    3,000,000       3,004,270  
              8,342,795  
Managed Health Care – 1.1%  

Cigna Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.65%), 0.90%, 9/17/2021(b)

    1,000,000       1,000,200  

3.40%, 9/17/2021

    400,000       410,706  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.89%), 1.13%, 7/15/2023(b)

    2,000,000       2,021,747  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

   

2.88%, 12/15/2021

    1,020,000       1,047,485  

2.38%, 10/15/2022

    800,000       831,577  
              5,311,715  
Movies & Entertainment – 0.1%  

Walt Disney Co. (The)

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.25%), 0.50%, 9/1/2021(b)

    300,000       300,572  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

392    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Multi-line Insurance – 0.5%              

New York Life Global Funding

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.28%), 0.49%, 1/21/2022(a) (b)

  $ 1,600,000     $ 1,604,287  

1.10%, 5/5/2023(a)

    500,000       508,117  
              2,112,404  
Multi-Sector Holdings – 0.3%  

BNG Bank NV

   

0.75%, 4/17/2023(a)

    1,200,000       1,213,359  
Multi-Utilities – 1.1%              

Dominion Energy, Inc.

   

Series D, (ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.53%), 0.77%, 9/15/2023(b)

    2,000,000       2,005,875  

DTE Energy Co.

   

Series B,
3.30%, 6/15/2022

    175,000       181,804  

Series H,
0.55%, 11/1/2022

    3,000,000       3,012,708  
              5,200,387  
Oil & Gas Equipment & Services – 0.0%(e)  

Schlumberger Finance Canada Ltd.

   

2.20%, 11/20/2020(a)

    25,000       25,022  
Oil & Gas Refining & Marketing – 1.6%  

Marathon Petroleum Corp.

   

3.40%, 12/15/2020

    405,000       405,361  

Phillips 66

   

4.30%, 4/1/2022

    630,000       661,853  

3.70%, 4/6/2023

    600,000       642,414  

Valero Energy Corp.

   

1.20%, 3/15/2024

    5,840,000       5,725,525  
              7,435,153  
Oil & Gas Storage & Transportation – 0.6%  

Energy Transfer Operating LP

   

4.65%, 6/1/2021

    440,000       445,822  

Enterprise Products Operating LLC

   

2.80%, 2/15/2021

    2,500,000       2,518,653  
              2,964,475  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Other Diversified Financial Services – 0.7%  

GE Capital International Funding Co. Unlimited Co.

   

2.34%, 11/15/2020

  $ 2,570,000     $ 2,571,718  

Kreditanstalt fuer Wiederaufbau

   

2.38%, 3/24/2021

    535,211       539,824  
              3,111,542  
Packaged Foods & Meats – 2.5%  

Hershey Co. (The)

   

3.10%, 5/15/2021

    670,000       679,943  

0.90%, 6/1/2025

    470,000       475,176  

J M Smucker Co. (The)

   

3.00%, 3/15/2022

    2,169,000       2,239,201  

Kellogg Co.

   

4.00%, 12/15/2020

    1,210,000       1,215,268  

Mondelez International Holdings Netherlands BV

   

2.13%, 9/19/2022(a)

    1,360,000       1,401,715  

Mondelez International, Inc.

   

0.63%, 7/1/2022

    2,510,000       2,520,064  

Tyson Foods, Inc.

   

2.25%, 8/23/2021

    2,710,000       2,745,947  

Unilever Capital Corp.

   

0.38%, 9/14/2023

    500,000       502,042  
              11,779,356  
Paper Products – 0.5%  

Georgia-Pacific LLC

   

5.40%, 11/1/2020(a)

    2,500,000       2,500,000  
Pharmaceuticals – 1.8%              

GlaxoSmithKline Capital plc

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.35%), 0.61%, 5/14/2021(b)

    1,955,000       1,958,792  

0.53%, 10/1/2023

    2,190,000       2,189,066  

Pfizer, Inc.

   

1.95%, 6/3/2021

    550,000       555,677  

Shire Acquisitions Investments Ireland DAC

   

2.40%, 9/23/2021

    107,000       108,742  

Upjohn, Inc.

   

1.13%, 6/22/2022(a)

    3,379,000       3,410,753  
              8,223,030  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      393  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Property & Casualty Insurance – 0.4%  

Allstate Corp. (The)

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.43%), 0.65%, 3/29/2021(b)

  $ 1,290,000     $ 1,292,144  

Berkshire Hathaway Finance Corp.

   

4.25%, 1/15/2021

    725,000       730,433  
              2,022,577  
Railroads – 1.1%  

Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC

   

4.10%, 6/1/2021

    760,000       769,469  

Union Pacific Corp.

   

3.20%, 6/8/2021

    4,412,000       4,486,150  
              5,255,619  
Regional Banks – 2.6%  

ABN AMRO Bank NV

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.57%), 0.82%, 8/27/2021(a) (b)

    1,100,000       1,105,168  

Capital One Bank USA NA

   

2.01%, 1/27/2023(c)

    3,150,000       3,203,484  

Citizens Bank NA

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.72%), 0.98%, 2/14/2022(b)

    2,000,000       2,009,643  

Fifth Third Bank NA

   

2.25%, 6/14/2021

    460,000       464,906  

Truist Bank

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.59%), 0.87%, 5/17/2022(b)

    3,000,000       3,017,983  

Truist Financial Corp.

   

3.05%, 6/20/2022

    2,268,000       2,362,179  
              12,163,363  
Research & Consulting Services – 0.1%  

Equifax, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.87%), 1.15%, 8/15/2021(b)

    200,000       200,756  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
Residential REITs – 0.2%              

American Campus Communities Operating Partnership LP

   

REIT, 3.75%, 4/15/2023

  $ 985,000     $ 1,037,760  
Restaurants – 0.7%  

McDonald’s Corp.

 

2.75%, 12/9/2020

    954,000       955,724  

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.43%), 0.65%, 10/28/2021(b)

    2,225,000       2,232,923  

Starbucks Corp.

   

1.30%, 5/7/2022

    290,000       294,277  
              3,482,924  
Soft Drinks – 0.2%  

PepsiCo, Inc.

   

0.40%, 10/7/2023

    1,050,000       1,053,019  
Specialized REITs – 0.4%  

Crown Castle International Corp.

   

REIT, 3.15%, 7/15/2023

    1,800,000       1,914,179  
Specialty Chemicals – 1.5%  

Albemarle Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 1.05%), 1.33%, 11/15/2022(b)

    1,030,000       1,028,706  

DuPont de Nemours, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.71%), 0.99%, 11/15/2020(b)

    2,072,000       2,072,497  

3.77%, 11/15/2020

    2,713,000       2,716,084  

2.17%, 5/1/2023

    1,076,000       1,086,616  
              6,903,903  
Systems Software – 0.7%  

Microsoft Corp.

   

1.55%, 8/8/2021

    3,000,000       3,026,568  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – 1.2%  

Apple, Inc.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.50%), 0.74%, 2/9/2022(b)

    332,000       334,024  

1.70%, 9/11/2022

    570,000       585,128  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

394    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
CORPORATE BONDS – (continued)  
Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals – (continued)  

0.75%, 5/11/2023

  $ 2,030,000     $ 2,051,129  

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.68%), 0.93%, 3/12/2021(b)

    1,370,000       1,372,311  

3.50%, 10/5/2021

    800,000       821,196  

2.25%, 4/1/2023

    400,000       414,063  
              5,577,851  
Trading Companies & Distributors – 0.3%  

Air Lease Corp.

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.67%), 0.92%, 6/3/2021(b)

    500,000       498,780  

3.75%, 2/1/2022

    1,000,000       1,023,612  
              1,522,392  
Trucking – 1.4%  

Penske Truck Leasing Co. LP

   

3.65%, 7/29/2021(a)

    2,635,000       2,689,102  

Ryder System, Inc.

   

3.50%, 6/1/2021

    900,000       916,159  

3.45%, 11/15/2021

    1,835,000       1,887,743  

2.88%, 6/1/2022

    1,200,000       1,241,328  
              6,734,332  
Total Corporate Bonds
(Cost $393,038,160)

 

    395,506,500  
   
ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES – 6.6%  

BA Credit Card Trust

   

Series 2019-A1, Class A1, 1.74%, 1/15/2025

    880,000       903,673  

Barclays Dryrock Issuance Trust

   

Series 2019-1, Class A, 1.96%, 5/15/2025

    700,000       718,903  

BMW Vehicle Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-A, Class A2, 0.39%, 2/27/2023

    1,400,000       1,401,168  

Capital One Multi-Asset Execution Trust

   

Series 2019-A2, Class A2, 1.72%, 8/15/2024

    900,000       923,407  

CarMax Auto Owner Trust

   

Series 2019-1, Class A2A, 3.02%, 7/15/2022

    27,486       27,518  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

Series 2020-3, Class A2A, 0.49%, 6/15/2023

  $ 350,000     $ 350,524  

Chase Issuance Trust

   

Series 2020-A1, Class A1, 1.53%, 1/15/2025

    2,300,000       2,361,796  

Dell Equipment Finance Trust

   

Series 2019-1, Class A2, 2.78%, 8/23/2021(a)

    174,931       175,569  

Discover Card Execution Note Trust

   

Series 2019-A3, Class A, 1.89%, 10/15/2024

    2,800,000       2,890,126  

Drive Auto Receivables Trust

   

Series 2019-4, Class A2A, 2.32%, 6/15/2022

    54,730       54,781  

Series 2020-1, Class A2, 1.99%, 12/15/2022

    224,105       224,915  

Enterprise Fleet Financing LLC

   

Series 2019-2, Class A2, 2.29%, 2/20/2025(a)

    950,523       967,274  

Ford Credit Auto Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-A, Class A2, 1.03%, 10/15/2022

    172,212       172,856  

Series 2020-B, Class A2, 0.50%, 2/15/2023

    2,300,000       2,302,636  

Ford Credit Floorplan Master Owner Trust A

   

Series 2019-1, Class A, 2.84%, 3/15/2024

    500,000       516,926  

GM Financial Automobile Leasing Trust

   

Series 2019-3, Class A2A, 2.09%, 10/20/2021

    237,352       237,964  

Series 2020-1, Class A3, 1.67%, 12/20/2022

    550,000       558,050  

GM Financial Consumer Automobile Receivables Trust

   

Series 2020-2, Class A2A, 1.50%, 3/16/2023

    171,976       173,002  

Honda Auto Receivables Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-2, Class A2, 0.74%, 11/15/2022

    700,000       701,977  

Hyundai Auto Receivables Trust

   

Series 2020-B, Class A2, 0.38%, 3/15/2023

    1,000,000       1,000,696  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      395  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

John Deere Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-B, Class A2, 0.41%, 3/15/2023

  $ 500,000     $ 500,540  

Mercedes-Benz Auto Lease Trust

   

Series 2020-B, Class A2, 0.31%, 2/15/2023

    700,000       700,156  

Mercedes-Benz Auto Receivables Trust

   

Series 2020-1, Class A2, 0.46%, 3/15/2023

    900,000       901,495  

Nissan Auto Lease Trust

   

Series 2019-B, Class A2A, 2.27%, 1/15/2021

    754,557       757,357  

Nissan Auto Receivables Owner Trust

   

Series 2019-A, Class A2A, 2.82%, 1/18/2022

    163,425       163,621  

Santander Drive Auto Receivables Trust

   

Series 2020-2, Class A2A, 0.62%, 5/15/2023

    1,300,000       1,301,593  

Synchrony Card Funding LLC

   

Series 2019-A1, Class A, 2.95%, 3/15/2025

    2,000,000       2,066,170  

Toyota Auto Receivables Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-C, Class A2, 0.36%, 2/15/2023

    2,200,000       2,202,253  

Verizon Owner Trust

   

Series 2020-A, Class A1A, 1.85%, 7/22/2024

    1,500,000       1,538,076  

Volkswagen Auto Loan Enhanced Trust

   

Series 2020-1, Class A2A, 0.93%, 12/20/2022

    942,079       944,948  

World Financial Network Credit Card Master Trust

   

Series 2019-B, Class A, 2.49%, 4/15/2026

    1,000,000       1,031,557  

Series 2019-C, Class A, 2.21%, 7/15/2026

    1,000,000       1,032,859  
Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES – (continued)  

World Omni Automobile Lease Securitization Trust

   

Series 2020-B, Class A2, 0.32%, 9/15/2023

  $ 1,400,000     $ 1,400,434  
Total Asset-Backed Securities
(Cost $30,750,825)

 

    31,204,820  
   
U.S. TREASURY OBLIGATIONS – 3.8%  

U.S. Treasury Notes

   

(US Treasury 3 Month Bill Money Market Yield
+ 0.11%), 0.21%, 4/30/2022(b)

    15,000,000       15,017,981  

(US Treasury 3 Month Bill Money Market Yield
+ 0.06%), 0.16%, 7/31/2022(b)

    3,000,000       3,000,397  
Total U.S. Treasury Obligations
(Cost $18,005,530)

 

    18,018,378  
   
FOREIGN GOVERNMENT SECURITIES – 0.8%  

Japan Bank for International Cooperation

   

1.75%, 1/23/2023

    800,000       824,782  

Svensk Exportkredit AB

   

(ICE LIBOR USD
3 Month + 0.05%), 0.30%, 12/14/2020(b)

    3,000,000       3,000,418  
Total Foreign Government Securities
(cost $3,798,087)

 

    3,825,200  
   
SUPRANATIONAL – 0.8%  

European Investment Bank

   

(SOFR + 0.28%),
0.37%, 3/5/2024(a) (b)

    2,900,000       2,899,023  

Nordic Investment Bank

   

0.38%, 5/19/2023

    800,000       802,257  
Total Supranational
(Cost $3,699,980)

 

    3,701,280  
   
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

396    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

Investments   Principal
Amount
    Value  
MUNICIPAL BONDS – 0.7%  

University of Missouri, System Facilities Revenue Bonds

   

Series 2020-A,
1.47%, 11/1/2023

  $ 1,000,000     $ 1,026,720  

Miami-Dade County, Capital Asset Acquisition Special Obligation Bonds

   

Series 2020-B,
0.38%, 4/1/2023

    1,110,000       1,107,669  

Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

   

Series AAA,
1.09%, 7/1/2023

    1,000,000       1,011,610  
Total Municipal Bonds
(Cost $3,106,668)

 

    3,145,999  
   
U.S. GOVERNMENT AGENCY SECURITIES – 0.4%  

FFCB

   

0.25%, 5/6/2022

(Cost $1,998,076)

    2,000,000       2,002,849  
   
SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS – 2.1%  
COMMERCIAL PAPER – 0.6%  

Waste Management, Inc.

   

0.40%, 8/9/2021(f)(g)
(Cost $2,681,601)

    2,690,000       2,682,683  
   
U.S. TREASURY OBLIGATIONS – 1.5%  

U.S. Treasury Bills

   

0.08%, 11/3/2020(g)

    1,000,000       999,999  

0.07%, 11/12/2020(g)

    5,000,000       4,999,913  

0.08%, 11/27/2020(g)

    1,000,000       999,950  
Total U.S. Treasury Obligations
(Cost $6,999,829)

 

    6,999,862  
Total Short-Term Investments
(Cost $9,681,430)

 

    9,682,545  
Total Investments – 99.5%
(Cost $464,078,756)

 

    467,087,571  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.5%

 

    2,113,713  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%

 

  $ 469,201,284  
(a)  

Securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The value of these securities is determined by valuations supplied by a pricing service or brokers, or, if not available, in accordance with procedures established by the Board of Trustees.

 

(b) 

Variable or floating rate security, linked to the referenced benchmark. The interest rate shown is the rate in effect as of October 31, 2020.

 

(c) 

Security issued at a fixed coupon rate, which converts to a variable rate at a future date. Rate shown is the rate in effect as of period end.

 

(d) 

Step bond. Interest rate is a fixed rate for an initial period that either resets at a specific date or may reset in the future at a contingent upon predetermined trigger. The interest rate shown was the current rate as of October 31, 2020.

 

(e) 

Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.

 

(f) 

Security exempt from registration under Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933. Such securities may be sold in transactions exempt from registration normally to qualified institutional buyers.

 

(g) 

The rate shown was the current yield as of October 31, 2020.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

Abbreviations

 

FFCB – Federal Farm Credit Banks

ICE – Intercontinental Exchange

LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate

SOFR – Secured Overnight Financing Rate

USD – US Dollar

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

   

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 3,068,281  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (149,964

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,918,317  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 464,169,254  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      397  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund invested, as a percentage of net assets, in companies domiciled in the following countries as of October 31, 2020:

 

Australia

     3.0

Canada

     5.7

Finland

     0.1

France

     2.0

Germany

     3.1

Japan

     3.0

Netherlands

     1.2

Singapore

     0.3

Supranational

     0.8

Sweden

     4.0

Switzerland

     1.7

United Kingdom

     3.8

United States

     70.8

Other1

     0.5  
       100.0

 

1 

Includes any non-fixed-income securities and net other assets (liabilities).

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

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Table of Contents

 

Schedule of Investments

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund

 

October 31, 2020

 

 

Investments   Shares     Value  
EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS – 99.9%  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund(a)

    807,052     $   44,169,956  

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund(a)

    218,834       13,498,994  

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund(a)

    797,018       19,196,179  

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund(a)

    23,664       1,805,563  

iShares 20+ Year Treasury
Bond ETF

    18,061       2,845,872  

iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF

    30,017       3,989,559  

iShares 7-10 Year Treasury
Bond ETF

    27,112       3,255,067  

iShares Long-Term Corporate
Bond ETF

    54,314       3,771,021  

iShares MBS ETF

    149,149       16,449,643  
Total Exchange Traded Funds
(Cost $106,727,191)
            108,981,854  
Total Investments – 99.9%
(Cost $106,727,191)
            108,981,854  

Other assets less liabilities – 0.1%

            141,452  
NET ASSETS – 100.0%           $ 109,123,306  

 

(a)  

Investment in affiliated Fund. Northern Trust Investments, Inc. is the Investment Adviser to both the Fund and the affiliated Funds.

 

Percentages shown are based on Net Assets.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the gross unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of investments based on the aggregate cost of investments (including derivative instruments, if applicable) for federal income tax purposes was as follows:

 

       

Aggregate gross unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,151,025  

Aggregate gross unrealized depreciation

    (422

Net unrealized appreciation

  $ 2,150,603  

Federal income tax cost

  $ 106,831,251  
 

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      399  


Table of Contents

 

 

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund (cont.)

 

 

For the period ended October 31, 2020, the FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund was invested in securities of affiliated FlexShares® Funds. The Schedules of Investments of the affiliated FlexShares® Funds are located elsewhere in this Report.

 

Investment in a company which was affiliated for the period ended October 31, 2020, was as follows:

 

Security   Value
October 31,
2019
    Purchases
at Cost
   

Sales

Proceeds

    Shares
October 31,
2020
    Value
October 31,
2020
    Change in
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)
    Dividend
Income
    Realized
Gain/(Loss)
 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

  $ 7,339,064     $ 37,994,750     $ 1,966,064       807,052     $ 44,169,956     $ 837,780     $ 410,548     $ (35,574

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

    1,318,985       12,092,022       205,350       218,834       13,498,994       297,272       155,638       (3,935

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

          20,389,364       1,244,216       797,018       19,196,179       57,261       200,528       (6,230

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

    785,291       1,318,402       2,092,583                   3,389       3,440       (14,499

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

          3,097,323       1,294,880       23,664       1,805,563       (403     1,349       3,523  
    $ 9,443,340     $ 74,891,861     $ 6,803,093       1,846,568     $ 78,670,692     $ 1,195,299     $ 771,503     $ (56,715

 

See Accompanying Notes to the Financial Statements.

 

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Table of Contents

 

Notes to the Financial Statements October 31, 2020

 

 

1. Organization

 

FlexShares® Trust (the “Trust”), a Maryland statutory trust, was formed on May 13, 2010, originally named NT ETF Trust and renamed FlexShares® Trust as of April 12, 2011. The Trust is registered as an open-end management investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), as amended. The Trust consists of twenty-nine operational exchange-traded funds as of October 31, 2020 (each a “Fund” and collectively, the “Funds”).

 

The FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, and the FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund are non-diversified series of the Trust, pursuant to the 1940 Act.

 

The FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund and the FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund are diversified series of the Trust, pursuant to the 1940 Act.

Each Fund, except the FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund, seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of a specified benchmark index (each an “Underlying Index”). The FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund and the FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund seek to track Underlying Indexes developed by Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI” or “Investment Adviser”), an indirect subsidiary of Northern Trust Corporation. The FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund seek to track Underlying Indexes sponsored by Morningstar, Inc. The FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, and FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund seek to track Underlying Indexes sponsored by STOXX. The FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund and FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund seek to track Underlying Indexes sponsored by Markit Indexes Limited. The FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund seeks to track an Underlying Index sponsored by ICE Data Indexes, LLC.

 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      401  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Each of the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund currently seeks its investment objective by investing a substantial amount of its assets in the shares of another FlexShares ETF. Each of these Funds may also invest directly in the securities included in its Underlying Index. The FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund is a fund of funds that seeks its investment objective by investing primarily in the shares of other FlexShares ETFs that are eligible for inclusion in its Underlying Index, rather than in securities of individual companies. The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances in U.S. dollar-denominated investment-grade fixed-income securities either directly or indirectly through FlexShares ETFs, unaffiliated ETFs and other registered investment companies. The investment performance of each of the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund is directly related to the performance of the underlying fund(s) in which it invests (“Underlying Fund”).

 

The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund are actively managed and do not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index. The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund seeks maximum current income consistent with the preservation of capital and liquidity. The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund seeks total return and preservation of capital. Each Fund, except the FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund, is referred to herein as an “Index Fund.” Each Fund is managed by the Investment Adviser.

 

2. Significant Accounting Policies

 

The Trust, which is an investment company, follows accounting and reporting guidance under Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946, “Financial Services-Investment Companies.” The following is a summary of significant accounting policies followed by the Funds in the preparation of their financial statements. These policies are in conformity with

accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

 

Investment Valuation

 

Each Fund’s Net Asset Value (“NAV”) is determined daily as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, on each day the NYSE is open for trading, based on prices at the time of closing provided that any U.S. fixed-income assets may be valued as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments on any day that the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association announces an early closing time. The NAV of a Fund is calculated by dividing the value of all assets of the Fund (including accrued interest and dividends), less all liabilities (including accrued expenses and dividends declared but unpaid), by the total number of shares outstanding.

