Ave Maria Mutual Funds Names Brian Milligan Lead Portfolio Manager of Ave Maria Growth Fund

PLYMOUTH, Mich.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc., the investment adviser to Ave Maria
Mutual Funds, has named Brian D. Milligan, CFA as the lead portfolio
manager of the Ave Maria Growth Fund (Ticker: AVEGX). Milligan joined
Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc. in 2014 and has been co-manager of the
Ave Maria Growth Fund since January 2016, along with Richard L. Platte,
Jr., CFA, who remains co-manager. Prior thereto, Brian was an analyst
with Standard & Poor’s. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Trine
University and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre
Dame with a Master of Business Administration degree. He is also a CFA®
charterholder. George P. Schwartz, Chairman and CEO remarked, “Brian has
proven himself as a valuable member of our investment team and we are
highly confident in his abilities.” As of 12/31/16, the Fund is rated
4-stars overall by Morningstar among 588 funds in the Mid-Cap Growth
category.

About Ave Maria Mutual Funds

Ave Maria Mutual Funds is the largest family of Catholic mutual funds in
the U.S. with over $1.7 billion in assets. The five no-load funds invest
in companies that do not violate core values and teachings of the
Catholic Church. Ave Maria Mutual Funds launched its first fund, the Ave
Maria Catholic Values Fund (Ticker: AVEMX), on May 1, 2001. Since then
it has added three additional stock funds and one bond fund. The largest
of the funds is the $843 million Ave Maria Rising Dividend Fund (Ticker:
AVEDX). For more information about Ave Maria Mutual Funds, please call
1-866-AVE-MARIA (866-283-6274) or visit http://avemariafunds.com.

About Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc.

Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc. is a Registered Investment Adviser.
Founded in 1980, the Firm is headquartered in Plymouth, Michigan with a
branch office in Ave Maria, Florida. In managing the Ave Maria Mutual
Funds, investments are made only if companies meet the Funds’ financial
and moral criteria. As such, returns may be lower or higher than if
decisions were based solely on investment considerations. The Funds’
method of security selection may or may not be successful and the Funds
may underperform or outperform the stock market as a whole. All mutual
funds are subject to market risk, including possible loss of principal.
For more information about Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc. please
visit http://schwartzinvest.com.

The Morningstar Rating TM for funds, or “star rating”, is calculated for
managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable
life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate
accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and
open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for
comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar
Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed
product’s monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward
variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products
in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4
stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and
the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a
managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance
figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable)
Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for
36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year
rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30%
five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total
returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the
most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period
actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three
rating periods. For the period ended 12-31-16, the Fund received the
following Morningstar Ratings; Overall 4 stars among 588 funds, 3yr. 4
stars among 588 funds, 5 yr. 3 stars among 504 funds and 10 yr. 4 stars
among 368 funds.

Mutual fund investing involves risk, including loss of principal. The
Adviser invests only in securities that meet the Fund’s investment and
religious requirements. The returns may be lower or higher than if
decisions were based solely on investment considerations.

Request a prospectus, which includes investment objectives, risks,
fees, expenses and other information that you should read and consider
carefully before investing. The prospectus can be obtained by calling
1-866-283-6274 or it can be viewed at avemariafunds.com.

Distributed by Ultimus Fund Distributors LLC.

Contacts

Schwartz Investment Counsel, Inc.
Mike Richter
Director of
Marketing
734-455-7810
mjr@schwartzinvest.com