PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- WellSpring Securities, a Division of New Orleans-based Doley Securities, Inc., today announced that it has initiated marketing of a new investment product developed by WellSpring BioCapital Partners, Vertical Investments of Life Sciences Trusts, or VIOLTs(TM). VIOLTs(TM) is a master trust initially comprised of a series of five unit investment trusts, or UITs, each of which is focused on major diseases affecting Americans today. Retail investors will be able to make investments in a portfolio of companies treating specific diseases by connecting investors who are passionate about attacking the diseases with the companies who are seeking treatments and/or cures.
VIOLTs(TM) are sponsored by First Trust Portfolios, L.P., Lisle, Illinois, a securities firm specializing in the underwriting, trading and wholesale distribution of unit investment trusts. VIOLTs(TM) will be distributed to the investing public through a syndicate of broker-dealers throughout the U.S.
The idea for VIOLTs(TM) came from WellSpring BioCapital Partners, a recently formed financial services firm focused exclusively on the life science and biotechnology industry. WellSpring BioCapital Partners has licensed the patent-pending investment idea of VIOLTs(TM) to Doley Securities, which has created a division named WellSpring Securities to transact sales of the unit investment trusts.
Each of the five UITs that comprise the VIOLTs(TM) contains a diversified portfolio of twelve-to-twenty publicly traded securities in biotechnology companies and pharmaceutical companies whose products focus on developing therapies and cures for the disease for which each of the trusts is named. Rather than select one technology or therapy, the trust portfolios reflect a range of treatment and product strategies to diversify the risk across a wide spectrum of promising bio-medical approaches. The initial series of VIOLTs(TM) include:
* The Alzheimer’s Disease VIOLTs(TM) * The Breast and Ovarian Cancer VIOLTs(TM) * The Diabetes VIOLTs(TM) * The Prostate Cancer VIOLTs(TM) * The Rheumatoid Arthritis VIOLTs(TM)
The investment strategy developed by Wellspring BioCapital Partners and comprising the firm’s patent application-organizing the healthcare industry into disease categories or “verticals"-is based on the view that within each disease affected population there is a significant number of people who care deeply about therapeutic discovery for the diseases and would take a keen interest in supporting and funding acceleration of new products and treatment therapies within each disease.
“We are thrilled that WellSpring BioCapital Partners has licensed its investment idea of VIOLTs(TM) to Doley Securities,” said Harold E. Doley, Jr., President of Doley Securities, Inc. “In an age where the nation is plagued by tremendous issues in healthcare, it’s exciting to be a part of the solution. To that end, it was a natural progression for us to support VIOLTs(TM) by creating WellSpring Securities, a new division of Doley Securities, to transact sales of the unit investment trusts.”
“First Trust Portfolios is pleased to sponsor VIOLTs, which combine a unique research process with a proprietary approach to selecting stocks in the healthcare field,” said Jane Doyle, Senior Vice President for National Accounts at First Trust Portfolios. “We believe that in a dynamic healthcare environment, VIOLTs can afford investors a new means of understanding and investing in the emerging biotechnology marketplace.”
“As baby-boomers age, the impact on health care economics, technology, and quality will become the most challenging issue facing the U.S. economy. As a result of these forces, the biotech, pharmaceutical and healthcare industries are confronted with renewed pressure to reduce over $4 trillion in annual health care spending by 2025,” said Sam Katz, CEO of WellSpring BioCapital Partners. “Only by shifting from treatment to prevention and cure can we avert the negative impact of this staggering number.”
The diseases initially selected for the first five series of trusts were chosen based on the size of patient populations, the current state of technology and medical advancements being developed, the overall depth, quality and diversity of companies eligible to be considered for inclusion in trust portfolios, and the degree of national health care spending to treat the symptoms of these diseases.
A copy of the VIOLTs(TM) prospectus can be obtained from WellSpring Securities, a division of Doley Securities Inc., by calling 1-215-569-1643 or by visiting the website of First Trust at http://www.ftportfolios.com/Retail/dp/search.aspx?Type=Theme. Investors considering an investment in VIOLTs(TM) should carefully evaluate this securities product in the context of their own investment objectives, the sales charges and expenses of the Trust, the risks outlined in the prospectus, and other matters. The prospectus contains disclosures on these factors and other information about the Trust. Investors should read the prospectus carefully before investing.
The Trusts invest in common stocks. The value of a Trust’s Units will fluctuate with changes in the value of these common stocks. Common stock prices fluctuate for several reasons including changes in investors’ perceptions of the financial condition of an issuer or the general condition of the relevant stock market, such as the current market volatility, or when political or economic events affecting the issuers occur. In addition, common stock prices may be particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, as the cost of capital rises and borrowing costs increase. There are specific risks associated with the VIOLTs(TM) such as the risks associated with investing in small-cap companies and concentrated sector risk, especially in the biotechnology sector.
Doley Securities, Inc.
CONTACT: Harold E. Doley, Jr. of Doley Securities, Inc.,+1-914-591-2511; or Sam Katz, +1-215-694-3563, or Media - Jennifer Gould ofRubenstein Public Relations, +1-212-843-8037, jgould@rubensteinpr.com, bothfor Doley Securities, Inc.