 

The investments of the Funds are valued at fair value pursuant to the pricing policy and procedures approved by the Trust’s Board of Trustees (“Board”). The Funds’ investments are valued using market quotations when available. When market quotations are not readily available, are deemed unreliable, or do not reflect material events occurring between the close of local markets and the time of valuation, the Funds value securities at fair value as determined in good faith in accordance with the Funds’ fair value pricing procedures as approved by the Board. Such circumstances include periods when trading in a security is suspended, the exchange or market on which a security trades closes early, the trading volume in a security is limited, corporate actions and announcements take place, or regulatory news affecting an issuer is released, such as government approvals. Additionally, the Trust, in its discretion, may make adjustments to the prices of securities held by a Fund if an event occurs after the publication of market values normally used by a Fund but before the time as of which the Fund calculates its NAV, depending on the nature and significance of the event, consistent with applicable regulatory guidance and the Trust’s fair value procedures. Other

 

 

402    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

events that can trigger fair valuing of foreign securities include, for example, significant fluctuations in general market indicators, government actions, or natural disasters.

 

The use of fair valuation involves the risk that the values used by the Funds to price their investments may be higher or lower than the values used by other investment companies and investors to price the same investments. Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that a fair value determination for a portfolio security may be materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of such security. In addition, fair value pricing could result in a difference between the prices used to calculate a Fund’s NAV and the prices used by an Index Fund’s Underlying Index. This difference may adversely affect an Index Fund’s ability to track its Underlying Index. Portfolio securities of certain Funds are listed on foreign exchanges and their value may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell Fund shares.

 

Security prices are generally provided by independent pricing services. Portfolio securities listed or traded on domestic securities exchanges or the NASDAQ/NMS, including dollar-denominated foreign securities or American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), are valued at the closing price, or last sale price, reported on the exchange or system where the security is principally traded. The closing price for securities traded on the NASDAQ/NMS is the Nasdaq Official Closing Price (“NOCP”). If there have been no sales for that day on the exchange or system where the security is principally traded, then the value is determined with reference to the last sale price, or the NOCP, if applicable, on any other exchange or system. If there have been no sales of the security for that day on any exchange or system, the security is valued at fair value pursuant to the Trust’s fair value procedures.

 

Securities that are traded regularly in the over-the-counter market (other than the NASDAQ/NMS), including securities listed on exchanges but primarily traded over-the-counter, are valued on the basis of bid quotes or the mean between the bid and asked quotes based upon quotes furnished by one or more broker-dealers or market makers for those securities. Securities that may be traded over-the-counter include equity securities, fixed-income

securities, non-exchange-listed foreign securities, and certain derivative instruments. Fixed-income securities may be valued using prices provided directly from one or more broker-dealers, market makers, or independent third-party pricing services which may use matrix pricing and valuation models, as well as recent market transactions for the same or similar assets, to derive values when such prices are believed to reflect fair market values of such securities. Such prices may be determined by taking into account securities prices, yields, maturities, call features, ratings, prepayment speeds, credit risks, cash flows, institutional size trading in similar groups of securities and developments related to specific securities. Fixed-income securities maturing within a relatively short period, less than 60 days, are valued at amortized cost when it approximates fair value.

 

Foreign equity securities are generally priced at the closing price or last sales price reported on the foreign exchange on which they are principally traded. If there have been no sales for that day on the primary exchange, then the value is determined with reference to the last sale price on any other exchange. If there have been no sales of the security for that day on any exchange, the security will be valued at fair value pursuant to the Trust’s fair value procedures. Spot and forward foreign currency exchange contracts generally are valued using an independent pricing service. The value of assets denominated in foreign currencies is converted into U.S. dollars using exchange rates deemed appropriate by NTI as Investment Adviser. Any use of a different rate from the rates used by the index provider may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to track its Underlying Index. The index provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index.

 

Exchange-traded financial futures and options thereon are valued at the settlement price as established by the exchange on which they are traded. Over-the-counter options are valued at broker-provided bid prices, as are swaps. The foregoing prices may be obtained from one or more independent pricing services or, as needed or applicable, independent broker-dealers. If there was no sale on that day, and for other non-exchange traded derivatives, the contract

 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      403  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

is valued at fair value pursuant to the Trust’s fair value procedures.

 

Each Fund relies on various sources to calculate its NAV. The ability of the Funds’ administrator to calculate the NAV per share of the Funds is subject to operational risks associated with processing or human errors, systems or technology failures, and errors caused by third party service providers, data sources, or trading counterparties. Such failures may result in delays in the calculation of the Funds’ NAVs and/or the inability to calculate NAV over extended time periods. The Funds may be unable to recover any losses associated with such failures, and it may be necessary for alternative procedures to be followed to price portfolio securities when determining the Funds’ NAVs.

 

Various inputs are used in determining the value of each Fund’s investments. These inputs are summarized in three levels listed below:

 

   

Level 1—Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets on the measurement date.

 

   

Level 2—Other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.).

 

   

Level 3—Significant unobservable inputs (including the Funds’ own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not necessarily an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For example, short-term debt securities may be valued at amortized cost, as long as amortized cost approximates the current fair value of a security, but since the valuation is not obtained from a quoted price in an active market, such securities are reflected as Level 2.

 

 

The following is a summary of the valuations as of October 31, 2020 for each Fund based upon the three levels defined above. Please refer to the Schedules of Investments to view equity and debt securities segregated by industry type, where applicable.

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*   $ 110,161,466     $     $     $ 110,161,466  
Short-Term Investments           44,991             44,991  
Total Investments   $ 110,161,466     $ 44,991     $     $ 110,206,457  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

  $ (6,049   $     $     $ (6,049
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (6,049   $     $     $ (6,049
       

 

404    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*   $ 65,001,076     $  —     $  —     $ 65,001,076  
Total Investments   $ 65,001,076     $     $     $ 65,001,076  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

  $     $ 6,717     $     $ 6,717  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (29,407                 (29,407

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (4,996           (4,996
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (29,407   $ 1,721     $     $ (27,686
       
   

Level 1 — Quoted
Prices

    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks

       

Banks

  $ 1,138,448     $ 7,382     $     $ 1,145,830  

Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers

    49,654       3,196             52,850  

Multiline Retail

    53,784       375             54,159  

Specialty Retail

    129,209       1,258             130,467  

Other*

    8,078,168                   8,078,168  
Corporate Bonds*           1             1  
Total Investments   $ 9,449,263     $ 12,212     $     $ 9,461,475  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 1,716     $     $     $ 1,716  
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ 1,716     $     $     $ 1,716  
       

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      405  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks

       

Health Care Technology

  $ 3,956,731     $ 189,808     $     $ 4,146,539  

Other*

    1,159,948,339                   1,159,948,339  

Rights

                27,946       27,946  

Warrants

    10,537                   10,537  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Certificates of Deposit

          29,000,799             29,000,799  

Repurchase Agreements

          73,634,886             73,634,886  
Total Investments   $ 1,163,915,607     $ 102,825,493     $ 27,946     $ 1,266,769,046  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 6,567     $     $     $ 6,567  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (179,573                 (179,573
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (173,006   $     $     $ (173,006
       

 

406    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Closed End Funds

  $ 16,649     $     $     $ 16,649  

Common Stocks

       

Beverages

    4,980,299       72,032             5,052,331  

Construction & Engineering

    11,046,726             417       11,047,143  

Consumer Finance

    2,238,872       188,171             2,427,043  

Diversified Financial Services

    5,882,385       96,504             5,978,889  

Food Products

    13,574,790             6,925       13,581,715  

Health Care Providers & Services

    2,719,865       275,023             2,994,888  

Interactive Media & Services

    1,066,276       85,391             1,151,667  

Pharmaceuticals

    21,535,027       7             21,535,034  

Other*

    425,561,312                   425,561,312  

Rights

    87,867       384             88,251  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          5,133,487             5,133,487  
Total Investments   $ 488,710,068     $ 5,850,999     $ 7,342     $ 494,568,409  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 2,541     $     $     $ 2,541  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          80,939             80,939  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (580,949                 (580,949

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (141,140           (141,140
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (578,408   $ (60,201   $     $ (638,609
       

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      407  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks

       

Banks

  $ 29,295,507     $ 149,232     $     $ 29,444,739  

Biotechnology

    1,153,767             20,170       1,173,937  

Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components

    6,944,998             1,645       6,946,643  

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

    2,213,303       25,752             2,239,055  

Food & Staples Retailing

    1,777,452       461             1,777,913  

Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure

    1,222,735       1,011       11,753       1,235,499  

Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels

    10,841,519       1,185             10,842,704  

Pharmaceuticals

    3,399,294       5,074             3,404,368  

Real Estate Management & Development

    11,568,466             6,178       11,574,644  

Transportation Infrastructure

    1,728,593       89,661             1,818,254  

Other*

    152,283,825                   152,283,825  

Corporate Bonds*

          9,763             9,763  

Rights

          6,505             6,505  

Warrants

          3,001             3,001  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          1,750,628             1,750,628  
Total Investments   $ 222,429,459     $ 2,042,273     $ 39,746     $ 224,511,478  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 54,869     $     $     $ 54,869  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          28,633             28,633  

Liabilities

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (16,417           (16,417
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ 54,869     $ 12,216     $     $ 67,085  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Exchange Traded Funds   $  6,119,717     $  —     $  —     $ 6,119,717  
Total Investments   $ 6,119,717     $     $     $ 6,119,717  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

  $     $ 24,874     $     $ 24,874  

Liabilities

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (15,404           (15,404
Total Other Financial Instruments   $     $ 9,470     $     $ 9,470  

 

408    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Exchange Traded Funds   $ 3,331,202     $     $     $ 3,331,202  
Total Investments   $ 3,331,202     $     $     $ 3,331,202  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 618     $     $     $ 618  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          12,710             12,710  

Liabilities

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (7,969           (7,969
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ 618     $ 4,741     $     $ 5,359  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*   $ 71,063,888     $     $     $ 71,063,888  
Total Investments   $ 71,063,888     $     $     $ 71,063,888  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

  $ (12,982   $     $     $ (12,982
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (12,982   $     $     $ (12,982
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 88,086,104     $     $     $ 88,086,104  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          41,799             41,799  
Total Investments   $ 88,086,104     $ 41,799     $     $ 88,127,903  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

  $ (15,208   $     $     $ (15,208
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (15,208   $     $     $ (15,208

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      409  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks

       

Interactive Media & Services

  $ 5,829,144     $ 11,737     $     $ 5,840,881  

Other*

    104,188,619                   104,188,619  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

  $     $ 204,571     $     $ 204,571  
Total Investments   $ 110,017,763     $ 216,308     $     $ 110,234,071  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

  $     $ 3,761     $     $ 3,761  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (40,939                 (40,939

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (630           (630
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (40,939   $ 3,131     $     $ (37,808
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 2,899,179,362     $     $     $ 2,899,179,362  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Certificates of Deposit

          21,999,861             21,999,861  

Repurchase Agreements

          93,622,028             93,622,028  
Total Investments   $ 2,899,179,362     $ 115,621,889     $     $ 3,014,801,251  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 120,824     $     $     $ 120,824  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          466,912             466,912  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (948,066                 (948,066

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (391,266           (391,266
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (827,242   $ 75,646     $     $ (751,596
       

 

410    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 1,838,425,278     $     $     $ 1,838,425,278  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          7,466,835             7,466,835  
Total Investments   $ 1,838,425,278     $ 7,466,835     $     $ 1,845,892,113  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

  $     $ 32,311     $     $ 32,311  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (739,173                 (739,173

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (58,686           (58,686
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (739,173   $ (26,375   $     $ (765,548
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 261,480,423     $     $     $ 261,480,423  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          2,552,626             2,552,626  
Total Investments   $ 261,480,423     $ 2,552,626     $     $ 264,033,049  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 29,579     $     $     $ 29,579  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          5,451             5,451  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (50,880                 (50,880

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (6,069           (6,069
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (21,301   $ (618   $     $ (21,919
       

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      411  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Exchange Traded Funds   $ 4,502,232     $     $     $ 4,502,232  
Total Investments   $ 4,502,232     $     $     $ 4,502,232  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 1,260,093,412     $     $     $ 1,260,093,412  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Certificates of Deposit

          14,001,203             14,001,203  

Repurchase Agreements

          52,620,170             52,620,170  
Total Investments   $ 1,260,093,412     $ 66,621,373     $     $ 1,326,714,785  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

  $ (121,870   $     $     $ (121,870
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (121,870   $     $     $ (121,870
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 409,511,135     $     $     $ 409,511,135  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          8,102,111             8,102,111  
Total Investments   $ 409,511,135     $ 8,102,111     $     $ 417,613,246  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

  $ (34,182   $     $     $ (34,182
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (34,182   $     $     $ (34,182
       

 

412    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 13,089,045     $     $     $ 13,089,045  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          77,040             77,040  
Total Investments   $ 13,089,045     $ 77,040     $     $ 13,166,085  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 441,232,391     $     $     $ 441,232,391  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          121,447             121,447  
Total Investments   $ 441,232,391     $ 121,447     $     $ 441,353,838  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 35,979     $     $     $ 35,979  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          290,451             290,451  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (624,331                 (624,331

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (255,646           (255,646
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (588,352   $ 34,805     $     $ (553,547
       

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      413  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 58,308,553     $     $     $ 58,308,553  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          108,136             108,136  
Total Investments   $ 58,308,553     $ 108,136     $     $ 58,416,689  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 2,999     $     $     $ 2,999  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          9,675             9,675  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (52,893                 (52,893

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

  $     $ (8,594   $     $ (8,594
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (49,894   $ 1,081     $     $ (48,813
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 21,972,511     $     $     $ 21,972,511  

Securities Lending Reinvestments

       

Repurchase Agreements

          33,903             33,903  
Total Investments   $ 21,972,511     $ 33,903     $     $ 22,006,414  

Other Financial Instruments

 

Assets

       

Futures Contracts

  $ 2,286     $     $     $ 2,286  

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          2,369             2,369  

Liabilities

       

Futures Contracts

    (15,771                 (15,771

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

          (2,177           (2,177
Total Other Financial Instruments   $ (13,485   $ 192     $     $ (13,293
       

 

414    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

Investments

 

U.S. Treasury Obligations   $     $ 1,427,232,294     $     $ 1,427,232,294  
Total Investments   $     $ 1,427,232,294     $     $ 1,427,232,294  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

Investments

 

U.S. Treasury Obligations   $     $ 595,127,791     $     $ 595,127,791  
Total Investments   $     $ 595,127,791     $     $ 595,127,791  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Mortgage-Backed Securities   $     $ 99,462,691     $     $ 99,462,691  
Total Investments   $     $ 99,462,691     $     $ 99,462,691  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Corporate Bonds*   $     $ 200,083,895     $     $ 200,083,895  
Total Investments   $     $ 200,083,895     $     $ 200,083,895  
       

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      415  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Corporate Bonds*   $     $ 45,871,567     $     $ 45,871,567  
Total Investments   $     $ 45,871,567     $     $ 45,871,567  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

 

Investments

 

Common Stocks*

  $ 11     $     $     $ 11  
Corporate Bonds*           184,334,452             184,334,452  
Total Investments   $ 11     $ 184,334,452     $     $ 184,334,463  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund

 

Investments

 

Asset-Backed Securities

  $     $ 31,204,820     $     $ 31,204,820  

Corporate Bonds*

          395,506,500             395,506,500  

Municipal Bonds

          3,145,999             3,145,999  

Supranational

          3,701,280             3,701,280  

U.S. Government Agency Securities

          2,002,849             2,002,849  

Foreign Government Securities

          3,825,200             3,825,200  

U.S. Treasury Obligations

          18,018,378             18,018,378  
Short-Term Investments           9,682,545             9,682,545  
Total Investments   $     $ 467,087,571     $     $ 467,087,571  
       
    Level 1 — Quoted
Prices
    Level 2 — Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
    Level 3 —
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
    Total  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund

 

Investments

 

Exchange Traded Funds   $ 108,981,854     $     $     $ 108,981,854  
Total Investments   $ 108,981,854     $     $     $ 108,981,854  

 

*

See Schedules of Investments for segregation by industry type.

 

416    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Foreign Securities

 

The FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (through its investment in its Underlying Fund), FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (through its investment in its Underlying Fund), FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (through its investment in its Underlying Funds), FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund invest in publicly-traded equity securities of issuers in countries other than the United States of America (“U.S.”). Such investments include direct investments in non-U.S. dollar denominated securities traded outside the U.S. The Funds’ investments in foreign securities also may be in the form of ADRs and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”) (collectively, “Depositary Receipts”) based on securities in their Underlying Indexes. ADRs are receipts that are traded in the United States evidencing ownership of the underlying foreign securities and are denominated in U.S. dollars. GDRs are receipts issued by a non-U.S. financial institution evidencing ownership of underlying foreign or U.S. securities and usually are denominated in foreign currencies. GDRs may not be denominated in the same currency as the securities they represent. Generally, GDRs are designed for use in foreign securities markets.

 

In addition to investment risks associated with the underlying issuer, ADRs and GDRs expose a Fund to risk associated with non-uniform terms that apply to ADR and GDR programs, credit exposure to the depository bank and to the sponsors and other parties with whom the depository bank establishes the programs, currency and liquidity risk. ADRs and GDRs are generally subject to the same risks as the

foreign securities that they evidence or into which they may be converted.

 

To the extent a Fund invests in ADRs, such ADRs will be listed on a national securities exchange. To the extent a Fund invests in GDRs, such GDRs will be listed on a foreign exchange. A Fund will not invest in any unlisted Depositary Receipt, any Depositary Receipt that NTI deems to be illiquid or any Depositary Receipt for which market quotations are not readily available. Generally, all Depositary Receipts must be sponsored.

 

The FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund and the FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund may invest in U.S. dollar denominated bonds of non-U.S. corporations to the extent such bonds are included in each Fund’s Underlying Index. The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund may invest in U.S. dollar denominated bonds of non-U.S. corporations, either directly or indirectly through Underlying Funds, to achieve its investment objective.

 

The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund may invest, without limitation, in fixed-income securities and instruments of foreign issuers in developed and emerging markets, including debt securities of foreign governments.

 

Investing in foreign securities, including Depositary Receipts, may result in a Fund experiencing more rapid and extreme changes in value than a fund that invests exclusively in U.S. securities, due to less liquid markets, and adverse economic, political, diplomatic, financial, and regulatory factors. Foreign governments also may impose taxes and limits on investment and repatriation. Any of these events could cause the value of a Fund’s foreign investment to decline. To the extent that a Fund’s assets are significantly invested in a single country or geographic region, a Fund will be subject to the risks associated with that particular country or region.

 

The FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund and the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (through its investment in its Underlying Fund) will invest primarily in emerging market

 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      417  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

countries. In addition, the FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (through its investment in its Underlying Funds), FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund may invest its assets in emerging market countries. The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund may invest up to 20% of its total assets in fixed-income securities and instruments of issuers in emerging markets. The markets of emerging market countries are less developed and less liquid, subject to greater price volatility and generally subject to increased economic, political, regulatory and other uncertainties than more developed foreign markets. The risks of foreign investment are increased when the issuer is located in a country with an emerging economy or securities market.

 

Inflation-Indexed Securities

 

The FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund and the FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund invest primarily in U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (“TIPS”). The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund (directly or through its Underlying Funds) may invest in inflation-indexed securities.

 

TIPS issued by the U.S. Treasury have varying maturities and pay interest on a semiannual basis equal to a fixed percentage of the inflation-adjusted principal amount. If the periodic adjustment rate measuring inflation falls, the principal value of TIPS will be adjusted downward, and consequently the interest payable on these securities (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced. Repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) is guaranteed in the case of TIPS, even during a period of deflation.

 

The value of TIPS is expected to change in response to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates in turn are tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if the rate of inflation rises at

a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates might decline, leading to an increase in value of TIPS. In contrast, if nominal interest rates increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in value of TIPS. Any increase in the principal amount of TIPS will be considered taxable ordinary income, even though investors do not receive their principal until maturity.

 

While these securities are expected to be protected from long-term inflationary trends, short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in value. If interest rates rise due to reasons other than inflation, investors in these securities may not be protected to the extent that the increase is not reflected in the TIPS’ inflation measure.

 

The periodic adjustment of TIPS is tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (“CPI-U”), which is calculated monthly by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI-U is a measurement of changes in the cost of living, made up of components such as housing, food, transportation and energy. There can be no assurance that the CPI-U will accurately measure the real rate of inflation in the prices of goods and services.

 

Mortgage-Backed Pass-Through Securities

 

The FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund invests primarily in U.S. agency mortgage-backed pass-through securities (“MBS”), a category of pass-through securities backed by pools of mortgages and issued by one of the following U.S. government agencies: the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA or Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC or Freddie Mac) or the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA or Ginnie Mae) (each a “US Agency”). Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its total assets in the securities of its Underlying Index and in “to-be announced transactions” (“TBA transactions”) that represent securities in its Underlying Index. In a TBA transaction, the buyer and seller agree upon general trade parameters such as agency, coupon rate, settlement date, par amount and price. The actual pools delivered generally are determined two days prior to settlement.

 

 

418    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Pending settlement of such TBA contracts, the FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund will invest in liquid, short-term instruments. The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund may also invest either directly or through its Underlying Funds in MBS, including TBA transactions.

 

Mortgage Dollar Rolls

 

The FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund (directly or through its Underlying Funds) may enter into mortgage dollar roll transactions. A mortgage dollar roll involves the sale by the Fund of securities for delivery in the future (generally within 30 days). The Fund simultaneously contracts with the same counterparty to repurchase substantially similar (same type, coupon and maturity) but not identical securities on a specified future date. During the roll period, the Fund will not be entitled to accrue interest and receive principal payments on the securities sold. However, the Fund benefits to the extent of any difference between (a) the price received for the securities sold and (b) the lower forward price for the future purchase and/or fee income plus the interest earned on the cash proceeds of the securities sold. Successful use of mortgage dollar rolls depends upon the Investment Adviser’s ability to predict correctly interest rates and mortgage prepayments. The use of this technique may diminish the investment performance of the Fund compared with what such performance would have been without the use of mortgage dollar rolls.

 

For financial reporting and tax purposes, a Fund treats mortgage dollar rolls as two separate transactions: one involving the purchase of a security and a separate transaction involving a sale. The Fund currently does not intend to enter into mortgage dollar rolls that are accounted for as financing and does not treat them as borrowings.

 

Repurchase Agreements

 

To the extent consistent with its investment policies, each Fund may enter into repurchase agreements under which it purchases securities (collateral) for cash from a seller and agrees to resell those securities to the same seller within a specified time at a specified price. During the term of a repurchase agreement, the market value of the underlying

collateral, including accrued interest, is required to equal or exceed the market value of the repurchase agreement. The underlying collateral for tri-party repurchase agreements is held in accounts at JPMorgan Chase, the Fund’s custodian, and is not reflected in the assets of the Funds, at the Bank of New York or JPMorgan Chase which, in turn, holds securities through the book-entry system at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The Fund is subject to credit risk on repurchase agreements to the extent that the counterparty fails to perform under the agreement and the value of the collateral received falls below the agreed repurchase price.

