N-CSRS 1 form.htm

United States

Securities and Exchange Commission

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

Form N-CSR

Certified Shareholder Report of Registered Management Investment Companies

 

 

 

 

811-4017

 

(Investment Company Act File Number)

 

 

Federated Equity Funds

______________________________________________________________

 

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

 

 

 

Federated Investors Funds

4000 Ericsson Drive

Warrendale, PA 15086-7561

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

 

 

(412) 288-1900

(Registrant's Telephone Number)

 

 

Peter J. Germain, Esquire

Federated Investors Tower

1001 Liberty Avenue

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222-3779

(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

(Notices should be sent to the Agent for Service)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date of Fiscal Year End: 09/30/19

 

 

Date of Reporting Period: Six months ended 03/31/19

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Item 1.Reports to Stockholders

 

 

 

 

Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
March 31, 2019
Share Class | Ticker A | VSFAX C | VSFCX R | VSFRX
  Institutional | VSFIX R6 | VSFSX  

Federated Clover Small Value Fund
Successor to the Touchstone Diversified Small Cap Value Fund Established 1996

A Portfolio of Federated Equity Funds
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING REPORT DELIVERY
Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of the Fund's shareholder reports like this one will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports from the Fund or from your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead, the reports will be made available on a website, 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 already elected to receive 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 the Fund or your financial intermediary electronically by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank); other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400, Option 4.
You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. You can inform the Fund or your financial intermediary that you wish to continue receiving paper copies of your shareholder reports by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank); other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400, Option 4. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held with the Fund complex or your financial intermediary.

Not FDIC Insured ■ May Lose Value ■ No Bank Guarantee

J. Christopher
Donahue
President
Federated Clover Small Value Fund
Letter from the President
Dear Valued Shareholder,
I am pleased to present the Semi-Annual Shareholder Report for your fund covering the period from October 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019. This report includes a complete listing of your fund's holdings, performance information and financial statements along with other important fund information.
In addition, our website, FederatedInvestors.com, offers easy access to Federated resources that include timely fund updates, economic and market insights from our investment strategists, and financial planning tools.
Thank you for investing with Federated. I hope you find this information useful and look forward to keeping you informed.
Sincerely,
J. Christopher Donahue, President
         


Portfolio of Investments Summary Table (unaudited)
At March 31, 2019, the Fund's portfolio composition1 was as follows:
Sector Composition Percentage of
Total Net Assets
Financials 30.3%
Information Technology 11.9%
Real Estate 11.2%
Industrials 9.1%
Energy 7.2%
Utilities 7.1%
Consumer Discretionary 6.5%
Communication Services 4.9%
Materials 3.3%
Consumer Staples 3.2%
Health Care 2.7%
Cash Equivalents2 4.3%
Other Assets and Liabilities—Net3 (1.7)%
TOTAL 100.0%
1 Except for Cash Equivalents and Other Assets and Liabilities, sector classifications are based upon, and individual portfolio securities are assigned to, the classifications of the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) except that the Adviser assigns a classification to securities not classified by the GICS and to securities for which the Adviser does not have access to the classification made by the GICS.
2 Cash Equivalents include any investments in money market mutual funds and/or overnight repurchase agreements.
3 Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
1