 

The Northern Trust Company, the parent of NTI, currently is a party to various Master Repurchase Agreements with a number of different counterparties, and acts as agent on behalf of various disclosed principals, including the Funds and various other accounts managed by NTI, in entering into repurchase agreements under the Master Repurchase Agreements. NTI administers and manages these repurchase agreements in accordance with and as part of its duties under its investment advisory agreement with the Funds and does not collect any additional fees from the Funds for such services. As of October 31, 2020, none of the Funds presented in these financial statements had repurchase agreements outstanding except as discussed below.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, invested cash collateral for loans of portfolio securities in repurchase agreements, as reflected in the respective Schedule of Investments under the caption “Securities Lending Reinvestments.”

 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      419  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Securities Lending

 

Each Fund may lend securities to banks, brokers and dealers or other qualified institutions. In exchange, the Fund is required to receive minimum initial collateral value as follows:

 

Type of Loan   Minimum Initial
Collateral Requirement
 
U.S. dollar denominated securities secured by U.S. dollar denominated government securities or cash collateral     102
U.S. dollar denominated securities secured by non-U.S. dollar denominated government securities or cash collateral     105
Non-U.S. dollar denominated securities secured by government securities or cash collateral in the same denomination as the lent securities     102
Non-U.S. dollar denominated securities secured by government securities or cash collateral in the different denomination from the lent securities     105
U.S. dollar and Non-U.S. dollar denominated securities secured by equity securities collateral     105

 

The collateral is maintained thereafter, at a value equal to at least 100% of the value of the securities loaned. The collateral amount is valued at the beginning of each business day and is compared to the market value of the loaned securities from the prior business day to determine if additional collateral is required. If additional collateral is required, a request is sent to the borrower.

 

Securities lending may represent no more than one-third of the value of a Fund’s total assets (including the loan collateral). JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (the “Securities Lending Agent”) serves as the securities lending agent for the securities lending program of a Fund.

 

Collateral for loans of portfolio securities made by a Fund may consist of cash, cash equivalents, securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or foreign governments or its agencies (or any combination thereof). Any cash collateral received by the Fund in connection with these

loans may be invested in a variety of short-term investments, either directly or indirectly through money market portfolios. The market value of securities on loan and the value of investments made with cash collateral received are disclosed in the Schedules of Investments. Securities lending income includes income from the securities lending program recorded when earned from the Securities Lending Agent and any fees charged to borrowers less expenses associated with the loan. The net amount is reflected in the Statements of Operations under “Securities lending income (net of fees).” The market value of the loaned securities is determined at the close of each business day of the Fund and any additional required collateral is delivered to the Fund, or excess collateral returned by the Fund, on the next business day.

 

When a Fund lends its securities, it will continue to receive payments equal to the dividends and interest paid on the securities loaned and simultaneously may earn interest on the investment of the cash collateral.

 

A Fund will have the right to terminate a loan at any time and recall the loaned securities within the normal and customary settlement time for securities transactions. A Fund does not have the right to vote securities on loan, but can terminate the loan and regain the right to vote if a material event affecting the securities occurred. A borrower might become insolvent or refuse to honor its obligation to return the securities. In the event of a default by a borrower with respect to any loan, the Securities Lending Agent will exercise any and all remedies provided under the applicable borrower agreement. These remedies include purchasing replacement securities for the Fund by applying the collateral held from the defaulting borrower against the purchase cost of the replacement securities. If the proceeds from the collateral are less than the purchase cost of the replacement securities, the Securities Lending Agent is responsible for such shortfall, subject to certain limitations that are set forth in detail in the Securities Lending Agency Agreement. In this event, a Fund could experience delays in recovering its securities and possibly may incur a capital loss. Each Fund will be responsible for any loss that might result from its investment of the cash collateral it receives from a borrower.

 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

In accordance with guidance presented in FASB Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2014-11, Transfers and Servicing (Topic 860): Repurchase-to-Maturity Transactions, Repurchase Financings, and Disclosures, liabilities under the outstanding securities lending transactions as of October 31, 2020, which were comprised of cash, were as follows:

 

Fund      
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 102,633,369  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     5,133,487  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     1,750,628  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     41,799  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     204,571  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     115,620,769  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     7,466,835  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     2,552,626  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     66,619,988  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     8,102,111  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     77,040  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     121,447  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     108,136  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     33,903  

 

At October 31, 2020, the Securities Lending Agency Agreement does not permit the Funds to enforce a netting arrangement. The cash collateral received from securities loaned as disclosed in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities is collateralized by securities on loan as disclosed within the Schedule of Investments and such borrowings have maturities that are overnight and continuous.

Regulations that began to take effect in 2019 will require certain bank-regulated counterparties and certain of their affiliates to include in certain financial contracts, including many securities lending agreements, terms that delay or restrict the rights of counterparties, such as a Fund, to terminate such agreements, foreclose upon collateral, exercise other default rights or restrict transfers of credit support in the event that the counterparty and/or its affiliates are subject to certain types of resolution or insolvency proceedings. It is possible that these new requirements, as well as potential additional government regulation and other developments in the market, could adversely affect a Fund’s ability to terminate existing securities lending agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.

 

Derivative Contracts

 

Futures Contracts

 

All of the Index Funds may invest in futures contracts to help track the price and yield performance of their Underlying Indexes. At the time a Fund enters into a futures contract, it is generally required to make a margin deposit with the custodian of a specified amount of liquid assets. Subsequent payments to be made or received by the Funds equal to the change in contract value are recorded as variation margin payable or receivable and offset in unrealized gains or losses. Futures are marked to market each day with the change in value reflected in the unrealized gains or losses. A Fund recognizes a realized gain or loss when a contract is closed or expires. The Statements of Operations reflect unrealized gains or losses on open futures contracts, as “Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures contracts”, and any realized gains (losses) on closed futures contracts as “Net realized gain (loss) from Expiration or closing of futures contracts”.

 

The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund may take long or short positions in futures to manage the Fund’s exposure to interest rate risk. When applicable, the Fund seeks to mitigate the potential impact of interest rates on the performance of bonds by entering into short positions in U.S. Treasury futures or transactions in interest rate swaps. The Fund’s short positions in U.S. Treasury futures and interest rate swaps are not intended to mitigate credit spread risk or other factors influencing the price of bonds, which may have

 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

a greater impact than interest rates. In addition, when interest rates fall, long-only bond investments will perform better than the Fund’s investments. As of October 31, 2020, the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund did not hold swaps.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund had open futures contracts.

 

The use of futures contracts involves, to varying degrees, elements of market and counterparty risk, which may exceed the amounts recognized in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities. Futures contracts present the following risks: imperfect correlation between the change in market value of a Fund’s securities and the price of futures contracts; the possible inability to close a futures contract when desired; losses due to unanticipated market movements, which potentially are unlimited; and the possible inability of NTI to correctly predict the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of a Fund’s NAV. As a result of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in substantial losses to a Fund. Futures contracts may be illiquid, and exchanges may limit fluctuations in futures contract prices during a single day. Foreign exchanges or boards of trade generally do not offer the same protection as U.S. exchanges.

Foreign Currency Translations

 

Values of investments denominated in foreign currencies are converted into U.S. dollars using the prevailing market rates on the date of valuation as quoted by one or more banks or dealers that make a two-way market in such currencies (or a data service provider based on quotations received from such banks or dealers). Any use of a rate different from the rates used by an Index Fund’s index provider may affect a Fund’s ability to track its Underlying Index. The cost of purchases and proceeds from sales of investments, interest and dividend income are translated into U.S. dollars using the spot market rate of exchange prevailing on the respective dates of such transactions. “Net realized gain (loss) on foreign currency transactions” on the Statements of Operations include the effect of changes in exchange rates between trade date and settlement date on investment security transactions, foreign currency transactions and interest and dividends received, and the portion of foreign currency gains and losses related to fluctuation in exchange rates between the initial purchase trade date and subsequent sale trade date is included in “Net realized gain (loss) on investment in securities” on the Statements of Operations. Unrealized gains and losses on assets and liabilities, other than investments in securities, which result from changes in foreign currency exchange rates have been included in “Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on translation of other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies” on the Statements of Operations.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts

 

The FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund intend to use forward foreign currency contracts to hedge the currency exposure resulting from investments in foreign securities, to facilitate local settlements or to protect against currency exposure in connection with their distributions to shareholders. The FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund,

 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, and the FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund may enter into forward foreign currency exchange contracts to facilitate local settlements or to protect against currency exposure in connection with its distributions to shareholders. The Index Funds, however, do not expect to engage in currency transactions for speculative purposes (e.g., for potential income or capital gain). The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund also may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for hedging purposes in order to protect against uncertainty in the level of future foreign currency exchange rates. The Fund, however, does not expect to engage in currency transactions for speculative purposes. All forward foreign currency exchange contracts held are “marked-to-market” daily at the applicable exchange rates and any resulting unrealized gains or losses are recorded. The Funds record realized gains or losses at the time the forward foreign currency exchange contract is offset by entering into a closing transaction or extinguished by delivery of the currency. The difference between the future foreign currency exchange rates at the date of entry into the contract and the rates at the reporting date are included in “Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on forward foreign currency contracts” in the Statements of Operations. Non-deliverable forward foreign currency exchange contracts are settled with the counterparty in U.S. Dollars without the delivery of foreign currency.

 

There are several risks associated with these contracts. One risk is the potential inability of counterparties to meet the terms of their contracts, and unanticipated movements in the value of a foreign currency relative to the U.S. dollar. The contractual amounts of forward foreign currency exchange contracts do not necessarily represent the amounts potentially subject to risk. The measurement of the risks associated with these instruments is meaningful only when all related and offsetting transactions are considered. The

Statements of Operations reflect (i) realized gains or losses, if any, in “Net realized gain (loss) from settlement of forward foreign currency contracts” and (ii) unrealized gains or losses in “Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on forward foreign currency contracts”. Forward foreign currency exchange contracts are privately negotiated transactions and can have substantial price volatility. As a result, they offer less protection against default by the other party than is available for instruments traded on an exchange. The institutions that deal in forward foreign currency exchange contracts are not required to continue to make markets in the currencies they trade, and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity.

 

As of October 31, 2020, the FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund had open forward foreign currency contracts.

 

Offsetting of Financial Assets and Derivative Assets

 

The Funds’ accounting policy with respect to balance sheet offsetting is that, absent an event of default by the counterparty or a termination of the agreement, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) Master Agreement or similar agreement does not result in an offset of reported amounts of financial assets and financial liabilities in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities across transactions between the Fund and the applicable counterparty. In the event of a default, the agreement provides the right for the non-defaulting party to liquidate the collateral and calculate the net exposure to the defaulting party or request additional collateral. The Funds’ right to setoff may be restricted

 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

or prohibited by the bankruptcy or insolvency laws of the particular jurisdiction to which a specific master netting agreement counterparty is subject.

 

For financial reporting purposes, the Trust can offset financial assets and financial liabilities of the FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, Flex-

Shares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund that are subject to master netting arrangements or similar agreements in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities. The following table presents the gross and net amounts of these assets and liabilities:

 

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Assets presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Received
     Net Amount  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — BNP Paribas SA    $ 1,893      $        $ —      $ 1,893  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC      136                      136  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA      1,815                      1,815  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      1,690        (1,551)               139  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      1,183        (1,183)                
     Total    $ 6,717      $ (2,734)        $ —      $ 3,983  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 744      $ (744)        $ —      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      4,072        (4,072)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      47,632        (23,229)               24,403  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      19,256        (19,256)                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      9,235        (5)               9,230  
     Total    $ 80,939      $ (47,306)        $ —      $ 33,633  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 13,529      $ (10,617)        $ —      $ 2,912  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      14,946        (402)               14,544  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      128                      128  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      30                      30  
     Total    $ 28,633      $ (11,019)        $ —      $ 17,614  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund               
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley    $ 24,874      $ (15,404)        $ —      $ 9,470  
     Total    $ 24,874      $ (15,404)        $ —      $ 9,470  

 

424    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Assets presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Received
     Net Amount  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 6,013      $ (832)        $ —      $ 5,181  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      2,106                      2,106  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      998        (344)               654  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      3,593        (3,265)               328  
     Total    $ 12,710      $ (4,441)        $ —      $ 8,269  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund               
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 3,761      $        $ —      $ 3,761  
     Total    $ 3,761      $        $ —      $ 3,761  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Bank of New York    $ 2,624      $        $ —      $ 2,624  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — BNP Paribas SA      16,613        (2,115)               14,498  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA      101,919        (101,919)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      107,765                      107,765  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      118,132        (93,588)               24,544  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      2,892        (2,892)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      116,925        (53,504)               63,421  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      42        (42)                  
     Total    $ 466,912      $ (254,060)        $ —      $ 212,852  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank    $ 2,310      $ (2,310)        $ —      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      19,609        (19,609)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      10,381        (10,381)                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      11                      11  
     Total    $ 32,311      $ (32,300)        $ —      $ 11  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 4,925      $        $ —      $ 4,925  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      194        (22)               172  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      176        (176)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      151        (151)                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      5                      5  
     Total    $ 5,451      $ (349)        $ —      $ 5,102  

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      425  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Assets presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Received
     Net Amount  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — BNP Paribas SA    $ 23      $      $      $ 23  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA      127,889        (127,889)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      64,264        (11,381)               52,883  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      14,754        (14,754)                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      48,660        (4,896)               43,764  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      21,125        (1,850)               19,275  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      13,736        (941)               12,795  
     Total    $ 290,451      $ (161,711)      $      $ 128,740  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 2,819      $      $      $ 2,819  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      1,408        (1,408)                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      5,448                      5,448  
     Total    $ 9,675      $ (1,408)      $      $ 8,267  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ 916      $      $      $ 916  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      1,425                      1,425  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      1        (1)                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      27        (27)                
     Total    $ 2,369      $ (28)      $      $ 2,341  

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Liabilities presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Pledged
     Net Amount  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley    $ (1,551)      $ 1,551      $      $  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (3,445)        1,183               (2,262)  
     Total    $ (4,996)      $ 2,734      $      $ (2,262)  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — BNP Paribas SA    $ (200)      $      $      $ (200)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA      (25,120)        744               (24,376)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      (56,886)        4,072               (52,814)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (23,229)        23,229                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (35,700)        19,256               (16,444)  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      (5)        5                
     Total    $ (141,140)      $ 47,306      $      $ (93,834)  

 

426    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Liabilities presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Received
     Net Amount  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ (10,617)      $ 10,617      $      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      (402)        402                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (5,398)                      (5,398)  
     Total    $ (16,417)      $ 11,019      $      $ (5,398)  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund               
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley    $ (15,404)      $ 15,404      $      $  
     Total    $ (15,404)      $ 15,404      $      $  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ (832)      $ 832      $      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      (344)        344                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (3,265)        3,265                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (3,528)                      (3,528)  
     Total    $ (7,969)      $ 4,441      $      $ (3,528)  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund               
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Bank of New York    $ (630)      $      $      $ (630)  
     Total    $ (630)      $      $      $ (630)  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — BNP Paribas SA    $ (2,115)      $ 2,115      $      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA      (172,439)        101,919               (70,520)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      (93,588)        93,588                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (61,329)        2,892               (58,437)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (53,504)        53,504                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      (8,291)        42               (8,249)  
     Total    $ (391,266)      $ 254,060      $      $ (137,206)  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ (3,937)      $             $ (3,937)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      (15,432)        2,310               (13,122)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (24,709)        19,609               (5,100)  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (14,608)        10,381               (4,227)  
     Total    $ (58,686)      $ 32,300      $      $ (26,386)  

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      427  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

                 Gross Amounts Not Offset in the
Statement of Assets and  Liabilities
        
         

Gross Amounts of

Liabilities presented in
Statements of Assets
and Liabilities

     Financial
Instruments
     Cash Collateral
Received
     Net Amount  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund               
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank    $ (22)      $ 22      $      $  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (3,424)        176               (3,248)  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (2,623)        151               (2,472)  
     Total    $ (6,069)      $ 349      $      $ (5,720)  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Citibank NA    $ (208,275)        127,889      $      $ (80,386)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.      (11,381)        11,381                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — JPMorgan Chase Bank      (28,303)        14,754               (13,549)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (4,896)        4,896                
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (1,850)        1,850                
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      (941)        941                
     Total    $ (255,646)      $ 161,711      $      $ (93,935)  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Goldman Sachs & Co.    $ (7,086)      $ 1,408      $        (5,678)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley      (1,117)                      (1,117)  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (391)                      (391)  
     Total    $ (8,594)      $ 1,408      $      $ (7,186)  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund    Foreign Currency Contracts — Morgan Stanley    $ (763)        1      $      $ (762)  
   Foreign Currency Contracts — Toronto-Dominion Bank (The)      (1,037)        27               (1,010)  
     Foreign Currency Contracts — UBS AG      (377)                      (377)  
     Total    $ (2,177)      $ 28      $      $ (2,149)  

 

The following tables indicate the location of derivative-related items on the Statements of Assets and Liabilities as well as the effect of derivative instruments on the Statements of Operations during the reporting period.

 

Fair Value of Derivative Instruments as of October 31, 2020

 

Derivatives by risk type   Statements of Assets
and Liabilities Location
  Fund   Value  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ (6,049
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     (29,407
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     6,717  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     (4,996

 

428    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by risk type   Statements of Assets
and Liabilities Location
  Fund   Value  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 1,716  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     6,567  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     (179,573
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     2,541  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     (580,949
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     80,939  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     (141,140
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     54,869  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     28,633  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     (16,417
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     24,874  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     (15,404
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     618  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     12,710  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     (7,969
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     (12,982
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     (15,208
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     (40,939
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     3,761  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     (630

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      429  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by risk type   Statements of Assets
and Liabilities Location
  Fund   Value  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund   $ 120,824  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     (948,066
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     466,912  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     (391,266
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     (739,173
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     32,311  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     (58,686
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     29,579  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     (50,880
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     5,451  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     (6,069
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     (121,870
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     (34,182
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     35,979  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     (624,331
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     290,451  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     (255,646
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     2,999  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     (52,893
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     9,675  

 

430    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by risk type   Statements of Assets
and Liabilities Location
  Fund   Value  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund   $ (8,594
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     2,286  
Equity Index Futures Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts*   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (15,771
Foreign Currency Contracts   Assets — Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     2,369  
Foreign Currency Contracts   Liabilities — Unrealized depreciation on forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (2,177

 

*

Includes cumulative appreciation/depreciation on futures contracts as reported in the Schedule of Investments. Current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for futures contracts.

 

The Effect of Derivative Instruments on the Statements of Operations for the Year Ended October 31, 2020

 

Derivatives by
risk type
  Location of Gain or (Loss) on
Derivatives on the Statements of
Operations
  Fund   Realized
Gain or
(Loss) on
Derivatives
    Change in Unrealized
Appreciation or
(Depreciation) on
Derivatives
 
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 42,801     $ (6,049
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     41,774       (32,340
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     (21,539     1,721  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     19,751       1,716  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     260,410       (385,862

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      431  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by
risk type
  Location of Gain or (Loss) on
Derivatives on the Statements of
Operations
  Fund   Realized
Gain or
(Loss) on
Derivatives
    Change in Unrealized
Appreciation or
(Depreciation) on
Derivatives
 
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 1,989,450     $ (906,795
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     103,579       (128,515
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     1,083,960       4,119  
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     67,116       53,916  
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on
Foreign currency transactions, Net change in
unrealized appreciation
(depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts
  FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     (135,509     24,385  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     8,668       (325
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     77,574       25,847  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts,
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts
  FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     56,387       (15,762

 

432    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by
risk type
  Location of Gain or (Loss) on
Derivatives on the Statements of
Operations
  Fund   Realized
Gain or
(Loss) on
Derivatives
    Change in Unrealized
Appreciation or
(Depreciation) on
Derivatives
 
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund   $ 45,351     $ (24,946
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     103,833       (69,171
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     (12,210     3,131  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     3,339,709       (841,890
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     168,456       80,863  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     (155,672     (1,018,490
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     126,871       (37,898
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     (181,950     (77,069

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      433  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by
risk type
  Location of Gain or (Loss) on
Derivatives on the Statements of
Operations
  Fund   Realized
Gain or
(Loss) on
Derivatives
    Change in Unrealized
Appreciation or
(Depreciation) on
Derivatives
 
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund   $ 50,673     $ 96  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     (1,049,245     (444,462
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     (215,689     (145,239
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (67,362     (9,379
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     (599,470     (938,934
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     (142,796     107,390  
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     100,137       (75,267
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     (38,286     2,017  

 

434    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Derivatives by
risk type
  Location of Gain or (Loss) on
Derivatives on the Statements of
Operations
  Fund   Realized
Gain or
(Loss) on
Derivatives
    Change in Unrealized
Appreciation or
(Depreciation) on
Derivatives
 
Equity
Index Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund   $ 62,887     $ (26,865
Foreign
Currency
Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Foreign currency transactions, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Forward foreign currency contracts   FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (5,735     192  
Interest Rate
Futures Contracts
  Net realized gain (loss) on Futures contracts, Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on Futures contracts   FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     142,652       (3,412

 

At October 31, 2020, the volume of derivative activities, which represents activities throughout the period, was as follows:

 

    Foreign Exchange
Contracts
    Equity Contracts     Interest Rate future  
Fund   Number of
Trades
    Average
Notional
Amount
    Number of
Trades
Long
    Average
Notional
Balance Long
    Number of
Trades
Short
    Average
Notional
Balance Short
    Number of
Trades
Long
    Average
Notional
Balance Long
    Number of
Trades
Short
    Average
Notional
Balance Short
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund         $       7     $ 223,159           $           $           $  
FlexShares Developed Markets Ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     82       40,425       38       124,018                                      
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund                 11       97,219                                      
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund                 184       581,777                                      
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     231       533,183       225       459,239                                      
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     125       268,083       82       318,872                                      
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     325       525,611                                                  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     619       213,438       5       49,300                                      

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      435  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Foreign Exchange
Contracts
    Equity Contracts     Interest Rate future  
Fund   Number of
Trades
    Average
Notional
Amount
    Number of
Trades
Long
    Average
Notional
Balance Long
    Number of
Trades
Short
    Average
Notional
Balance Short
    Number of
Trades
Long
    Average
Notional
Balance Long
    Number of
Trades
Short
    Average
Notional
Balance Short
 
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund         $       21     $ 199,759           $           $           $  
FlexShares STOXX US ESG Impact Index Fund                 31       210,425                                      
FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund     9       74,212       78       140,778                                      
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     369       853,163       385       771,931                                      
FlexShares STOXX Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     116       420,567       318       409,180                                      
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     117       223,651       184       217,237                                      
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund                 105       1,130,782                                      
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund                 83       431,649                                      
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund                 13       178,709                                      
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     306       423,599       265       450,234                                      
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     51       72,784       81       128,233                                      
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     29       30,894       45       100,168                                      
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund                                         18       1,342,271              

 

Taxes and Distributions

 

Each Fund has qualified and intends to continue to qualify as a regulated investment company by complying with the requirements under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, which includes distributing substantially all of its net investment income and net capital gains to shareholders. Accordingly, no provision for federal and state income taxes is required in the financial statements.

 

As of October 31, 2020, management of the Funds has reviewed all open tax years and major jurisdictions and

concluded that there is no tax liability resulting from unrecognized tax benefits relating to uncertain income tax positions taken or expected to be taken in future tax returns. The Funds are also not aware of any tax positions for which it is reasonably possible that the total amounts of unrecognized tax benefits will significantly change in the next 12 months. On an ongoing basis management will monitor the tax positions taken to determine if adjustment to conclusions are necessary based on factors including but not limited to further implementation on guidance expected from FASB and on-going analysis of tax law, regulation, and interpretations thereof.

 

 

436    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Dividends from net investment income, including any net foreign currency gains, are generally declared and paid by each Fund according to the following schedule:

 

    Dividends from Net Investment Income  
Fund  

Declared

And Paid
Annually

   

Declared

And Paid
Monthly

   

Declared

And Paid
Quarterly

 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund                     x  
    Dividends from Net Investment Income  
Fund  

Declared

And Paid
Annually

   

Declared

And Paid
Monthly

   

Declared

And Paid
Quarterly

 
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund                     x  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund             x          
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund             x          
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund             x          
 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      437  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Dividends from Net Investment Income  
Fund  

Declared

And Paid
Annually

   

Declared

And Paid
Monthly

   

Declared

And Paid
Quarterly

 
FlexShares Credit-Scored Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund             x          
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund             x          
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund             x          
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund             x          
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund             x          

 

Distribution of net realized securities gains, if any, generally are distributed at least annually. The Trust reserves the right to declare special distributions if, in its reasonable discretion, such action is necessary or advisable to improve tracking error, to preserve its status as a regulated investment company or to avoid imposition of income or excise taxes on undistributed income or realized gains. Tracking error is a measurement of how much the return on a portfolio deviates from the return on its benchmark index.

Dividends and securities gains distributions are distributed in U.S. dollars and cannot be automatically reinvested in additional shares of the Funds. The amount of distributions from net investment income and net realized gains are determined in accordance with federal income tax regulations, which may differ from GAAP. These “book/tax” differences are either considered temporary or permanent in nature. To the extent these differences are permanent in nature, such amounts are reclassified within the composition of net assets based on their federal tax-basis treatment; temporary differences (e.g., wash sales) do not require a reclassification. The Funds may utilize equalization accounting for tax purposes and designate earnings and profits, including net realized gains distributed to shareholders on redemption of shares, as a part of the dividends paid deduction for income tax purposes.

 

The Funds’ tax year end is October 31st and the tax character of current year distributions and current components of accumulated earnings (deficit) will be determined at the end of the current tax year.

 

Temporary differences are generally due to different book and tax treatments for the timing of the recognition of gains and losses on certain investment transactions, mark to market of forward foreign currency contracts, mark to market of futures contracts, mark to market of passive foreign investment companies (“PFICs”), non-taxable special dividends, wash sale loss deferrals and capital loss carryforward.

 

 

Permanent differences, primarily due to gain (loss) on in-kind redemptions, paydown loss reclassification, foreign currency gains and losses, forward foreign currency gains and losses, PFICs gains and losses, non-taxable special dividends, investments in partnerships, taxable over-distributions, foreign capital gains tax reclassification, perpetual bonds and equalization as of October 31, 2020 (the Funds’ tax year end), among the Funds’ components of net assets are as follows:

 

Fund   Accumulated
undistributed net
investment income (loss)
    Accumulated net
realized gain (loss)
on investments
    Paid in
capital
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $     $ (179,481 )     $ 179,481  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund    
16,727
 
    (16,727 )        
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     (4,218 )       (41,239 )       45,457  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     (58,867 )       (143,941,062 )       143,999,929  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     4,023,856       8,732,776       (12,756,632 )  

 

438    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Accumulated
undistributed net
investment income (loss)
    Accumulated net
realized gain (loss)
on investments
    Paid in
capital
 
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 501,679     $ 2,329,698     $ (2,831,377 )  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     168,773       113,923       (282,696 )  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     327       64,386       (64,713 )  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     (7,636 )       (1,685,045 )       1,692,681  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     22       (301,409 )       301,387  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     22,240       (22,240 )        
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     1,628,063       (157,226,077 )       155,598,014  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     233,219       (13,975,629 )       13,742,410  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     2,635,470       (2,022,926 )       (612,544 )  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     680       77,700       (78,380 )  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     (553,097 )       (72,283,926 )       72,837,023  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     (47,369 )       (29,141,422 )       29,188,791  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (11,887 )       (3,189,654 )       3,201,541  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     (342,900 )       12,012       330,888  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     50,498       (645,985 )       595,487  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     (36,940)       (585,957 )       622,897  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund           (3,167,733 )       3,167,733  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund           (4,981,712 )       4,981,712  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     859,264       (859,264 )        
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund     62,236       (69,182 )       6,946  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     2,148       (3,512 )       1,364  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     300,573       (320,558 )       19,985  
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund     64,635       (87,411 )       22,776  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     33,860       (33,860 )        

 

As of October 31, 2020, the tax character of distributions paid for the tax year ended October 31, 2020 and October 31, 2019, were as follows:

 

    Year Ended October 31, 2020     Year Ended October 31, 2019  
Fund   Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
    Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund*   $ 643,733     $     $     $ 643,733     $ 12,079     $     $     $ 12,079  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund*     864,658                   864,658       17,800                   17,800  

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      439  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Year Ended October 31, 2020     Year Ended October 31, 2019  
Fund   Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
    Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
 
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund*   $ 168,979     $     $     $ 168,979     $ 21,259     $     $     $ 21,259  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     23,509,426                   23,509,426       23,379,823                   23,379,823  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     23,632,565                   23,632,565       29,033,991                   29,033,991  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     8,202,693                   8,202,693       13,630,561                   13,630,561  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     282,942                   282,942       247,071                   247,071  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     116,751                   116,751       152,761                   152,761  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     976,050                   976,050       1,241,265                   1,241,265  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     1,145,374                   1,145,374       688,327                   688,327  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     1,663,474                   1,663,474       1,626,069                   1,626,069  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     122,625,164                   122,625,164       190,017,355                   190,017,355  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     40,390,855                   40,390,855       26,640,580                   26,640,580  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     14,558,175             168,159       14,726,334       9,305,846                   9,305,846  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     278,767                   278,767       306,154                   306,154  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     41,958,188       9,070,567             51,028,755       45,971,017       23,559,180             69,530,197  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     12,460,723       3,670,468             16,131,191       9,711,281       12,581,459             22,292,740  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     962,948                   962,948       1,341,578                   1,341,578  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     22,159,155                   22,159,155       38,665,442                   38,665,442  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     2,523,077                   2,523,077       4,343,474                   4,343,474  

 

440    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

    Year Ended October 31, 2020     Year Ended October 31, 2019  
Fund   Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
    Distributions
paid from
ordinary
income
    Distributions
paid from net
long term
capital gains
    Tax Return
of Capital
    Total
Distributions
 
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund   $ 952,482     $     $     $ 952,482     $ 2,113,234     $     $     $ 2,113,234  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     12,627,726                   12,627,726       25,965,622                   25,965,622  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     5,908,902                   5,908,902       11,908,603                   11,908,603  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     1,754,929                   1,754,929       1,969,840                   1,969,840  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund     3,976,789                   3,976,789       2,860,050                   2,860,050  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     1,038,434                   1,038,434       997,024                   997,024  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     9,992,636                   9,992,636       3,203,781             826,269       4,030,050  
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund     5,343,876                   5,343,876       6,728,529                   6,728,529  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     1,218,108                   1,218,108       998,241                   998,241  

 

*

Commencement of operations on July 15, 2019

 

As of October 31, 2020, the components of accumulated earnings (deficit) on a tax basis were as follows:

 

Fund   Undistributed
Ordinary
Income
    Undistributed
Long-Term
Capital Gains
    Accumulated
Capital and
Other Losses
    Unrealized
Appreciated/
(Depreciated)
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 186,654     $     $ (868,724   $ 1,351,893  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     210,288             (1,708,254     (1,358,460
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     3,087             (545,534     226,781  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     2,441,895             (79,096,116     346,491,531  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     1,237,942             (117,061,429     (20,847,816
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     310,507             (78,011,005     23,095,188  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     168,259             (1,128,408     (1,199,734
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund                 (1,656,916     (513,673
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     133,627             (3,507,400     5,186,274  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     169,270             (3,513,747     15,503,359  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     231,332             (5,366,150     16,828,960  

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      441  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Undistributed
Ordinary
Income
    Undistributed
Long-Term
Capital Gains
    Accumulated
Capital and
Other Losses
    Unrealized
Appreciated/
(Depreciated)
 
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund   $ 3,856,377     $     $ (977,574,435   $ (312,240,280
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     6,217,165             (109,020,907     66,642,620  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund                 (30,565,577     (20,687,726
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund                 (222,480     (400,344
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     3,478,156             (9,917,370     121,489,593  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     1,413,421             (19,971,345     33,172,128  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     38,701             (1,371,429     1,148,529  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     563,890             (189,294,945     (13,095,926
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     174,900             (28,653,075     (849,122
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     28,131             (15,220,705     (928,652
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     4,357,438             (55,778,871     53,983,593  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     1,572,839             (10,210,702     37,076,640  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     241,890             (3,262,828     2,254,423  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund     1,142,900       2,226,406             7,354,495  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     564,279       1,322,735             1,866,078  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     1,114,591             (4,549,296     (2,153,967
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund     474,950                   2,914,402  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     437,947                   2,150,603  

 

Capital loss carry forwards will retain their character as either short-term or long-term capital losses rather than being considered all short-term as permitted under previous law and may be carried forward indefinitely to offset future gains.

 

For the tax year ended October 31, 2020, the following Funds had available post-enactment capital loss carryforwards to offset future net capital gains to the extent provided by regulations:

 

Fund   Short-Term     Long-Term     Total  
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 868,724     $     $ 868,724  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     1,607,357       100,897       1,708,254  
Fund   Short-Term     Long-Term     Total  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 453,959     $ 91,575     $ 545,534  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     74,336,447       4,759,669       79,096,116  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     34,291,099       82,770,330       117,061,429  
 

 

442    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Short-Term     Long-Term     Total  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 30,327,169     $ 47,683,836     $ 78,011,005  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     349,195       779,213       1,128,408  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     651,616       1,005,300       1,656,916  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     2,340,354       1,167,046       3,507,400  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     3,337,576       176,171       3,513,747  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     4,113,294       1,252,856       5,366,150  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     228,889,023       748,685,412       977,574,435  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     44,443,264       64,577,643       109,020,907  
Fund   Short-Term     Long-Term     Total  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund   $ 24,258,483     $ 6,307,094     $ 30,565,577  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     37,266       185,214       222,480  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     9,917,370             9,917,370  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     19,971,345             19,971,345  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     1,371,429             1,371,429  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     116,530,912       72,764,033       189,294,945  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     17,089,676       11,563,399       28,653,075  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     9,445,653       5,775,052       15,220,705  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     45,388,747       10,390,124       55,778,871  
 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      443  


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Short-Term     Long-Term     Total  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund   $ 8,131,316     $ 2,079,386     $ 10,210,702  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     1,491,912       1,770,916       3,262,828  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     3,389,690       1,159,606       4,549,296  

 

During the year ended October 31, 2020, the following Funds utilized capital loss carryforwards to offset net capital gains:

 

Fund   Capital Loss
Utilized
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 528  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     89,849  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     657,433  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     8,628,004  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     4,553,288  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     186,958  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     372,766  

 

The FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares

International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and the FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund may be subject to foreign withholding taxes with respect to dividends or interest received from sources in foreign countries. If, at the close of the taxable year, more than 50% in value of a Fund’s assets consists of stock or securities in foreign corporations the Fund will be eligible to make an election to treat a proportionate amount of those taxes as constituting a distribution to each shareholder, which would allow all shareholders to either (1) credit that proportionate amount of taxes against U.S. Federal income tax liability as a foreign tax credit or (2) take that amount as an itemized deduction. If a Fund is not eligible to make this election or is eligible but does not make the election, it will be entitled to deduct such taxes in computing the amounts it is required to distribute.

 

3. Investment Transactions and Related Income and Expense

 

Throughout the reporting period, investment transactions are accounted for no later than one business day following the trade date. For financial reporting purposes, investment transactions are accounted for on the trade date on the last business day of the reporting period.

 

Interest income is recognized on an accrual basis. Bond discount is accreted and premium is amortized using the effective yield method. Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date, or as soon as information is available. Gains or losses realized on sales of securities are determined using the specific identification method by comparing the identified cost of the security lot sold with the net sales proceeds.

 

Each Fund except the FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPs Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPs Index Fund and the FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund may hold the securities of real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). Distributions from such investments may be comprised of return of capital, capital gains and income. The actual character of amounts received during the year is not known until after the REIT’s fiscal year end. The Fund records the character of distributions received from REITs during the year based on

 

 

444    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

estimates available. The characterization of distributions received by the Fund may be subsequently revised based on information received from the REITs after their tax reporting periods concluded.

 

All foreign taxes are recorded in accordance with the applicable foreign tax regulations and rates that exist in the foreign markets in which a Fund invests. These foreign taxes, if any, are paid by the Funds and disclosed in the Statements of Operations. Foreign taxes payable, if any, are reflected in the Funds’ Statements of Assets and Liabilities.

 

Expenses directly attributable to a Fund are charged to that Fund, while expenses which are attributable to more than one Fund are allocated among the respective Funds based upon relative net assets or another reasonable basis.

 

4. Investment Advisory Fees

 

NTI serves as the Investment Adviser of the Funds pursuant to the Investment Advisory Agreement. The Investment Adviser is responsible for making investment decisions for the Funds and for placing purchase and sale orders for portfolio securities, subject to the general supervision of the Board.

 

As compensation for its advisory services and assumption of certain Fund expenses, NTI is entitled to a unitary management fee (“Management Fee”), computed daily and payable monthly, at the annual rates set forth in the table below (expressed as a percentage of each Fund’s respective average daily net assets).

 

From the Management Fee, NTI pays most of the expenses of the Fund, including the cost of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services (“Covered Expenses”). Covered Expenses do not include the following fees under the Investment Advisory Agreement: interest expenses, brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, fees and expenses of the independent trustees and their independent legal counsel, taxes and other extraordinary costs such as litigation and other expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of business.

The Management Fee rate payable by each Fund is set forth in the following table:

 

Fund   Unitary
Management Fee
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     0.22
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     0.32
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     0.40
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.25
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.39
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.59
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.44
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.64
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     0.32

FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact

Index Fund

    0.32

FlexShares STOXX® Global

ESG Impact Index Fund

    0.42
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     0.46
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     0.47
FlexShares Global Quality
Real Estate Index Fund
    0.45
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     0.57
FlexShares Quality Dividend
Index Fund
    0.37
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     0.37
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     0.37
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     0.47
 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Unitary
Management Fee
 
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     0.47
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     0.47
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     0.18
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     0.18
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     0.20
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund     0.22
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     0.22
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     0.37
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund     0.25
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     0.35

 

Effective March 1, 2020, the Investment Adviser has contractually agreed until March 1, 2021, to reimburse a portion of the operating expenses for each Fund (other than acquired fund fees and expenses (“AFFE”)) so the “Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Expense Reimbursement” do not exceed the Fund’s Management Fee plus (+) .0049%. In the case of the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, the Investment Adviser has contractually agreed until March 1, 2021 to waive Management Fees or reimburse certain expenses in an amount equal to AFFE attributable to each Fund’s investments in their respective Underlying Fund(s). In the case of the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund, the Investment Adviser has contractually agreed until March 1, 2021 to waive Management Fees or reimburse certain expenses in an amount equal to the sum of (a) any AFFE incurred by the Fund that are attributable to the Fund’s investment in Underlying Funds managed by NTI or an investment adviser controlling, controlled by, or under common control with NTI (“Affiliated Funds”); and (b)

0.05% or such lesser amount in AFFE incurred by the Fund that are attributable to the Fund’s investment in Underlying Funds that are not Affiliated Funds. AFFE are expenses incurred indirectly by the Fund through its ownership of shares in other investment companies. Because AFFE are not direct expenses of the Fund, they are not reflected on the Fund’s financial statements. After these dates, the Investment Adviser and a Fund may mutually agree to extend the contractual arrangements. The Board may terminate the contractual arrangements at any time if it determines that it is in the best interest of a Fund and its shareholders. These expenses and the reimbursements are shown as “Investment advisory fees reimbursed” on the Statements of Operations.

 

In addition, effective October 29, 2018, NTI contractually agreed to reimburse the Funds for certain other fees and

expenses that are not Covered Expenses. These fees and expenses and the reimbursements are shown as Other expenses and Other expenses reimbursed, respectively, in the Statements of Operations.

 

The Investment Adviser may voluntarily waive or reimburse additional management fees. Amounts waived or reimbursed by the Investment Adviser may not be recouped by the Investment Adviser. These waivers and/or reimbursements are shown as Expenses waived and/or reimbursed by Advisor on the Statements of Operations.

 

5. Administration Fees

 

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (“the Administrator”) serves as administrator of the Funds. The Administrator provides certain administrative services to the Funds. For these services, the Administrator is entitled to certain fees and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. These fees and expenses are Covered Expenses as defined above.

 

6. Custodian Fees

 

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (the “Custodian”) acts as custodian for the Funds in accordance with a Global Custody Agreement. The Custodian holds cash, securities and other assets of the Funds as required by the 1940 Act. As compensation for the services rendered under the agreement, the Custodian is entitled to fees and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. These fees and expenses are Covered Expenses as defined above.

 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

7. Trustees Fees

 

The Trust compensates each Trustee who is not an officer, director or employee of Northern Trust Corporation, or its subsidiaries, for his or her services as a Trustee of the Trust and as a member of Board committees.

 

From March 1, 2019, or, with respect to the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund (collectively, the “New Funds”), from June 25, 2019, NTI had contractually agreed to reimburse each Fund its proportionate share of the expenses relating to the administration of the deferred compensation plan (“DC Plan”) for the Trust’s independent trustees allocated to such Fund. These reimbursement arrangements terminated March 1, 2020.

 

The Trust has adopted a DC Plan for its Trustees who are not officers of Northern Trust or NTI. Under the DC Plan, Independent Trustees may elect to defer all or a portion of their compensation. The amount deferred is adjusted periodically based upon the performance of the investment options selected by the Trustees. The investment options currently under the DC Plan are the FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, and the FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund. Expenses related to the DC Plan are stated on the Statements of Operations.

 

8. Distribution and Service Plan

 

Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) serves as the Funds’ distributor and distributes Creation Units (as described in Note 9) for each Fund on an agency basis. The Distributor does not receive a fee from the Funds for its distribution services. However, it receives compensation from NTI for its services as distributor pursuant to a separate letter agreement between it and NTI.

The Trust has adopted a Distribution and Service Plan (“the Plan”) pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. Payments to financial intermediaries under the Plan are tied directly to their own out-of-pocket expenses. The Plan has not been implemented with respect to the Funds. The Plan may not be implemented without further Board approval. The maximum distribution fee is 0.25% of each Fund’s respective average daily net assets under the Plan. The Funds did not pay any 12b-1 fees during the fiscal year.

 

9. Issuance and Redemption of Fund Shares

 

Each Fund only issues and redeems shares to Authorized Participants in exchange for the deposit or delivery of a basket of assets (securities and/or cash), in large blocks known as Creation Units, each of which is comprised of a specified number of shares.

 

Retail investors may only purchase and sell fund shares on a national securities exchange through a broker-dealer and such transactions may be subject to customary commission rates imposed by the broker-dealer.

 

Authorized Participants may pay transaction fees to offset transfer and other transaction costs associated with the issuance and redemption of Creation Units. The transaction fees are paid directly to the Fund and used to offset Fund custody fees. Certain fees or costs associated with Creation Unit purchases may be paid by NTI in certain circumstances. In addition, the Trust may from time to time waive the standard transaction fee. The net custody fees charged to the Fund are paid for by the Investment Adviser through the Fund’s Unitary Fee. Transaction fees remaining in the Funds were as follows:

 

Fund   As of
October 31,
2020
    As of
October 31,
2019
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 3,150     $ 350  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     6,750        
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund            
 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   As of
October 31,
2020
    As of
October 31,
2019
 
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 21,000     $ 7,500  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     80,000       40,000  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund           150,000  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     3,000       2,500  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     1,400       1,750  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     7,500       7,500  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     21,000       19,500  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     26,000       24,000  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     12,000       6,000  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     10,550       8,250  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     4,950       9,750  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     1,100       1,500  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     15,000       30,000  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     5,000       10,000  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     5,000       5,000  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     4,800       800  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund     4,000       500  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund     500       500  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     3,000       3,000  
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund     3,675       1,225  

The FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund and the FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund do not charge standard creation unit transaction fees.

 

10. Investment Transactions

 

For the year ended October 31, 2020, the FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index and FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Funds invested solely in U.S. Government securities. The cost of securities purchased by each Fund and proceeds from sales of securities, excluding short-term securities, derivatives and in-kind transactions for the year ended October 31, 2020, were as follows:

 

Fund   Purchases     Sales  
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 25,350,137     $ 24,825,417  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     28,262,893       23,720,947  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     8,503,274       4,964,887  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     331,376,493       331,107,519  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     147,496,744       228,373,487  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     116,040,190       249,601,085  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     745,976       742,222  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     140,253       99,902  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     27,907,133       28,038,516  
 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Purchases     Sales  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund   $ 47,251,278     $ 46,752,153  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     57,753,388       56,832,871  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     1,125,300,655       1,327,898,450  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     243,759,523       212,364,372  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     181,434,887       186,378,217  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     1,252,320       1,251,698  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     1,087,615,991       1,084,591,714  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     345,378,689       342,123,106  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     21,956,408       22,136,643  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     415,628,107       478,748,180  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     49,622,583       52,562,205  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     26,922,410       32,671,057  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     893,089,589       892,429,115  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     358,151,064       360,562,570  
FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund     177,612,805       114,274,298  
Fund   Purchases     Sales  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund   $ 186,637,601     $ 88,126,721  
FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund††     51,406,762       24,591,187  
FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund     237,905,656       146,799,405  
FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund†††     372,797,125       226,715,899  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     56,514,471       55,578,197  

 

  

Include $1,197,984 in purchases and $1,197,938 in sales in U.S. Government Securities.

 

†† 

Include $107,938 in purchases and $115,051 in sales in U.S. Government Securities.

 

††† 

Include $87,061,821 in purchases and $74,120,880 in sales in U.S. Government Securities.

 

11. In-Kind Transactions

 

During the year ended October 31, 2020, certain Funds received securities in exchange for subscriptions of shares (subscriptions-in-kind). For the year ended October 31, 2020, the fair value of the securities received for subscriptions for each Fund was as follows:

 

Fund   Fair Value  
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 106,699,158  
FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     58,606,291  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     1,733,696  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     27,812,324  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     27,118,183  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     27,908,362  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     14,203,396  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     7,243,101  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     615,324,780  
 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

Fund   Fair Value  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund   $ 76,762,517  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     143,778,475  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     118,491,221  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     7,054,352  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     2,698,972  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     7,239,496  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     333,387,716  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     118,726,110  
FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund     80,334,647  

 

During the year ended October 31, 2020, certain Funds delivered securities in exchange for redemption of shares (redemptions-in-kind). For financial reporting purposes, the Funds recorded net realized gains and losses in connection with each transaction. For the year ended October 31, 2020, the fair value and realized gain (losses) of the securities transferred for redemptions for each Fund were as follows:

 

Fund   Fair Value     Net Realized
Gains(Losses)
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 3,697,294     $ 179,563  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     568,395       45,457  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     301,744,435       143,772,323  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     236,010,227       (10,764,876
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     27,375,549       (2,553,863
Fund   Fair Value     Net Realized
Gains(Losses)
 
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund   $ 1,073,217     $ (238,044
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     2,046,228       6,143  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     10,269,686       1,691,602  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     1,466,972       301,364  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     1,578,732,467       163,069,598  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     108,745,358       13,934,341  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     84,338,190       774,393  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     5,501,392       (48,630
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     451,381,152       72,751,426  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     122,977,357       29,212,604  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     34,437,164       3,185,913  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     177,460,423       452,131  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     10,365,532       721,519  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     22,143,175       623,943  
FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     151,042,256       3,275,464  
FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund     116,424,219       5,057,819  
 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

12. Guarantees and Indemnifications

 

In the normal course of business each Fund enters into contracts with third-party service providers that contain a variety of representations and warranties and that provide general indemnifications. Additionally, under the Funds’ organizational documents, the officers and trustees are indemnified against certain liabilities arising out of the performance of their duties to the Funds. The Funds’ maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown, as it involves possible future claims that may or may not be made against the Funds.

 

13. New Accounting Pronouncements

 

In March 2020, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2020-04, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848) “Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting” (“ASU 2020-04”), which provides optional temporary financial reporting relief from the effect of certain types of contract modifications due to the planned discontinuation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) and other interbank-offered based reference rates as of the end of 2021. The new guidance is effective for certain reference rate-related contract modifications that occur during the period March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022, and the adoption of ASU 2020-04 is elective. Management is currently evaluating the impact, if any, of applying ASU 2020-04.

 

On March 30, 2017, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2017-08 “Premium Amortization on Purchased Callable Debt Securities”, which amends the amortization period for certain purchased callable debt securities held at premium, shortening such period to the earliest call date. The new guidance requires an entity to amortize the premium on a callable debt security within its scope to the earliest call date, unless the guidance for considering estimated prepayments as described above is applied. If the call option is not exercised at the earliest call date, the yield is reset to the effective yield using the payment terms of the security. If the security has more than one call date and the premium was amortized to a call price greater than the next call price, any excess of the amortized cost basis over the amount repayable at the next call date will be amortized to

that date. If there are no other call dates, any excess of the amortized cost basis over the par amount will be amortized to maturity. The ASU 2017-08 is effective for public business entities for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2018. The Funds have adopted the ASU. The ASU did not have a material impact on the Funds.

 

14. LIBOR Transition

 

Certain of the Funds’ investments, payment obligations and financing terms may be based on floating rates, such as LIBOR, Euro Interbank Offered Rate and other similar types of reference rates (each, a “Reference Rate”). On July 27, 2017, the Chief Executive of the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which regulates LIBOR, announced that the FCA will no longer persuade nor compel banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR and certain other Reference Rates after 2021. Such announcement indicates that the continuation of LIBOR and other Reference Rates on the current basis cannot and will not be guaranteed after 2021. The transition away from Reference Rates may lead to increased volatility and illiquidity in markets that are tied to such Reference Rates and reduced values of Reference Rate-related investments. This announcement and any additional regulatory or market changes may have an adverse impact on a Fund’s investments, performance or financial condition. Until then, the Funds may continue to invest in instruments that reference such rates or otherwise use such Reference Rates due to favorable liquidity or pricing.

 

15. Legal Proceedings

 

On or about February 14, 2020, Marc S. Kirschner, as Trustee for NWHI Litigation Trust (the “Trust”), and Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB, as successor indenture trustee for various notes issued by Nine West Holdings, Inc. (together with the Trustee, “Plaintiffs”), filed separate complaints in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (case nos. 20-cv-01129 and 20-cv-01136, respectively) against a group of defendants that includes the FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund in its capacity as a former public shareholder of The Jones Group Inc. (“Jones Group”). The claims in these actions

 

 

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Notes to the Financial Statements (cont.)

 

 

stem from a series of merger transactions (“Transactions”) entered into by Jones Group in 2014 that allegedly rendered Jones Group insolvent. The FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund allegedly received $224,910 as a result of the Transactions. The Plaintiffs seek to clawback these proceeds for the benefit of the Trust and the noteholders on the basis that they allegedly were fraudulent conveyances.

 

During the quarter ended June 30, 2020, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ordered the transfer of these actions and several substantially similar actions filed in other districts to the Southern District of New York for consolidated pre-trial proceedings. On June 29, 2020, the former public shareholder defendants, including FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, filed a motion to dismiss on the basis that the payments made to them in connection with the Transactions were shielded from the fraudulent conveyance claims under Section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code. On August 27, 2020, all fraudulent conveyance claims against the former public shareholder defendants were dismissed. Plaintiffs are currently in the process of appealing from that decision.

 

Since it is presently not possible to determine the outcome of these matters, no provision has been made in the financial statements for their ultimate resolution. In management of the Funds’ opinion, the final resolution of the above legal matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Funds’ financial statements. The Funds intend to vigorously defend these actions.

 

16. Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

 

The outbreak of a respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus was first detected in December 2019 and has spread internationally. The outbreak and efforts to contain its spread have resulted in closing borders and quarantines, restricting international and domestic travel, enhanced health screenings, cancellations, disrupted supply chains and customer activity, responses by businesses (including changes to operations and reducing staff), and have produced general concern and uncertainty. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future could adversely affect national

and global economies, individual companies and the market in general in a manner and for a period of time that cannot be foreseen at the present time and may adversely affect the value, volatility and liquidity of securities held by a Fund. In addition, during periods of market disruption or other abnormal market conditions, the Funds’ exposure to the risks described in their respective prospectuses and statements of additional information will likely increase. In the event of a pandemic or an outbreak, there can be no assurance that the Funds and their service providers will be able to maintain normal business operations for an extended period of time or will not lose the services of key personnel on a temporary or long-term basis due to illness or other reasons, and could otherwise disrupt the ability of the Fund’s service providers to perform essential services. Certain economic and market conditions arising out of a pandemic or outbreak could result in a Fund’s inability to achieve its investment objectives, cause the postponement of reconstitution or rebalance dates for benchmark or underlying indices, adversely affect the prices and liquidity of the securities and other instruments in which a Fund invests, negatively impact a Fund’s performance, and cause losses on your investment in a Fund. Management is monitoring the development of the pandemic, which was ongoing as of the date of the financial statements and is evaluating its impact on the financial position and operating results of the Funds.

 

17. Subsequent Events

 

Management has evaluated subsequent events for the Funds through the date the financial statements were issued and has concluded that there are no recognized or non-recognized subsequent events relevant for financial statement disclosure, other than the item noted below.

 

At a Board meeting held on December 11, 2020, the Board approved the liquidation and termination of the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund. These Funds will be liquidated and terminated on or about January 29, 2021. The liquidation date may be changed at the discretion of the Trust’s officers.

 

 

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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

 

 

To the Shareholders and Board of Trustees of FlexShares® Trust

 

Opinion on the Financial Statements and Financial Highlights

 

We have audited the accompanying statements of assets and liabilities of FlexShares® Trust, comprising the funds listed in the table below (collectively, the “Funds”), including the schedules of investments, as of October 31, 2020, the related statements of operations, the statements of changes in net assets, and the financial highlights for each of the periods listed in the table below, and the related notes. In our opinion, the financial statements and financial highlights present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of each of the funds constituting FlexShares® Trust as of October 31, 2020, and the results of their operations, the changes in their net assets, and the financial highlights for each of the periods listed in the table below in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

 

Fund Name(s)   Statement of
Operations
  Statements of
Changes in Net
Assets
  Financial Highlights

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

  For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

  For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period from November 9, 2015 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2016
FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund   For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period from November 23, 2015 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2016

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      453  


Table of Contents

 

 

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (cont.)

 

 

Fund Name(s)   Statement of
Operations
  Statements of
Changes in Net
Assets
  Financial Highlights

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

  For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period from July 13, 2016 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2016
FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund   For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019 and for the period from July 17, 2018 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2018
FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund   For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the years ended October 31, 2020 and 2019   For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019, 2018 and for the period from November 18, 2016 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2017

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

  For the year ended October 31, 2020   For the year ended October 31, 2020 and for the period from July 15, 2019 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2019   For the year ended October 31, 2020 and for the period from July 15, 2019 (commencement of operations) through October 31, 2019

 

Basis for Opinion

 

These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of the Funds’ management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Funds’ financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Funds in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

 

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Funds are not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of their internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Funds’ internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

 

 

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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (cont.)

 

 

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and financial highlights, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and financial highlights. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and financial highlights. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of October 31, 2020, by correspondence with the custodian and brokers; when replies were not received from brokers, we performed other auditing procedures. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

 

/s/ DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLP

 

Chicago, Illinois

December 21, 2020

 

We have served as the auditor of one or more Northern Trust investment companies since 2002.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      455  


Table of Contents

 

 

Tax Information October 31, 2020 (Unaudited)

 

 

QUALIFIED DIVIDEND INCOME (QDI)

 

Under the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (the “Act”), the following percentages of ordinary dividends paid during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020 are designated as “qualified dividend income”, as defined in the Act, subject to reduced tax rates in 2020:

 

Fund  

QDI

PERCENTAGE

 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     100.00
FlexShares Developed Markets Ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     100.00  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     69.05  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     82.24  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     52.12  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     51.83  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     41.90  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     47.71  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     100.00  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     98.47  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     100.00  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     82.53  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     81.08  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     7.96  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     41.24  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     81.07  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     90.73  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     78.17  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     67.09  
Fund  

QDI

PERCENTAGE

 
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     72.75
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     70.10  

 

CORPORATE DIVIDENDS RECEIVED

DEDUCTION (DRD)

 

A percentage of the dividends distributed during the fiscal year for the following Funds qualifies for the dividends received deduction for corporate shareholders:

 

Fund   CORPORATE
DRD
PERCENTAGE
 
FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     100.00
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     0.01  
FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund     78.75  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.03  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.03  
FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund     100.00  
FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund     95.15  
FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund     61.63  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     30.51  
FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     43.06  
FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund     0.13  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     18.37  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund     79.82  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     88.98  
FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     75.77  
 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Tax Information (cont.)

 

 

FOREIGN TAX CREDIT

 

Each Fund below intends to make an election that will allow its shareholders to treat their proportionate share of foreign taxes paid by the Fund as having been paid by them. The amounts per share, which represent income from sources within, and taxes paid to foreign countries, are as follows:

 

Fund   TAXES     INCOME  
FlexShares Developed Markets Ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund   $ 0.0421     $ 0.4149  
FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund     0.0685       0.4444  
FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.1335       1.9043  
FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.1810       1.4637  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.0494       0.6629  
FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund     0.0986       0.7074  
FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund     0.0345       0.7868  
FlexShares STOXX Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund     0.0369       0.6948  
FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund     0.0251       0.4577  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund     0.0724       1.0549  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund     0.0754       0.8909  
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund     0.0690       1.0196  
 

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      457  


Table of Contents

 

 

Fund Expenses (Unaudited)

 

 

As a shareholder, you incur two types of costs:

(1) Transaction costs for purchasing and selling shares and (2) ongoing costs, including advisory and other Fund expenses. The expense examples below are intended to help you understand your ongoing costs (in dollars) of investing in the Funds and to compare these costs with the ongoing costs of investing in other funds.

 

Actual Expenses

 

The actual expense examples are based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of a six month period and held through the period ended October 31, 2020.

 

The first line under each Fund in the following tables provides information about actual account values and actual expenses. You may use the information in this line, together with the amount you invested, to estimate the expenses that you paid over the period. Simply divide your account value by $1,000 (for example, an $8,600 account value divided by $1,000 = 8.6), then multiply the result by the number in the first line under the heading “Expenses Paid During the Period” to estimate the expenses you paid on your account during this period.

Hypothetical Example for Comparison Purposes

 

The hypothetical expense examples are based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of a six month period and held through the period ended October 31, 2020.

 

The second line under each Fund in the following table provides information about hypothetical account values and hypothetical expenses based on the Fund’s actual expense ratio and an assumed rate of return of 5% per year before expenses, which is not the Fund’s actual return. The hypothetical account values and expenses may not be used to estimate the actual ending account balance or expenses you paid for the period. You may use this information to compare the ongoing costs of investing in the Funds and other funds. To do so, compare this 5% hypothetical example with the 5% hypothetical examples that appear in the shareholder reports of the other funds.

 

Please note that the expenses shown in the table are meant to highlight your ongoing costs only and do not reflect any transaction costs, such as brokerage commissions on purchases or sales of Fund shares. Therefore, the second line for each Fund in the table is useful in comparing ongoing costs only, and will not help you determine the relative total costs of owning different funds. In addition, if these transaction costs were included, your costs would have been higher.

 

 

    Beginning
Account
Value
    Ending
Account
Value
10/31/20
    Expenses Paid
During the
Period*
    Annualized
Expense Ratio
During Period
 

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,090.90     $ 1.21       0.23
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.98     $ 1.17       0.23
FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,030.50     $ 1.68       0.33
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.48     $ 1.68       0.33
FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,115.90     $ 2.18       0.41
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.08     $ 2.08       0.41

 

458    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Fund Expenses (cont.)

 

 

    Beginning
Account
Value
    Ending
Account
Value
10/31/20
    Expenses Paid
During the
Period*
    Annualized
Expense Ratio
During Period
 
FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,149.90     $ 1.41       0.26
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.83     $ 1.32       0.26
FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,087.70     $ 2.10       0.40
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.13     $ 2.03       0.40
FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,154.30     $ 3.19       0.59
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.17     $ 3.00       0.59
FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund(a)

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,056.00     $ 0.31       0.06
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.83     $ 0.31       0.06
FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund(a)

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,148.60     $ 0.32       0.06
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.83     $ 0.31       0.06
FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,105.40     $ 1.75       0.33
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.48     $ 1.68       0.33
FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,134.50     $ 1.77       0.33
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.48     $ 1.68       0.33
FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,120.50     $ 2.29       0.43
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.97     $ 2.19       0.43
FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,042.40     $ 2.36       0.46
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.82     $ 2.34       0.46
FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,060.20     $ 2.49       0.48
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.72     $ 2.44       0.48
FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,012.80     $ 2.33       0.46
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.82     $ 2.34       0.46

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      459  


Table of Contents

 

 

Fund Expenses (cont.)

 

 

    Beginning
Account
Value
    Ending
Account
Value
10/31/20
    Expenses Paid
During the
Period*
    Annualized
Expense Ratio
During Period
 
FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund(a)

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,045.80     $ 0.57       0.11
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.58     $ 0.56       0.11
FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,090.10     $ 2.00       0.38
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.23     $ 1.93       0.38
FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,063.80     $ 1.97       0.38
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.23     $ 1.93       0.38
FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,130.70     $ 1.98       0.37
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.28     $ 1.88       0.37
FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,075.70     $ 2.45       0.47
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.77     $ 2.39       0.47
FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,072.50     $ 2.50       0.48
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.72     $ 2.44       0.48
FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,083.50     $ 2.51       0.48
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,022.72     $ 2.44       0.48
FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,036.40     $ 0.97       0.19
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.18     $ 0.97       0.19
FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,041.50     $ 0.98       0.19
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.18     $ 0.97       0.19
FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,012.40     $ 1.06       0.21
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.08     $ 1.07       0.21
FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,050.70     $ 1.19       0.23
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.98     $ 1.17       0.23

 

460    FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT


Table of Contents

 

 

Fund Expenses (cont.)

 

 

    Beginning
Account
Value
    Ending
Account
Value
10/31/20
    Expenses Paid
During the
Period*
    Annualized
Expense Ratio
During Period
 
FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,055.50     $ 1.19       0.23
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.98     $ 1.17       0.23
FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,124.20     $ 2.03       0.38
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.23     $ 1.93       0.38
FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,015.50     $ 1.32       0.26
Hypothetical   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,023.83     $ 1.32       0.26
FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund(a)

 

Actual   $ 1,000.00     $ 1,021.10     $ 0.97       0.19

Hypothetical

  $ 1,000.00     $ 1,024.18     $ 0.97       0.19

 

*

Expenses are equal to the average account value over the period multiplied by the Fund’s annualized expense ratio, multiplied by the number of days in the most recent fiscal half-year divided by the number of days in the fiscal year (to reflect the one half year period).

 

(a)

Annualized expense ratio and expenses paid during the period do not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Fund(s) in which the Fund invests.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      461  


Table of Contents

 

 

Trustees and Officers (Unaudited)

 

 

NON-INTERESTED TRUSTEES
Name, Address(1) and Age   Position(s)
Held with
the Trust
 

Term of

Office and
Length of
Time Served
(2)

  Principal Occupation(s) During
Past 5 Years
 

Number of

Funds

in Fund
Complex
(3)
Overseen

by Trustee

    Other
Directorships
Held by
Trustee
(4)

Sarah N. Garvey

Age: 68

  Trustee   July 2011 to present  

•  Chairman of the Board of Navy Pier from 2011 to 2013 and Member of the Board since 2011;

•  Member of the Board of Directors of The Civic Federation since 2004;

•  Member of the Executive Committee and Chairman of the Audit Committee since 2017 and Trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago since 2011.

    29     None

Philip G. Hubbard

Age: 69

  Trustee   July 2011 to present  

•  Managing Partner of Solidian Fund, LP and Solidian Management, LLC (a fund of hedge funds platform for family and friends investments) since 2001;

•  President of Hubbard Management Group, LLC (a personal investment vehicle) since 2001;

•  Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Wheaton College Trust Company, N. A. since 2004;

•  Member of the Board of Trustees of Wheaton College since 1998;

•  Chairman of the Board of Directors of the English Language Institute/China (a nonprofit educational organization) since 1993;

•  Member of the Board of First Cup, LLC (restaurant franchising) since 2014.

    29     None

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

Trustees and Officers (cont.)

 

 

Name, Address(1) and Age   Position(s)
Held with
the Trust
 

Term of

Office and
Length of
Time Served
(2)

  Principal Occupation(s) During
Past 5 Years
 

Number of

Funds

in Fund
Complex
(3)
Overseen

by Trustee

    Other
Directorships
Held by
Trustee
(4)

Eric T. McKissack

Age: 66

  Trustee and Chairman   July 2011 to present  

•  CEO Emeritus and Founder; CEO and Founder from 2004 to 2019 of Channing Capital Management, LLC (an SEC registered investment adviser);

•  Member of the Board of Trustees, the Investment Committee, and the Finance Committee of the Art Institute of Chicago since 2002;

•  Member of the Board of Grand Victoria Foundation since 2011;

•  Member of the Board of the Graham Foundation since 2014.

    29     Morgan
Stanley
Pathway
Funds
(formerly,
Consulting
Group
Capital
Markets
Funds) (11
Portfolios)
Since April
2013
INTERESTED TRUSTEE

Darek Wojnar(5)

Age: 55

  Trustee   December 2018 to present  

•  Director and Executive Vice President, Head of Funds and Managed Accounts, Northern Trust Investments Inc. since 2018;

•  Managing Member of the Wojnar Group LLC (a publishing industry consulting company) since 2013;

•  Head of Exchange-Traded Funds at Hartford Funds from 2016 to 2017 and Managing Director of Lattice Strategies LLC from 2014 to 2016;

•  Managing Director and Head of US iShares Product at BlackRock (including Barclays Global Investors acquired by BlackRock) from 2005 to 2013 and the Equity Long/Short Opportunities Fund (formerly, NT Equity Long/Short Strategies Fund) from 2011 to 2019.

    29     Northern
Funds (43
Portfolios)
since
January 1,
2019 and
Northern
Institutional
Funds (6
Portfolios)
since
January 1,
2019

 

(1) 

Each Non-Interested Trustee may be contacted by writing to the Trustee, c/o Paulita Pike, Ropes & Gray LLP, 191 North Wacker Drive, 32nd Floor, Chicago, IL 60606. Mr. Wojnar may be contacted by writing to him at 50 S. LaSalle St., Chicago, IL 60603.

 

(2) 

Each Trustee will hold office for an indefinite term until the earliest of: (i) the next meeting of shareholders, if any, called for the purpose of considering the election or re-election of such Trustee and until the election and qualification of his or her successor, if any, elected at such meeting; or (ii) the date a Trustee resigns or retires, or a Trustee is removed by the Board or shareholders, in accordance with the Trust’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust.

 

(3) 

The “Fund Complex” consists of the Trust.

 

(4) 

This column includes only directorships of companies required to report to the SEC under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (i.e., public companies) or other investment companies registered under the 1940 Act.

 

(5) 

An “interested person,” as defined by the 1940 Act. Mr. Wojnar is deemed to be an “interested” Trustee because he is an officer of NTI and its parent company.

 

The Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) includes additional information about the Trust’s Trustees and is available, without charge, upon request by contacting the Fund directly at (855) 933-6287.

 

FLEXSHARES ANNUAL REPORT      463  


Table of Contents

 

 

Trustees and Officers (cont.)

 

 

OFFICERS      
Name, Address and Age  

Position(s)
Held with

the Trust

  Term of
Office
(1) and
Length of
Time Served
  Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years

Darlene Chappell

Age: 57

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Anti-Money Laundering Officer   July 2011 to present  

•  Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer for Northern Trust Investments, Inc., Northern Trust Securities, Inc., Northern Funds, Northern Institutional Funds, and Alpha Core Strategies Fund (formerly NT Alpha Strategies Fund) since 2009, Equity Long/Short Opportunities Fund (formerly NT Equity Long/ Short Strategies Fund) since 2011 and 50 South Capital Advisors, LLC since 2015 and Belvedere Advisors LLC since September 2019; Vice President and Compliance Consultant for The Northern Trust Company since 2006; Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer for Northern Trust Company of Connecticut from 2009 to 2013.

Susan W. Yee

Age: 50

70 Fargo Street, Boston, MA 02110

  Assistant Secretary   October 2014 to present  

•  Vice President, Regulatory Services Group, J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. since 1994, in various positions.

Jonathan Chung

Age: 31

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Vice President   June 2020 to present  

•  Second Vice President – ETF Product Manager, Northern Trust Asset Management, since July 2015; Field Supervisor from April 2015 to July 2015 and Staff Auditor I-II from June 2012 to April 2015, National Futures Association.

Jose J. Del Real

Age: 42

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Secretary   December 2018 to present  

•  Senior Legal Counsel and Senior Vice President, Asset Management Practice Group of the Legal Department of The Northern Trust Company since March 2017; Senior Legal Counsel and Vice President, Asset Management Practice Group of the Legal Department of The Northern Trust Company from August 2015 to March 2017; Assistant Secretary of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since 2016; Legal Counsel and Vice President, Asset Management Practice Group of the Legal Department of The Northern Trust Company from 2014 until 2015; Secretary of Northern Funds and Northern Institutional Funds since November 2018; Assistant Secretary of Northern Funds and Northern Institutional Funds from 2011 to 2014 and from May 2015 to November 2018; Assistant Secretary of FlexShares Trust from June 2015 to December 2018.

Maya Teufel

Age: 48

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Chief Compliance Officer   July 2019 to present  

•  Chief Compliance Officer of FlexShares Trust since July 2019; Chief Compliance Officer of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since July 2019; Co-Head of U.S. Regulatory Compliance Group of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, LP from September 2016 to June 2019; General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Emerging Global Advisors, LLC from November 2013 to August 2016; and Vice President and Corporate Counsel of Jennison Associates LLC from July 2005 to November 2013.

Randal E. Rein

Age: 50

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer   July 2011 to present  

•  Senior Vice President of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since 2010; Treasurer of Northern Funds and Northern Institutional Funds since 2008; Treasurer of Alpha Core Strategies Fund from 2008 to 2018; Treasurer of Equity Long/Short Opportunities Fund from 2011 to 2018.

 

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Trustees and Officers (cont.)

 

 

Name, Address and Age  

Position(s)
Held with

the Trust

  Term of
Office
(1) and
Length of
Time Served
  Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years

Peter K. Ewing

Age: 61

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  President   March 2017 to present  

•  President of Northern Funds, Northern Institutional Funds and the Trust since March 2017; Vice President of the Trust from July 2011 to February 2017; Director of Product Management, ETFs & Mutual Funds, and Director of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since March 2017; Senior Vice President, The Northern Trust Company and Northern Trust Investments, Inc., since September 2010; Director of ETF Product Management, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. from September 2010 to February 2017.

Peter J. Flood

Age: 62

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Vice President   July 2011 to present  

•  Director of ETF Investment Strategy, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since 2010; Portfolio Manager, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. from 2007 to 2014.

Craig R. Carberry, Esq.

Age: 59

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Chief Legal Officer   June 2019 to present  

•  Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since May 2000; Chief Compliance Officer of Northern Trust Investments, Inc. from October 2015 to June 2017; Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of 50 South Capital Advisors, LLC since 2015; Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of Belvedere Advisors LLC since September 2019; Associate General Counsel and Senior Vice President at The Northern Trust Company since June 2015; Assistant General Counsel and U.S. Funds General Counsel at The Northern Trust Company from July 2014 to June 2015; Senior Legal Counsel and U.S. Funds General Counsel at The Northern Trust Company from 2000-2014; Secretary of Alpha Core Strategies Fund (formerly NT Alpha Strategies Fund) since 2004; Secretary of Equity Long/Short Opportunities Fund (formerly NT Equity Long/Short Strategies Fund) from 2011-2109; Secretary of Northern Institutional Funds and Northern Funds from 2010-2018; Secretary of FlexShares Trust from 2011-2018.

Christopher P. Fair Age: 38

50 South LaSalle Street Chicago, IL 60603

  Vice President   June 2019 to present  

•  Vice President, The Northern Trust Company since March 2020; ETF Services Manager, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. since June 2019; Second Vice President, The Northern Trust Company from November 2015 to March 2020; ETF Product Manager, Northern Trust Investments, Inc. from November 2015 to June 2019; Fund Administration Supervisor, Calamos Investments LLC from February 2015 to November 2015; Senior Mutual Fund Accountant, Calamos Investments LLC from February 2009 to January 2015.

 

(1) 

Officers hold office at the pleasure of the Board until their successors are duly elected and qualified, or until they die, resign, are removed or become disqualified.

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (Unaudited)

 

 

The Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of the FlexShares Trust (the “Trust”) oversees the management of the Trust and each separate series of the Trust covered in this report (each, a “Fund” and, collectively, the “Funds”) and, as required by law, determines whether to approve the Trust’s investment advisory and ancillary services agreement (the “Advisory Agreement”) with Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (the “Adviser”), an indirect subsidiary of the Northern Trust Corporation.

 

* * * * *

 

At a meeting on June 12, 2020 (the “June Meeting”), the Board, including all of the Trustees who are not parties to the Advisory Agreement or interested persons of any such party (the “Independent Trustees”), considered whether to approve the continuation of the Advisory Agreement between the Adviser and the Trust, on behalf of each Fund.1

 

In advance of, and in preparation for, the Trustees’ consideration of the Advisory Agreement at the June Meeting, the Trustees received written materials relating to the Advisory Agreement and had the opportunity to ask questions and request further information in connection with their consideration. At the June Meeting, the Trustees considered the Adviser’s presentations and discussed all of the information that had been provided. Among other things, the Board considered comparisons with other funds in relevant peer universes and peer groups that had been objectively determined by Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge”), an independent provider of fund data, which included, among other things, the following information: (1) a description of the types of funds chosen by Broadridge to compare to each Fund; (2) comparative performance data for each Fund; (3) data on each Fund’s expenses and fees; and (4) comparative fee data for each Fund’s respective peer group, including comparisons of advisory fees and total expense ratios. In considering the Advisory Agreement, the Independent Trustees met with their independent legal counsel separately from the “interested” Trustee of the Trust and officers and employees of the Adviser. After evaluating all the materials, the

 

1 

The June Meeting was held via telephonic and video conference in reliance on an exemptive order issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 25, 2020.

Trustees, including the Independent Trustees, concluded that the Advisory Agreement was in the best interest of each of the Funds and their shareholders and approved the continuation of the Advisory Agreement on behalf of the Funds.

 

The material factors and conclusions that formed the basis for the Trustees reaching their determination to approve the continuation of the Advisory Agreement are separately discussed below.

 

Nature, Quality and Extent of Services

 

The Board examined the nature, quality and extent of the services provided by the Adviser to each Fund. The Board also considered the Adviser’s responsibilities under the Advisory Agreement to perform securities trading services and ancillary services including, among other things: (i) filing reports with the SEC, (ii) periodically updating the Trust’s registration statement, (iii) establishing and maintaining the Funds’ website to comply with regulatory requirements, (iv) monitoring anticipated purchases and redemptions of creation units by shareholders and new investors, (v) providing information and assistance as required by the Trust’s administrator and fund accountant in connection with the Trust’s shares, and (vi) providing assistance in connection with the operations of the Trust generally.

 

The Board also considered the quality of the Adviser’s resources that are made available to the Trust. The Board noted the Adviser’s and its affiliates’ financial position, stability and commitment to growing their exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) business. The Board also considered the operation and strength of the Adviser’s compliance program.

 

The Board noted that Foreside Fund Services, LLC, an entity unaffiliated with the Adviser, provides distribution services to the Funds and that JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., also an unaffiliated entity, provides custody, transfer agency, securities lending and fund administration support services, and that these service provider arrangements were relevant to the Board’s considerations of the totality of the circumstances surrounding renewal of the Advisory Agreement. The Board concluded that each Fund benefited

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

from the services provided under the Advisory Agreement and as a result of the Adviser’s operations, resources, experience, reputation and personnel.

 

Performance, Fees and Expenses

 

The Board considered that, unlike FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund and FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund (each, an “Active Fund”), the investment objective of each Fund other than the Active Funds (each, an “Index Fund”) is to seek investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of a specified index (each, an “Underlying Index”). The Board considered the Adviser’s explanation that performance information with respect to funds in relevant peer universes and peer groups selected by Broadridge is only one of several comparative data points and that none of the peer funds sought to track an index that was the same as the Index Fund’s Underlying Index. The Board considered the information that the Adviser provided regarding the difference between each Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, and the performance of its Underlying Index or benchmark index (as applicable) over certain periods of time, including as noted further below, ended March 31, 2020 (the “Tracking Difference”). The Board considered the Adviser’s expectations for the Index Fund’s Tracking Difference and noted the Adviser’s view that all instances of Tracking Difference for the Index Funds reflect results well within appropriate expectations after taking into account (i) all of the factors that affect Tracking Difference and (ii) the ancillary objectives of minimizing portfolio transaction costs and tax-related inefficiencies.

 

The Board also considered comparative performance, fee and expense information of each Fund provided by Broadridge. The Broadridge comparisons ranked each Fund in various quintiles over certain periods of time, including as noted further below, ended March 31, 2020, with the first quintile being the lowest or best 20% of the funds in terms of fund cost and fund performance, respectively. The Board noted that, in certain cases, the Broadridge peer funds included funds sponsored by an “at cost” service provider and that there were limitations in providing comparable peer funds. Also, in certain instances, the Board considered additional periods as noted below.

The Board considered that, effective March 1, 2020, the Adviser contractually agreed to reimburse the portion of the operating expenses of each Fund until at least March 1, 2021, so that, after such reimbursement, the total annual fund operating expenses of a Fund, excluding any acquired fund fees and expenses, expressed as a percentage of average daily net assets, does not exceed an amount equal to the sum of (i) the Fund’s advisory fee rate and (ii) 0.0049% (the “Expense Reimbursement Agreement”).

 

In reaching its determinations, the Board considered a large amount of data provided by the Adviser in response to a written request previously submitted by the Independent Trustees to the Adviser. Among the information considered by the Board was the following information:

 

Index Funds:

 

FlexShares® Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one- and three-year periods and within six basis points for the five-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period, the fourth quintile for the two-, three- and four- year periods and the fifth quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board noted that the Fund’s advisory fee was lower than its expense group median while its total expense ratio was equal to its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one- and three-year periods and within two basis points of its Underlying Index for the five-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period and the fifth quintile for the one- and three-year periods.

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio was lower than its expense group median while its advisory fee was higher than its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 65 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board noted that the Fund’s gross performance, before fees and expenses, was within six basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year period, which the Adviser believes is within reasonable tolerances given that the Fund’s portfolio included for the period entails over 2,000 individual emerging market securities and that the Fund’s Underlying Index rebalances quarterly. The Board noted that the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period and the fifth quintile for the one- and three-year periods.

 

The Board noted that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within eleven basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, had been within 80 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods. The Board also noted, however, the Adviser’s assertion that the Fund’s Tracking Difference was within its expected historical range in light of its unique structure as a fund-of- funds. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were lower than its expense group median. The Board also considered that the Adviser had agreed to waive a portion of its advisory fee and/or reimburse operating expenses in an amount equal to any acquired fund fees

and expenses incurred by the Fund that were attributable to its investment in other Funds.

 

FlexShares® Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was below that of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods. The Board also noted, however, the Adviser’s assertion that the Fund’s Tracking Difference was within its expected historical range in light of its unique structure as a fund-of-funds. The Board also considered that, while the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile of its performance universe for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods ended March 31, 2020, its performance ranked in the first and third quintiles, respectively, for the one- and three-year periods ended March 31, 2019.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were lower than its expense group median. The Board also considered that the Adviser had agreed to waive a portion of its advisory fee and/or reimburse operating expenses in an amount equal to any acquired fund fees and expenses incurred by the Fund that were attributable to its investment in other Funds.

 

FlexShares® US Quality Large Cap Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 29 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods and that, gross of expenses, the Fund outperformed its Underlying Index for the one-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile of its performance universe for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within six basis points of its expense group median.

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the one- and three-year periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was equal to the performance of its Underlying Index for the since inception period and within 15 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one- and three-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the one- and three- year periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 43 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period and the second quintile for the one- and three-year periods.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio was lower than its expense group median while its advisory fee was equal to its expense group median.

FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period, the third quintile for the three-year period and the fourth quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one- and five-year periods and equal to the performance of its Underlying Index for the three-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period and the fourth quintile for the one- and three-year periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio was lower than its expense group median while its advisory fee was equal to its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Real Assets Allocation Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 12 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the three-year and since inception periods and the fourth quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were lower than its expense group median. The Board also considered that the Adviser had agreed to waive a portion of its advisory fee and/or reimburse operating expenses in an amount equal to any acquired fund fees

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

and expenses incurred by the Fund that were attributable to its investment in other Funds.

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 59 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the three- and five-year periods and the fourth quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were equal to its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 64 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods and that, gross of expenses, the Fund outperformed its Underlying Index for the one-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the three- and five-year periods and the third quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio was equal to its expense group median while its advisory fee was higher than its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was above the performance of its Underlying Index for the one-year period and within 32 basis points of its Underlying Index for the three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the three- and five-year periods and the fourth quintile for the one-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were equal to its expense group median.

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 33 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods and that, gross of expenses, the Fund outperformed its Underlying Index for the one-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile for the one-, three- and five- year periods.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 53 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods and that, gross of expenses, the Fund outperformed its Underlying Index for the one-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile of its performance universe for the one-, three- and five-year periods.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 41 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period, the third quintile for the one-year period and the fourth quintile for the three-year period.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 15 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile of its performance universe for the one- and five-year periods and the fourth quintile for the three-year period.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within 3.3 basis points of its expense group median. The Board also noted the reduction in the advisory fee rate payable by the Fund, as of November 1, 2017.

 

FlexShares® iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 21 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the five-year period and the second quintile for the one- and three-year periods.

 

The Board took into account that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within 3.3 basis points of its expense group median. The Board also noted the reduction in the advisory fee rate payable by the Fund, as of November 1, 2017.

 

FlexShares® Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 51 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked

in the first quintile for the one-year period, the third quintile for the three-year period and the fourth quintile for the five-year period.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio was within 14 basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 31 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-, three- and five-year periods and that, gross of expenses, the Fund outperformed its Underlying Index for the one-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the third quintile for the one-, three- and five- year periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within seven basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 50 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the one-year, three-year and since inception periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within seven basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 42 basis points of its Underlying Index for the one-year period and within 68 basis

 

 

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Approval of Advisory Agreement (cont.)

 

 

points for the period since inception. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the fourth quintile of its performance universe for the one-year period. The Board also noted that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile for the period since inception ended March 31, 2019. Further, the Board considered the Fund’s relatively short performance record.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 24 basis points of its Underlying Index for the period since inception on July 16, 2019. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance for the period since inception on July 16, 2019. Further, the Board considered the Fund’s relatively short performance record.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were lower than its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 22 basis points of its Underlying Index for the period since inception on July 16, 2019. The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance for the period since inception on July 16, 2019. Further, the Board considered the Fund’s relatively short performance record.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio was lower than its expense group median while its advisory fee was higher than its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance, after fees and expenses, was within 20 basis points of its Underlying Index for the period since inception on July 16, 2019.

The Board also considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance for the period since inception on July 16, 2019. Further, the Board considered the Fund’s relatively short performance record.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio was lower than its expense group median while its advisory fee was equal to its expense group median.

 

Active Funds:

 

FlexShares® Ready Access Variable Income Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the second quintile of its performance universe for the one-, three- and five-year periods. The Board also considered that the Fund outperformed its benchmark index for the one-, three- and five-year periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were higher than its expense group median, but that the Fund’s total expense ratio (which represents the total cost to investors) was within two basis points of its expense group median.

 

FlexShares® Core Select Bond Fund

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s performance ranked in the first quintile of its performance universe for the one-year period and the second quintile for the three-year period. The Board also considered that the Fund outperformed its benchmark index for the one-year, three- year and since inception periods.

 

The Board considered that the Fund’s total expense ratio and advisory fee were equal to its expense group median. The Board also considered that the Adviser had agreed to waive a portion of its advisory fee and/or reimburse operating expenses in an amount equal to any acquired fund fees and expenses incurred by the Fund that were attributable to its investment in other Funds, as well as up to 0.05% of acquired fund fees and expenses attributable to the Fund’s investment in unaffiliated funds.

 

Costs of Services and Profits of the Adviser

 

The Board considered the unitary fee structure and the expenses for each Fund and noted that, under the Advisory

 

 

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Agreement, the Adviser was responsible for most expenses of the Funds, including the cost of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services. The Board considered that the Adviser was not responsible under the Advisory Agreement for certain expenses, including the fees and expenses of the Trust’s Independent Trustees and their independent legal counsel, litigation expenses and other extraordinary expenses. The Board considered the agreement between the Trust and the Adviser, whereby the Adviser had agreed to reimburse certain expenses of the Independent Trustees with respect to each Fund, which terminated March 1, 2020.

 

The Board considered the advisory fee for each Fund as compared to that of other comparable funds in relation to its respective Broadridge median. The Board considered the Adviser’s explanation that each Index Fund’s contractual advisory fee (which, owing to the unitary fee structure and the existence of the expense reimbursement agreement, is identical to its total expense ratio) compared favorably with its respective Broadridge median contractual advisory fee for comparable funds set forth in the Broadridge report, especially taking into account, among other factors, important differences between the indexes upon which such comparable funds are based and the Index Fund’s Underlying Index, including in certain cases differences between the number of portfolio holdings for comparable funds and the Funds. The Board considered the advisory fee schedules for other accounts with similar investment advisory mandates as those of the Funds, noting that there were no comparable accounts for certain of the Funds. The Board considered (a) the differences in managing ETFs versus separately managed accounts which involve daily purchase and redemption activity along with robust regulatory and governance requirements; and (b) the Funds’ unitary fee structure.

 

The Board examined the Adviser’s profitability information provided by the Adviser, and the Trustees considered that the Adviser was profitable on a pre-distribution basis and post- distribution basis. The Board considered that the Adviser’s potential for profitability would continue to be subject to financial uncertainties and risks. The Board also considered that the Adviser would continue to develop and offer additional new products in efforts to complete the

overall integrity of the Trust’s product suite, consistent with its product strategy, and that these products may expose the Adviser to additional financial risks and uncertainties.

 

Economies of Scale

 

The Board considered whether the Adviser may realize economies of scale in managing and supporting the Funds. The Board reviewed each Fund’s fee arrangements, which did not include breakpoints, and considered that, in light of the unitary fee structure and expense reimbursement agreement, the Adviser’s profitability from its services to the Trust and the significant investment that the Adviser had made and continues to make in the Trust, breakpoints were not necessary at this time. The Board also noted (i) the reduction in the advisory fee rate payable by the FlexShares® iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index and FlexShares® iBoxx 5- Year Target Duration TIPS Index Funds, as of November 1, 2017, and (ii) the Expense Reimbursement Agreement.

 

Other Benefits to the Adviser

 

In addition to considering the profits that may be realized by the Adviser, the Board considered information regarding other direct and indirect benefits the Adviser may receive as a result of its relationship with the Funds, including whether any compensation would be paid to its affiliates. The Board also considered that some of the Funds’ shareholders have other client relationships with the Adviser or its affiliates. The Board also reviewed the extent to which the Adviser and its other clients, as well as the Funds, benefit from receipt of the research products and services generated by the Funds.

 

The Board, including the Independent Trustees, considered the data provided by the Adviser and concluded that sufficient information had been provided to allow them to evaluate the terms of the Advisory Agreement and each Fund’s investment advisory fee. They determined that each Fund’s advisory fee was reasonable in light of the services provided and the performance achieved by the Fund.

 

 

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Principal Risks

 

As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in a Fund, and the Fund’s performance could trail that of other investments. In addition to the discussion of the risks of certain of the Funds’ investments included in Note 2, some of the principal risks of investment in the Funds are summarized below. A more complete description of principal risks is included in each Fund’s Prospectus.

 

The following risks apply to all of the Funds:

 

Cyber Security and Operational Risk

 

Cyber security and operational risk is the risk that the Fund and its service providers may experience disruptions that arise from breaches in cyber security, human error, processing and communications errors, counterparty or third-party errors, technology or systems failures, any of which may have an adverse impact on the Fund. Failures or breaches of the electronic systems of the Fund, the Investment Adviser, distributor, and other service providers, market makers, Authorized Participants or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests have the ability to cause disruptions and negatively impact the Fund’s business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses to the Fund and its shareholders.

 

Derivatives Risk

 

Changes in the value of a derivative instrument may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index, and the Funds could lose more than the principal amount invested.

 

Market Trading Risk

 

Each Fund’s shares are listed on a securities exchange, which presents risks including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Funds. Any of these factors may lead to the Funds’ shares trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

 

Valuation Risk

 

The sale price the Funds could receive for a security may differ from the Funds’ valuation of the security, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets, or that are valued using a fair value methodology.

 

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk

 

Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Funds. The Funds have a limited number of institutions that act as Authorized Participants. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Funds and no other Authorized Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units, Fund shares may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting. This risk may be heightened for a Fund if it invests in non-U.S. securities or other securities or instruments that are less widely traded. Such securities or instruments often involve greater settlement and operational issues and capital costs for Authorized Participants.

 

Market Risk

 

Market risk is the risk that general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic or political conditions, inflation, changes in interest rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets, volatility in the equities market or adverse investor sentiment could cause the value of your investment in a Fund to decline. Market disruptions caused by local or regional

 

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events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness (including epidemics and pandemics) or other public health issues, recessions or other events or adverse investor sentiment could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments and could result in the Fund’s shares trading at increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s net asset value. The outbreak of COVID-19, a respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus, has negatively affected the worldwide economy, the financial health of individual companies and the market in significant and unforeseen ways. The future impact of COVID-19 is currently unknown. The effects to public health, business and market conditions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic may have a significant negative impact on the performance of the Fund’s investments. Market risk also includes the risk that a particular style of investing, such as growth or value, may underperform the market generally. The value of the securities in which a Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual issuers and/or general economic conditions. Securities markets may experience great short-term volatility and may fall sharply at times. Different markets may behave differently from each other and a foreign market may move in the opposite direction from the U.S. market. Price changes may be temporary or last for extended periods. You could lose money over short periods due to fluctuation in a Fund’s NAV in response to market movements, and over longer periods during market downturns.

 

The following risk applies only to the Index Funds:

 

Tracking Error Risk

 

Tracking error risk is the risk that an Index Fund’s performance may vary substantially from the performance of the Underlying Index it tracks as a result of imperfect correlation between a Fund’s securities and those of the Underlying Index. Imperfect correlation may result from share purchases and redemptions, expenses, changes in the Underlying Indexes, asset valuations, foreign currency valuations, market impact, corporate actions (such as mergers and spinoffs), legal restrictions (such as tax-related diversification requirements that apply to the Funds but not to the Underlying Index) and timing variances, among other factors.

 

Calculation Methodology Risk

 

Each of the Index Funds is subject to Calculation Methodology Risk. This is the risk that the Underlying Index’s calculation methodology or sources of information may not provide an accurate assessment of included issuers or correct valuation of securities, nor is the availability or timeliness of the production of the Index guaranteed.

 

The following risks apply to each Fund, as disclosed:

 

Concentration Risk

 

Each of the Funds, except the FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund and FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, is subject to Concentration Risk. To the extent that the investments of these Funds are concentrated in the securities of issuers in a particular region, country, market, industry, sector or asset class, the Funds may be subject to increased price volatility and may be more susceptible to adverse economic, market, political or regulatory occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry, sector or asset class.

 

Interest Rate/Maturity Risk

 

The FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund are subject to the risk that the value of the Funds’ fixed-income

 

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assets will decline because of rising interest rates. The magnitude of this decline will often be greater for longer-term fixed income securities than shorter-term fixed-income securities. Duration is a measure used to determine the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates. The longer a security’s duration, the more sensitive it will be to changes in interest rates.

 

MLP Risk

 

The FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund and FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (including through its investment in its Underlying Fund(s)) may invest in Master Limited Partnerships (“MLPs”). The FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund may not invest more than 25% of its net assets in MLPs. MLP Risk is the risk that accompanies an investment in MLP units. Investing in MLPs involves certain risks related to investing in the underlying assets of the MLPs and risks associated with pooled investment vehicles. MLPs that concentrate in a particular industry or a particular geographic region are subject to risks associated with such industry or region. MLPs may also be sensitive to changes in interest rates and, during periods of interest rate volatility, may not provide attractive returns. The benefit derived from the Fund’s investment in MLPs is largely dependent on the MLPs being treated as partnerships for federal income tax purposes. If any of the MLPs owned by the Fund were treated as corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the after tax return to the Fund with respect to its investment in such MLPs would be materially reduced, which could cause a decline in the value of the Fund’s shares. The Fund must include its allocable share of the MLP’s taxable income in its taxable income, whether or not it receives a distribution of cash from the MLP. In such case, the Fund may have to liquidate securities to make required distributions to the Fund’s shareholders.

 

Non-diversification Risk

 

The FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund are non-diversified series of the Trust, pursuant to the 1940 Act. The performance of these Funds may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers because the Funds may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers.

 

Large Cap Risk

 

The FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund are subject to the risk that returns on investments in stocks of large U.S. companies could trail the returns on investments in stocks of smaller and mid-sized companies.

 

Mid Cap Stock Risk

 

The FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging

 

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Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund may invest in stocks of mid-sized companies which may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Mid-sized companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, and may be dependent upon a particular niche of the market.

 

Mid and Small Cap Stock Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund (including through its investment in its Underlying Fund), FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund (including through its investment in its Underlying Fund), FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund (including through its investment in its Underlying Fund(s)), FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund may invest in stocks of smaller companies which may be more volatile than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent upon a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than the securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally the smaller the company size, the greater the risk.

 

Value Investing Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, and FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund’s (including through its investment in its Underlying Fund(s)) investment in companies whose securities are believed to be undervalued, relative to their underlying profitability, may not appreciate in value as anticipated.

 

ESG Investment Risk

 

The FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund and FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund are subject to the risk that because the methodology of the Underlying Index selects and assigns weights to securities of issuers for nonfinancial reasons, the Fund may underperform the broader equity market or other funds that do not utilize ESG criteria when selecting investments.

 

High Portfolio Turnover Risk

 

The FlexShares STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, and FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund are subject to the risk that active and frequent trading of the Fund’s portfolio securities may result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs, which could reduce the Fund’s return.

 

Global Natural Resources Industry Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund (which is also an Underlying Fund of FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund) is subject to the risks associated with investment in the global natural resources sector in addition to the general risk of the stock market. The natural resources sector can significantly be affected by events relating to

 

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U.S. and foreign political and economic developments and environmental and other government regulations, as well as other factors including, but not limited to: commodity price volatility, technological developments and natural or man-made disasters. Declines in the demand for, or prices of, natural resources generally would be expected to contribute to declines in the value of the Fund’s equity securities. Such declines may occur quickly and without warning and may negatively impact the value of the Fund and your investment.

 

Hedging Risk

 

The FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund’s short positions in U.S. Treasury futures and transactions in interest rate swaps will not completely eliminate interest rate risk of long positions in bonds. In certain falling interest rate environments, the Fund’s hedging strategy could result in disproportionately larger losses in the short U.S. Treasury futures and interest rate swaps positions as compared to gains in the long bond positions attributable to interest rate changes.

 

Corporate Bond Risk

 

The FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund and FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund invest primarily in bonds issued by corporations. Corporate debt securities are subject to the risk of the issuer’s inability to meet principal and interest payments on the obligation and may also be subject to price volatility due to such factors as interest rate sensitivity, market perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer and general market liquidity. When interest rates rise, the value of corporate debt can be expected to decline. Debt securities with longer maturities tend to be more sensitive to interest rate movements than those with shorter maturities.

 

Interest Rate Risk

 

The FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund and FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (which is also an Underlying Fund of FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund) are subject to the risk that rising interest rates may adversely affect the Fund. Increases in interest rates typically lower the present value of a REIT’s future earnings stream, and may make financing property purchases and improvements more costly. Because the market price of REIT stocks may change based upon investors’ collective perceptions of future earnings, the value of the Fund may decline when investors anticipate or experience rising interest rates.

 

China Investment Risk

 

The FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, and FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund expects to have significant investment in securities of Chinese issuers. Investment exposure to China subjects a Fund to risks specific to China. China may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability. China is a developing market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Over the past 25 years, the Chinese government has undertaken reform of economic and market practices and expansion of the sphere for private ownership of property in China. However, Chinese markets generally continue to experience inefficiency, volatility and pricing anomalies resulting from governmental influence, a lack of publicly available information and/or political and social instability. Internal social unrest or confrontations with other neighboring countries, including military conflicts in response to such events, may also disrupt economic development in China and result in a greater risk of currency fluctuations, currency convertibility, interest rate fluctuations and higher rates of inflation. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China’s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China’s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy.

 

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Currency Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX ® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund may invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies. While each Fund’s investments may be denominated in foreign currencies, the portfolio securities and other assets held by each Fund are valued in U.S. dollars. Price fluctuations may occur in the dollar value of foreign securities because of changing currency exchange rates. Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time causing a Fund’s NAV to fluctuate as well. Currency exchange rates can be affected unpredictably by the intervention or the failure to intervene by U.S. or foreign governments or central banks, or by currency controls or political developments in the U.S. or abroad. To the extent that a Fund’s total assets, adjusted to reflect the Fund’s net position after giving effect to currency transactions, are denominated in the currencies of foreign countries, that Fund will be more susceptible to the risk of adverse economic and political developments within those countries.

 

Foreign Securities Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund will invest in foreign securities. Foreign securities include direct investments in non-U.S. dollar-denominated securities traded primarily outside of the United States and dollar-denominated securities of foreign issuers. Foreign securities also include indirect investments such as American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”) and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”). ADRs are U.S. dollar-denominated receipts representing shares of foreign-based corporations. ADRs are receipts that are traded in the U.S., and entitle the holder to all dividend and capital gain distributions that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. GDRs are receipts that often trade on foreign exchanges. They represent ownership in an underlying foreign or U.S. security and generally are denominated in a foreign currency.

 

Emerging Markets Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, and FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund invest in emerging market countries. The risks of foreign investment are increased when the issuer is located in a country with an emerging economy or securities market. Political and economic structures in

 

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many of these countries may be undergoing significant evolution and rapid development, and these countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristics of developed countries. The securities laws of emerging market countries may be relatively new and unsettled and, consequently, there is a risk of rapid and unpredictable change in laws regarding foreign investment, securities regulation, title to securities and shareholder rights. Global factors and foreign actions may inhibit the flow of foreign capital on which a country is dependent to sustain its growth. In general, securities markets of emerging countries are less liquid, are especially subject to greater price volatility, have smaller market capitalizations, and have problems with securities registration and custody. These securities markets also have less government regulation and are not subject to as extensive and frequent accounting, financial and other reporting requirements as the securities markets of more developed countries. In addition, because the securities settlement procedures are less developed in these countries, a Fund may be required to deliver securities before receiving payment and also may be unable to complete transactions during market disruptions. As a result of these and other risks, investments in these countries generally present a greater risk of loss to a Fund.

 

Japan Investment Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, and FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund expects to have significant investment in securities of Japanese issuers. The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could negatively impact Japanese issuers. In recent times, Japan’s economic growth rate has remained low, and it may remain low in the future. In addition, Japan is subject to the risk of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons and tsunamis, which could negatively affect a Fund. The growth of Japan’s economy has historically lagged that of its Asian neighbors and other major developed economies. The Japanese economy is heavily dependent on international trade and has been adversely affected by trade tariffs, other protectionist measures, competition from emerging economies and the economic conditions of its trading partners. Japan’s relations with its neighbors, particularly China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, have at times been strained due to territorial disputes, historical animosities and defense concerns. Most recently, the Japanese government has shown concern over the increased nuclear and military activity by North Korea. Strained relations may cause uncertainty in the Japanese markets and adversely affect the overall Japanese economy in times of crisis. China has become an important trading partner with Japan, yet the countries’ political relationship has become strained. Should political tension increase, it could adversely affect the economy, especially the export sector, and destabilize the region as a whole.

 

U.S. Issuer Risk

 

The FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares

STOXX US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global

Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored U.S. Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund has significant exposure to U.S. issuers. Decreasing imports or exports, changes in trade regulations and/or an economic recession in the United States may have a material adverse effect on the U.S. economy. The financial crisis that began in 2007 caused a significant decline in the value and liquidity of issuers in the United States. Policy and legislative changes in the United States are changing many aspects of financial and other regulation and may have a significant effect on the U.S. markets generally, as well as the value of certain securities.

 

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In addition, a continued rise in the U.S. public debt level or U.S. austerity measures may adversely affect U.S. economic growth and the securities to which the Funds have exposure.

 

The following risks apply to the FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund:

 

Dividend Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that an issuer of stock held by a Fund may choose not to declare a dividend or the dividend rate might not remain at current levels. Dividend paying stocks might not experience the same level of earnings growth or capital appreciation as non-dividend paying stocks. A Fund’s performance during a broad market advance could suffer because dividend paying stocks may not experience the same capital appreciation as non-dividend paying stocks.

 

Volatility Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the actual level of volatility experienced by a Fund may be greater or lower than the targeted overall volatility of the Fund’s Underlying Index. Although a Fund’s Underlying Index is designed to have a targeted overall volatility, there is no guarantee that it will have the targeted overall volatility. A Fund will continue to seek to track the Underlying Index even if the Underlying Index does not have the targeted overall volatility. There is also the risk that a Fund may experience volatility greater or lower than that of the Underlying Index as a result of tracking error. A portfolio of securities with greater volatility is generally considered to have a higher risk profile than a portfolio with lower volatility.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (which is also an Underlying Fund of the FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund):

 

Real Estate Securities Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risks associated with investment in the real estate sector in addition to the general risk of the stock market. Investing in securities of real estate companies will make the Fund more susceptible to risks associated with the ownership of real estate and with the real estate industry in general, as well as risks that relate specifically to the way in which real estate companies are organized and operated. Real estate companies may have lower trading volumes and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than the overall securities markets. The value of real estate securities may underperform other sectors of the economy or broader equity markets. To the extent that the Fund concentrates its investments in the real estate sector, it may be subject to greater risk of loss than if it were diversified across different industry sectors.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund (which is also an Underlying Fund of FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund) and FlexShares STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund:

 

Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund’s investments will be affected by factors affecting REITs and the real estate sector generally. Investing in REITs involves certain unique risks in addition to those risks associated with investing in the real estate industry in general. REITs whose underlying properties are concentrated in a particular industry or geographic region are also subject to risks affecting such industries and regions. By investing in REITs through the Fund, a shareholder will bear expenses of the REITs in addition to expenses of the Fund.

 

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The following risk applies to the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund:

 

Fund of Funds Risk (or Underlying Funds Risk)

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund’s investment performance largely depends on the investment performance of the Underlying Fund(s) in which it primarily invests. The Fund’s NAV will change with changes in the value of the Underlying Fund(s) and other securities in which the Fund invests based on their market valuations.

 

An investment in the Fund will entail more costs and expenses than direct investments in the Underlying Fund(s). The Fund will indirectly pay a proportional share of the expenses of the Underlying Fund(s) in which it invests (including operating expenses and management fees), in addition to the fees and expenses it pays directly. As the Fund’s allocation to an Underlying Fund changes from time to time, or to the extent that the expense ratio of an Underlying Fund changes, the weighted average operating expenses borne by the Fund may increase or decrease.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund and FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund:

 

Currency Hedging Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund’s hedging transactions will not be effective. The Fund enters into foreign currency forward contracts designed to offset the Fund’s currency exposure of non-U.S. dollar denominated securities included in the Underlying Index against the U.S. dollar. These contracts may not be successful. To the extent the Fund’s foreign currency contracts are not successful, the U.S. dollar value of your investment in the Fund may go down. Because the Fund’s currency hedge is reset on a monthly basis, currency risk can develop or increase intra-month. Furthermore, while the Fund is designed to hedge against currency fluctuations, it is possible that a degree of currency exposure may remain even at the time a hedging transaction is implemented. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. Therefore, the value of an investment in the Fund may also go up or down quickly and unpredictably and investors may lose money. In addition, a Fund’s currency hedging activities may involve frequent trading of currency instruments, which may increase transaction costs and cause the Fund’s return to deviate from the Underlying Index.

 

In seeking to track the performance of the Underlying Index, the Fund will attempt to hedge the currency exposure of non-U.S. dollar denominated securities held in its portfolio by investing in foreign currency forward contracts, which may include non-deliverable foreign currency forward contracts (“NDFs”). NDFs on currencies are often less liquid than deliverable forward currency contracts. A lack of liquidity in NDFs of the hedged currency could result in the Fund being unable to structure its hedging transactions as intended. In addition, NTI may seek to limit the size of the Fund in order to attempt to reduce a situation where the Fund is unable to obtain sufficient liquidity in an underlying currency to implement its investment objective.

 

The following risks apply to the FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund:

 

Credit (or Default) Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the inability or unwillingness of an issuer or guarantor of a fixed-income security, or a

counterparty to a TBA, repurchase or other transaction, to meet its payment or other financial obligations will adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments and its returns. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issu-

 

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er’s creditworthiness may also adversely affect the value of the Fund’ investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on the issuer’s or counterparty’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities.

 

Debt Extension Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that an issuer will exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by the Fund (such as a mortgage-backed security) later than expected. This may happen during a period of rising interest rates. Under these

circumstances, the value of the obligation will decrease and the Fund will suffer from the inability to invest in higher yielding securities.

 

Liquidity Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that certain portfolio securities may be less liquid than others, which may make them difficult or impossible to sell at the time and the price that the Fund would like, adversely affecting the value of the Fund’s investments and its returns.

 

Prepayment (or Call) Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that prepayment of the underlying mortgages or other collateral of some fixed-income securities may result in a decreased rate of return and a decline in value of those securities.

 

U.S. Government Securities Risk

 

The FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund are subject to the risk that the U.S. government will not provide financial support to its agencies,

instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law. Many U.S. government securities that may be purchased by the Fund are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. It is possible that the issuers of such securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.

 

Mortgage-Related and Other Asset-Backed Risks

 

The FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund and FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund is subject to the risks of investing in mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities, including Interest Rate/Maturity Risk, Debt Extension Risk and Prepayment (or Call) Risk.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund:

 

Mortgage Backed Pass-Through Securities Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk of investing in mortgage-backed securities issued by a U.S. Agency. These securities may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. Mortgage-backed securities are subject to Credit (or Default) Risk, Interest Rate/ Maturity Risk, Debt Extension Risk and Prepayment (or Call) Risk. Because of these risks, mortgage-backed securities react differently to changes in interest rates than other bonds. Small movements in interest rates (both increases and decreases) may quickly and significantly reduce the value of certain mortgage-backed securities.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund:

 

New Fund Risk

 

New Fund Risk is the risk that the Fund will not grow to or maintain an economically viable size, in which case it may experience greater tracking error to its Underlying Index than it otherwise would at higher asset levels, or it could ultimately liqui-

 

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date without shareholder approval. The timing of such liquidation may not be favorable and could have negative tax consequences for shareholders. From time to time, an Authorized Participant, a third-party investor, the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser, may invest in the Fund and hold its investment for a specific period of time in order to facilitate commencement of the Fund’s operations or for the Fund to achieve size or scale. There can be no assurance that any such entity would not redeem its investment or that the size of the Fund would be maintained at such levels, which could negatively impact the Fund. The Fund’s distributor does not maintain a secondary market in the shares.

 

The following risks apply to the FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund:

 

Distressed Securities Risk

 

Distressed securities risk is the substantial risk of investing in distressed securities that is in addition to the risks of investing in non-investment grade securities generally. NTI defines securities issued by companies whose financial condition is troubled or uncertain and that may be involved in bankruptcy proceedings, reorganizations or financial restructurings as “distressed securities.” Distressed securities are speculative and involve a substantial risk that principal will not be paid. In addition, the Fund will generally not receive interest payments on the distressed securities and may incur costs to protect its investment. These securities may present a substantial risk of default. The Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek recovery upon a default in the payment of principal of or interest on its portfolio holdings. In any reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to a portfolio company, the Fund may lose its entire investment or may be required to accept cash or securities with a value less than its original investment. Distressed securities and any securities received in an exchange for such securities may be subject to restrictions on resale.

 

High Yield Securities Risk

 

High yield securities risk is the risk that the Fund will be subject to greater credit risk, price volatility and risk of loss than if it

invested primarily in investment grade securities, which can adversely impact the Fund’s return and net asset value. High yield securities are considered highly speculative and are subject to increased risk of an issuer’s inability to make principal and interest payments. The Fund’s Underlying Index is designed to be comprised of securities with the potential for higher yields as compared to the overall high yield corporate bond market. As such, the Fund is expected to exhibit greater sensitivity to market fluctuations.

 

Substantial Volatility Risk

 

Substantial volatility risk is the risk that the value of the securities in the Fund’s portfolio may fluctuate, sometimes rapidly

and unpredictably at a greater level than the overall market. There is a risk that the Fund could have substantial volatility.

 

Value Score Risk

 

Value score risk is the risk that the Fund’s investment in companies whose securities are believed to be undervalued will not appreciate in value as anticipated. Although the Underlying Index is designed to measure a portfolio of bonds of companies with the potential for higher yields and less risk of insolvency relative to the Parent Index, there is no assurance that the Underlying Index or Fund will be comprised of such securities. Accordingly, the Fund may be subject to greater credit risk, price volatility and risk of loss relative to the Parent Index.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, Flex-

 

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Shares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Ready Access Variable Income Fund, FlexShares Core Select Bond Fund, FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund:

 

Financial Sector Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund will be impacted by events affecting the U.S. and/or non-U.S. financial sectors if it invests a relatively large percentage of its assets in those sectors, adversely affecting the Fund’s performance. The U.S. and non-U.S. financial sectors can be significantly affected by changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate of corporate and consumer debt defaulted, price competitions and the availability and cost of capital funds. In 2008 and 2009, the U.S. financial sector was significantly impacted by bankruptcies and consolidations of major financial firms. Events affecting the U.S. and non-U.S. financial sectors have had, and may continue to have, a significant negative impact on the valuations and stock prices of companies in this sector and have increased the volatility of investments in those sectors.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund:

 

Information Technology Sector Risk

 

The Fund is subject to the risk that the Fund will be impacted by events affecting the U.S. information technology sector if it invests a relatively large percentage of its assets in that sector, adversely affecting the Fund’s price.

 

The following risk applies to the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, and FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund:

 

Equity Securities Risk

 

Each Fund invests in equity securities, primarily in the form of common stocks. Each of these Funds may also invest in preferred stocks and REITs. Preferred stocks are securities that represent an ownership interest providing the holder with claims on the issuer’s earnings and assets before common stock owners but after bond owners. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that invest primarily in real estate or real estate related loans.

 

Equity securities are subject to changes in value that may be attributable to market perception of a particular issuer, general stock market fluctuations that affect all issuers, or as a result of such factors as a company’s business performance, investor perceptions, stock market trends and general economic conditions. The equity securities owned by a Fund may be more volatile and underperform other asset classes and the general securities markets.

 

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The following risks apply to the FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, and FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund:

 

Large Shareholder Risk

 

Certain shareholders, including other funds advised by the Investment Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial

amount of the Fund’s shares. In addition, a third party investor, the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment

Adviser, an authorized participant, a lead market maker, or another entity may invest in the Fund and hold its investment for a limited period of time solely to facilitate commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund’s achieving a specified size or scale. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment, that the size of the Fund would be maintained at such levels or that the Fund would continue to meet applicable listing requirements. Redemptions by large shareholders could have a significant negative impact on the Fund. In addition, transactions by large shareholders may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on Fund’s listing exchange and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the shares.

 

To the extent a significant percentage of the shares of a Fund are owned or controlled by a small number of account shareholders (or a single account shareholder), including funds or accounts over which the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser has investment discretion, the Fund is subject to the risk that those shareholders may purchase or redeem Fund shares in significant amounts rapidly or unexpectedly, including as a result of an asset allocation decision made by the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser and may adversely affect a Fund’s performance if the Investment Adviser is forced to sell portfolio securities or invest cash when the Investment Adviser would not otherwise choose to do so. Redemptions of a large number of shares may affect the liquidity of a Fund’s portfolio, increase the Fund’s transaction costs, and accelerate the realization of taxable income and/or gains.

 

Low Volatility Risk

 

Although the Underlying Index is designed to have overall volatility that is lower than that of the Parent Index, there is no

guarantee it will be successful. Securities or other assets in the Fund’s portfolio may be subject to price volatility and the prices may not be any less volatile than the market as a whole and could be more volatile. Events or financial circumstances affecting individual securities or sectors may increase the volatility of a Fund. The price of a security may fluctuate due to factors affecting markets generally or particular industries. The market prices of the securities or other assets in a Fund’s portfolio may fluctuate, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. The Fund will continue to seek to track the Underlying Index even if the Underlying Index does not have lower overall volatility than the Parent Index. There is also the risk that a Fund may experience volatility greater than that of its Parent Index as a result of tracking error. A portfolio of securities with greater volatility is generally considered to have a higher risk profile than a portfolio with lower volatility.

 

Passive Investment Risk

 

The FlexShares US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar US Market Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar DM ex-US Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares Currency Hedged Morningstar EM Factor Tilt Index Fund, FlexShares US Quality Large Cap Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares Morningstar Global Upstream Natural Resources Index Fund, FlexShares STOXX Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, FlexShares Global Quality Real Estate Index Fund, FlexShares Real Assets Allocation Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Index Fund, FlexShares Interna-

 

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tional Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, FlexShares Disciplined Duration MBS Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored U.S. Corporate Bond Index Fund, FlexShares Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond Index Fund, and FlexShares High Yield Value-Scored Bond Index Fund are not actively managed. Each Fund may be affected by a general decline in the market segments relating to its Underlying Index. Each Fund invests in securities included in, or representative of, its Underlying Index regardless of their investment merit. NTI does not attempt to take defensive positions in any market conditions, including declining markets.

 

Premium/Discount Information

 

Information about the differences between the daily market prices on secondary markets for shares of the Funds and the Funds’ net asset values for various time periods, as applicable, is available by visiting the Funds’ website at www.flexshares.com.

 

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For More Information (Unaudited)

 

 

Portfolio Holdings

 

FlexShares® Trust files its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year as an exhibit to its reports on Form N-PORT and, for periods prior to July 31, 2019, on Form N-Q. The Funds’ Forms N-Q and Forms N-PORT are available on the SEC’s Web site at www.sec.gov.

 

Proxy Voting

 

FlexShares® Trust Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures are available upon request and without charge by calling 1-855-FLEXETF (1-855-353-9383) or by visiting the Funds’ Web site www.flexshares.com or the SEC’s Web site at sec.gov. Each Fund’s portfolio securities voting record for the 12-month period ended June 30 is available upon request and without charge by calling 1-855-FLEXETF (1-855-353-9383) or by visiting the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

 

 

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LOGO

 

FlexShares® Trust

50 S. LaSalle Street

Chicago, IL 60603

800.595.9111

www.flexshares.com

 

FlexShares® is a registered trademark of NTI. Morningstar® is a registered trademark of Morningstar, Inc. (“Morningstar”). Morningstar® US Market Factor Tilt IndexSM, Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt IndexSM, Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt IndexSM, Morningstar® Developed Markets ex-US Factor Tilt Hedged IndexSM, Morningstar® Emerging Markets Factor Tilt Hedged IndexSM and Morningstar® Global Upstream Natural Resources IndexSM are service marks of Morningstar, Inc. STOXX and its licensors (the “Licensors”) have no relationship to FlexShares® Trust other than the licensing of the STOXX® USA ESG Impact Index, STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index and STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index and the related trademarks for use in connection with the FlexShares® STOXX® US ESG Impact Index Fund, FlexShares® STOXX® Global ESG Impact Index Fund and FlexShares® STOXX® Global Broad Infrastructure Index Fund, respectively. The iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index and iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index are each the property of Markit North America, Inc. (“Markit”) and have been licensed for use in connection the FlexShares iBoxx 3-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund and the FlexShares iBoxx 5-Year Target Duration TIPS Index Fund, respectively. Northern Trust Quality Low Volatility IndexSM, Northern Trust Developed Markets ex-US Quality Low Volatility IndexSM, Northern Trust Emerging Markets Quality Low Volatility IndexSM, Northern Trust Quality Large Cap IndexSM, Northern Trust Quality Dividend IndexSM, Northern Trust Quality Dividend Dynamic IndexSM, Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive IndexSM, Northern Trust International Quality Dividend IndexSM, Northern Trust Quality Dividend Dynamic IndexSM, Northern Trust International Quality Dividend Defensive IndexSM, Northern Trust Global Quality Real Estate IndexSM, Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond IndexSM, Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Long Corporate Bond IndexSM, Northern Trust Real Assets Allocation IndexSM, Northern Trust High Yield US Corporate Bond IndexSM, and Northern Trust High Yield Value-Scored US Corporate Bond IndexSM are service marks of NTI and have been licensed for use by FlexShares Trust. The ICE® BofAML® Constrained Duration US Mortgage Backed Securities IndexSM are trademarks of ICE Data Indices, LLC or its affiliates (“ICE”) and have been licensed for use by NTI.

 

FS00058-1220


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Item 2. Code Of Ethics.

 

(a)

As of the end of the period, October 31, 2020, the Registrant has adopted a code of ethics that applies to its principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions, regardless of whether these individuals are employed by the Registrant or a third party (the “Code of Ethics”).

 

(b)

Not Applicable.

 

(c)

The Registrant has not amended its Code of Ethics during the period covered by this report.

 

(d)

The Registrant has not granted any waivers, including an implicit waiver, from any provisions of its Code of Ethics during the period covered by this report.

 

(e)

Not Applicable.

 

(f)

A copy of the Registrant’s Code of Ethics is attached as exhibit 13(a)(1) to this Form N-CSR.


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Item 3. Audit Committee Financial Expert.

The Registrant’s Board of Trustees has determined that the Registrant has at least one “audit committee financial expert” (as defined in Item 3 of Form N-CSR), serving on its audit committee. Philip G. Hubbard is the “audit committee financial expert” and is “independent” (as each term is defined in Item 3 of Form N-CSR).

Under applicable securities laws and regulations, a person who is determined to be an audit committee financial expert will not be deemed an “expert” for any purpose, including without limitation for purposes of Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, as a result of being designated or identified as an audit committee financial expert. The designation or identification of a person as an audit committee financial expert does not impose on such person any duties, obligations, or liability that are greater than the duties, obligations, and liability imposed on such person as a member of the Registrant’s Audit Committee and Board of Trustees in the absence of such designation or identification. The designation or identification of a person as an audit committee financial expert does not affect the duties, obligations or liability of any other member of the Registrant’s Audit Committee or Board of Trustees.

Item 4. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.

In response to Items 4(a)-4(d), aggregate fees for professional services rendered for FlexShares® Trust by Deloitte & Touche, LLP (“Deloitte”) for the fiscal years ended October 31, 2020 and October 31, 2019 were:

 

     2020  
     All fees and
services to the
Trust that were
pre-approved
     All fees and
services to
Service Affiliates(a)
that were  pre-
approved
 

Audit Fees

   $ 652,500        N/A  

Audit Related Fees(b)

   $ 0      $ 0  

Tax Fees(c)

   $ 72,500      $ 0  

All Other Fees(d)

   $ 0      $ 0  
  

 

 

    

 

 

 

Total:

   $ 725,000      $ 0  
  

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

     2019  
     All fees and
services to the
Trust that were
pre-approved
    All fees and
services to
Service Affiliates(a)
that were  pre-
approved
 

Audit Fees

   $ 652,500       N/A  

Audit Related Fees(b)

   $ 0     $ 0  

Tax Fees(c)

   $ 72,500 (1)    $ 0  

All Other Fees(d)

   $ 0     $ 0  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total:

   $ 725,000     $ 0  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

(1)

Amounts relate to tax fees for the review of federal income tax returns, excise tax returns and year end distribution calculations.

(a)

“Service affiliates” as it relates to the aggregate “Audit Fees,” “Audit-Related Fees,” “Tax Fees” and “All Other Fees” that were billed by Deloitte for the periods ended October 31, 2020 and October 31, 2019 are Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (“NTI”) and entities controlling, controlled by or under common control with NTI that provide ongoing services to the Registrant.


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(b)

“Audit-Related Fees” are fees for assurance and related services rendered by Deloitte that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of the Registrant’s financial statements, but not reported as “Audit Fees.”

(c)

“Tax Fees” are fees for professional services rendered by Deloitte for tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning.

(d)

“All Other Fees” are for products and services provided by Deloitte other than those reported as Audit, Audit-Related or Tax Fees.

 

(e)(1)

The Registrant’s Audit Committee Charter provides that the Audit Committee is responsible for the approval of, prior to the appointment of, the engagement of the principal accountant to annually audit the Registrant’s financial statements. The Audit Committee must also pre-approve the engagement of the principal accountant to provide non-audit services to the Registrant, NTI or to any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with NTI that provides ongoing services to the Registrant, if the engagement has a direct impact on the operations or financial reporting of the Registrant. The pre-approvals may be delegated to a designated representative (or representatives) of the audit committee and such pre-approvals and approvals must be reported to the full Audit Committee at its next meeting. Each designated representative must be a member of the Audit Committee.

 

(e)(2)

No percentage of the principal accountant’s fees or services were approved pursuant to the waiver provision of paragraph (c)(7)(i)(C) or (c)(7)(ii) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X.

 

(f)

Not Applicable.

 

(g)

The aggregate non-audit fees and services billed by Deloitte for services rendered to the Registrant and Service Affiliates for the periods ended October 31, 2020 and October 31, 2019, respectively, were $5,610,208 and $4,411,047.

 

(h)

The Registrant’s Audit Committee has considered whether the provision of non-audit services to Service Affiliates, not pre-approved pursuant to paragraph (c)(7)(ii) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X, is compatible with maintaining the registered public accountant’s independence in performing audit services.

Item 5. Audit Committee of Listed Registrants.

 

(a)

The Registrant has a separately-designated standing Audit Committee in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All of the Board’s independent Trustees, Philip G. Hubbard, Eric T. McKissack and Sarah N. Garvey, are members of the Audit Committee.

 

(b)

Not Applicable.

Item 6. Investments

 

(a)

Schedule I – Investments in Securities of Unaffiliated Issuers.

The complete schedule of investments is included in the report to shareholders in Item 1 of this Form N-CSR.

 

(b)

Securities Divested of in accordance with Section 13(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940.

Not Applicable.

Item 7. Disclosure Of Proxy Voting Policies And Procedures For Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

Not Applicable.

Item 8. Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

Not Applicable.


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Item 9. Purchase Of Equity Securities By Closed-End Management Investment Company And Affiliated Purchasers.

Not Applicable.

Item 10. Submission Of Matters To A Vote Of Security Holders.

There were no material changes to the procedures by which shareholders may recommend nominees to the Registrant’s Board of Trustees.

Item 11. Controls And Procedures.

 

(a)

The Registrant’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer, or persons performing similar functions, have concluded that the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”)) are effective, based on the evaluation of these controls and procedures required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the 1940 Act and Rules 13a-15(b) or 15d-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as of a date within 90 days of the filing date of this report.

 

(b)

There were no changes in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a - 3(d) under the 1940 Act) that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Item 12. Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

Not Applicable.

Item 13. Exhibits.

 

(a)(1)   The code of ethics that is the subject of the disclosure required by Item 2 is attached hereto.
(a)(2)   Certifications pursuant to Rule 30a-2(a) under the 1940 Act and Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached hereto.
(a)(3)   Not Applicable.
(a)(4)   Not Applicable.
(b)   Certification required by Rule 30a-2(b) under the 1940 Act and Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 is attached hereto.

 


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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

FlexShares® Trust
By:  

/s/ Peter K. Ewing

  Peter K. Ewing
  President and Principal Executive Officer
  January 6, 2021

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

By:  

/s/ Peter K. Ewing

  Peter K. Ewing
  President and Principal Executive Officer
  January 6, 2021
By:  

/s/ Randal E. Rein

  Randal E. Rein
  Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer
  January 6, 2021

FLEXSHARES FUNDS

CODE OF ETHICS FOR PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE,

FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING OFFICERS

 

I.

Covered Officers/Purpose of the Code

This Code of Ethics (the “Code”) applies to the Principal Executive Officer, Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer or persons performing similar functions (the “Covered Officers”) of the FlexShares Funds and each separate investment portfolio thereof (each a “Fund” and collectively the “Funds”) for the purpose of promoting:

 

   

honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships;

 

   

full, fair, accurate, timely and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that a Fund files with, or submits to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and in other public communications made by the Funds;

 

   

compliance with applicable laws and governmental rules and regulations;

 

   

the prompt internal reporting of violations of this Code to an appropriate person or persons identified in this Code; and

 

   

accountability for adherence to this Code.

Each Covered Officer should adhere to a high standard of business ethics and should be sensitive to situations that may give rise to actual as well as apparent conflicts of interest.

 

II.

Covered Officers Should Handle Ethically Actual and Apparent Conflicts of Interest

Overview. A “conflict of interest” occurs when a Covered Officer’s private interest interferes with the interests of, or his or her service to, the Funds. For example, a conflict of interest would arise if a Covered Officer, or a member of his or her family, receives improper personal benefits as a result of his or her position with the Funds.

Certain conflicts of interest arise out of the relationships between Covered Officers and the Funds and already are subject to conflict of interest provisions in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“Investment Company Act”) and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Investment Advisers Act”). For example, Covered Officers may not individually engage in certain transactions (such as the purchase or sale of securities or other property) with the Funds because of their status as “affiliated persons” of the Funds. The compliance programs and


procedures of the Funds and their investment advisers are designed to prevent, or identify and correct, violations of these provisions. This Code does not, and is not intended to, repeat or replace these programs and procedures, and such conflicts fall outside of the parameters of this Code.

Each of the Covered Officers is also an officer and employee of the Funds’ investment adviser, Northern Trust Investments, N.A., and/or its affiliates (collectively, “Northern Trust”). Although typically not presenting an opportunity for improper personal benefit, conflicts arise from the contractual relationships between the Funds and Northern Trust. This Code recognizes that the Covered Officers will, in the normal course of their duties (whether formally for the Funds or for Northern Trust, or for both), be involved in establishing policies and implementing decisions that will have different effects on Northern Trust and the Funds. The participation of the Covered Officers in such activities is inherent in the contractual relationship between the Funds and Northern Trust and is consistent with the performance by the Covered Officers of their duties as officers of the Funds. Thus, if performed in conformity with the provisions of the Investment Company Act and the Investment Advisers Act, such activities will be deemed to have been handled ethically. In addition, the Funds’ Boards of Trustees (the “Board”) recognize that the Covered Officers may also be officers of one or more other investment companies covered by this Code or other codes.

Other conflicts of interest are covered by this Code, even if such conflicts of interest are not subject to provisions in the Investment Company Act and the Investment Advisers Act. The following list provides examples of conflicts of interest under this Code, but Covered Officers should keep in mind that these examples are not exhaustive. The overarching principle is that the personal interest of a Covered Officer should not be placed improperly before the interest of the Funds.

General Principles. Each Covered Officer must:

 

   

not use his or her personal influence or personal relationships improperly to influence investment decisions or financial reporting by the Funds whereby the Covered Officer would benefit personally to the detriment of the Funds;

 

   

not cause the Funds to take action, or fail to take action, for the individual personal benefit of the Covered Officer rather than the benefit of the Funds;

 

   

not use material non-public information of portfolio transactions made or contemplated for the Funds to trade personally or cause others to trade personally in contemplation of the market effect of such transactions; and

 

   

not retaliate against any other Covered Officer or any other persons for reports of potential violations that are made in good faith.

Specific Policies. In addition to the general principles set forth above, certain potential conflict situations are subject to the specific policies set forth below.

 

2


Outside Director or Officer Positions. A Covered Officer may not become a director, officer, partner, sole proprietor, consultant or controlling stockholder of a business entity (other than the Funds or Northern Trust) without the approval of Northern Trust. A Covered Officer may act as an uncompensated officer, director, trustee or committee member of a civic, social, philanthropic, charitable, educational or religious organization consistent with any policy on charitable and community activities established from time to time by Northern Trust.

Outside Employment for Compensation. A Covered Officer may not accept employment by a depository institution, trust company, investment adviser, securities dealer, investment bank or underwriter (in each case other than Northern Trust). Except for the foregoing and as otherwise provided in this Code, a Covered Officer may accept employment or render services to others for compensation (including engagements for teaching, speaking and writing books or articles) only with the approval of Northern Trust.

Service as a Governmental or Quasi-Governmental Official. A Covered Officer may not serve as an elected or appointed official of a government or quasi-governmental agency, whether federal, state, local or foreign, including village boards, school boards or zoning boards, without the approval of Northern Trust.

Meals, Entertainment and Travel Arrangements. A Covered Officer may not accept any meals, entertainment or travel arrangements from any company having current or prospective business dealings with the Funds or Northern Trust that are not business-related or that may be inconsistent with any policy on meals, entertainment or travel arrangements established by Northern Trust from time to time.

Gifts Other than Business-Related Meals, Entertainment and Travel Arrangements. A Covered Officer may not accept any non-nominal gifts from any company having current or prospective business dealings with the Funds or Northern Trust that may be inconsistent with any policy on gifts established by Northern Trust from time to time.

Relationships with Service Providers. A Covered Officer may not invest in any of the Funds’ service providers or vendors (other than Northern Trust) without the approval of Northern Trust unless (a) the service provider or vendor is publicly held, (b) the Covered Officer’s ownership interest and those of his or her immediate family represent in the aggregate less than a 1% equity interest in the service provider or vendor, and (c) the Funds’ relationship is not material to the service provider or vendor. No Covered Officer may accept a loan from any of the Funds’ service providers or vendors (other than Northern Trust), except for credit transactions on regular terms from firms whose regular business includes lending or the extension of credit.

Political Activities and Contributions. A Covered Officer may not allow explicit or implicit disclosure of his or her affiliation with the Funds or Northern Trust in connection with a political campaign for a candidate. A Covered Officer may not make contributions or expenditures on behalf of the Funds in connection with any political campaign, election or other political activity.

 

3


Financial Interest in Commissions. A Covered Officer may not have a direct or indirect financial interest in commissions, transaction charges or spreads paid by the Funds for effecting portfolio transactions or for selling or redeeming shares other than an interest arising from the Covered Officer’s employment, such as compensation or equity ownership.

For purposes of the foregoing policies, the “approval of Northern Trust” shall mean the approval of the person or persons authorized to grant such approvals under any policies governing standards of conduct established by Northern Trust from time to time.

 

III.

Disclosure and Compliance

 

   

Each Covered Officer should familiarize himself or herself with the disclosure requirements generally applicable to the Funds;

 

   

each Covered Officer should not knowingly misrepresent, or cause others to misrepresent, facts about the Funds to others, whether within or outside the Funds, including to the Funds’ trustees and auditors, and to governmental regulators and self-regulatory organizations;

 

   

each Covered Officer should, to the extent appropriate within his or her area of responsibility, consult with other officers and employees of the Funds and Northern Trust and take other appropriate steps with the goal of promoting full, fair, accurate and timely disclosure in the reports and documents that the Funds file with, or submit to, the SEC and that are signed or certified by him or her; and

 

   

it is the responsibility of each Covered Officer to promote compliance with the standards and restrictions imposed by applicable laws, rules and regulations.

 

IV.

Reporting and Accountability

Each Covered Officer must:

 

   

upon adoption of this Code (or thereafter as applicable, upon becoming a Covered Officer), affirm in writing to the Board that he or she has received, read, and understands this Code;

 

   

annually thereafter affirm to the Board that he or she has complied with the requirements of this Code;

 

   

notify such legal or compliance officer(s) or member(s) of the Board as the Board may designate for such purpose (the “Compliance Designee”) if the Covered Officer knows of any violation of this Code, it being a violation of this Code to fail to do so;

 

   

notify the Compliance Designee and the Board (or a committee thereof) on a periodic basis (but not less frequently than annually) if the Covered Officer has received, at any time during the period, any approval of Northern Trust contemplated by the Specific Policies set forth in Section II above; and

 

4


   

complete and certify at least annually the Funds’ “Annual Management Trustees and Officers Questionnaire” as well as Northern Trust’s “Outside Connections and Ownership Interests” report or such other questionnaires and reports as the Board may request.

The Funds’ Compliance Designee is responsible for applying this Code to specific situations in which questions are presented under it and has the authority to interpret this Code in any particular situation. However, any waivers sought by a Covered Officer will be considered by the Board’s Audit Committee or such other committee of the Board as the Board may designate for such purpose (the “Committee”).

Each Fund will follow these procedures in investigating and enforcing this Code:

 

   

the Fund’s Compliance Designee will take all appropriate action to investigate any potential violations reported to him or her;

 

   

if, after such investigation, the Fund’s Compliance Designee believes that no violation has occurred, he or she is not required to take any further action;

 

   

any matter that the Fund’s Compliance Designee believes is a violation will be reported to the Committee;

 

   

if the Committee concurs that a violation has occurred, it will inform and make a recommendation to the Board, which will consider appropriate action, which may include review of, and appropriate modifications to, applicable policies and procedures; notification to appropriate personnel of Northern Trust or its board; or a recommendation to dismiss the Covered Officer;

 

   

the Committee will be responsible for granting waivers, as appropriate; and

 

   

any changes to or waivers of this Code will, to the extent required, be disclosed as provided by SEC rules.

 

V.

Other Policies and Procedures

This Code shall be the sole code of ethics adopted by the Funds for purposes of Section 406 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the rules and forms applicable to registered investment companies thereunder. The code of ethics adopted by the Funds, the investment adviser and the principal underwriter under Rule 17j-1 under the Investment Company Act are separate requirements applying to the Covered Officers and others, and are not part of this Code.

 

5


VI.

Amendments

Any amendments to this Code must be approved or ratified by a majority vote of the Board, including a majority of independent directors.

 

VII.

Confidentiality

All reports and records prepared or maintained pursuant to this Code will be considered confidential and shall be maintained and protected accordingly. Except as otherwise required by law or this Code, such matters shall not be disclosed to anyone other than each Company and its counsel, investment advisers, principal underwriters, administrators and custodians.

 

VIII.

Internal Use

This Code is intended solely for the internal use by the Funds. This Code is a statement of certain fundamental principles, polices and procedures that govern the Covered Officers in the conduct of the Funds’ business. It is not intended to and does not create any rights in any employee, investor, supplier, competitor, shareholder or any other person.

Date: July 2011

 

6

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 30a-2(a) UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 AND SECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES OXLEY ACT OF 2002:

I, Peter K. Ewing certify that:

 

1.

I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of FlexShares® Trust;

 

2.

Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4.

The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrant and have:

 

  a)

Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

  b)

Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

  c)

Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report, based on such evaluation; and

 

  d)

Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

 

5.

The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

  a)

All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and

 

  b)

Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date:   January 6, 2021     By:  

/s/ Peter K. Ewing

        Peter K. Ewing
        President and Principal Executive Officer


CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 30a-2(a) UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 AND SECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES OXLEY ACT OF 2002:

I, Randal Rein, certify that:

 

1.

I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of FlexShares® Trust;

 

2.

Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4.

The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrant and have:

 

  a)

Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

  b)

Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

  c)

Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report, based on such evaluation; and

 

  d)

Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

 

5.

The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

  a)

All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and

 

  b)

Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date:   January 6, 2021     By:  

/s/ Randal Rein

        Randal Rein
        Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer

Certification Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (subsections (a) and (b) of section 1350, chapter 63 of title 18, United States Code)

In connection with the attached Report of FlexShares® Trust (the “Trust”) on Form N-CSR to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Report”), each of the undersigned officers of the Trust does hereby certify that, to the best of such officer’s knowledge:

 

1.

The Report fully complies with the requirements of 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

 

2.

The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Trust as of, and for, the periods presented in the Report.

Dated: January 6, 2021

 

By:  

/s/ Peter K. Ewing

  Peter K. Ewing
  President and Principal Executive Officer
By:  

/s/ Randal Rein

  Randal Rein
  Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer

A signed original of this written statement required by Section 906 has been provided to the Trust and will be retained by the Trust and furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission or its staff upon request.