Portfolio of Investments
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Shares     Value
    COMMON STOCKS—97.4%  
    Communication Services—4.9%  
228,800 1 Gray Television, Inc. $4,887,168
37,550   Nexstar Media Group, Inc., Class A 4,069,294
577,600 1 Orbcomm, Inc. 3,916,128
575,275 1 Vonage Holdings Corp. 5,775,761
    TOTAL 18,648,351
    Consumer Discretionary—6.5%  
80,450 1 Adtalem Global Education, Inc. 3,726,444
388,800 1 American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. 5,563,728
102,625 1 Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. 7,118,070
12,600 1 Helen of Troy Ltd. 1,461,096
73,775 1 LGI Homes, Inc. 4,444,206
226,200 1 Michaels COS, Inc. 2,583,204
    TOTAL 24,896,748
    Consumer Staples—3.2%  
276,950   Cott Corp. 4,046,240
356,425 1 Hostess Brands, Inc. 4,455,312
89,300 1 Performance Food Group Co. 3,539,852
    TOTAL 12,041,404
    Energy—7.2%  
671,800 1 Callon Petroleum Corp. 5,072,090
150,600   Golar LNG Ltd. 3,176,154
552,850 1 Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. 4,373,043
722,150 1 HighPoint Resources Corp. 1,595,952
129,575   PBF Energy, Inc. 4,034,965
435,950 1 Ring Energy, Inc. 2,559,027
736,650 1 SRC Energy, Inc. 3,771,648
175,500   US Silica Holdings, Inc. 3,046,680
    TOTAL 27,629,559
    Financials—30.3%  
146,021   Argo Group International Holdings Ltd. 10,317,844
167,175   BancorpSouth Bank 4,717,679
206,989   Chemical Financial Corp. 8,519,667
303,325 1 Cowen Group, Inc. 4,395,179
534,825   FGL Holdings 4,209,073
206,400   First BanCorp 2,365,344
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
2

Shares     Value
    COMMON STOCKS—continued  
    Financials—continued  
220,250   First Commonwealth Financial Corp. $2,775,150
239,425   First Interstate BancSystem, Inc., Class A 9,533,903
380,100   First Midwest Bancorp, Inc. 7,776,846
277,950   Hancock Whitney Corp. 11,229,180
293,875   Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. 4,290,575
137,950   Iberiabank Corp. 9,892,394
518,625   Invesco Mortgage Capital, Inc. 8,194,275
283,375 1 MGIC Investment Corp. 3,737,716
321,625   Radian Group, Inc. 6,670,503
193,175   Simmons 1st National Corp., Class A 4,728,924
93,550   WSFS Financial Corp. 3,611,030
130,850   Wintrust Financial Corp. 8,810,131
    TOTAL 115,775,413
    Health Care—2.7%  
63,475 1 Avanos Medical, Inc. 2,709,113
38,625 1 Emergent BioSolutions, Inc. 1,951,335
102,675 1 Horizon Pharma PLC 2,713,700
90,016 1 Wright Medical Group, N.V. 2,831,003
    TOTAL 10,205,151
    Industrials—9.1%  
128,950   Altra Holdings, Inc. 4,003,897
65,625 1 Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. 3,318,000
60,950 1 Casella Waste Systems, Inc. 2,167,382
107,225 1 Colfax Corp. 3,182,438
63,650   Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. 3,969,214
54,500   MOOG, Inc., Class A 4,738,775
281,275 1 Rexnord Corp. 7,071,253
125,000 1 SPX Corp. 4,348,750
36,075 1 Spirit Airlines, Inc. 1,906,925
    TOTAL 34,706,634
    Information Technology—11.9%  
41,500 1 Cree, Inc. 2,374,630
90,075 1 Insight Enterprises, Inc. 4,959,529
174,350   Kemet Corp. 2,958,720
185,450 1 Nuance Communications, Inc. 3,139,669
242,125 1 Perficient, Inc. 6,631,804
397,250   Presidio, Inc. 5,879,300
58,675   Synnex Corp. 5,597,008
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
3

Shares     Value
    COMMON STOCKS—continued  
    Information Technology—continued  
472,100 1 TTM Technologies, Inc. $5,537,733
157,275 1 WNS Holdings Ltd., ADR 8,378,039
    TOTAL 45,456,432
    Materials—3.3%  
41,150   Ashland Global Holdings, Inc. 3,215,050
65,500 1 Berry Global Group, Inc. 3,528,485
302,325 1 Constellium NV 2,412,554
259,575 1,2 Ferroglobe Representation & Warranty Insurance Trust 0
138,175   Louisiana-Pacific Corp. 3,368,706
    TOTAL 12,524,795
    Real Estate—11.2%  
190,800   American Assets Trust, Inc. 8,750,088
241,450   Chesapeake Lodging Trust 6,714,724
619,825   Cousins Properties, Inc. 5,987,509
314,375   Easterly Government Properties, Inc. 5,661,894
175,000   Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc. 5,619,250
459,350   Lexington Realty Trust 4,161,711
206,725   Tier REIT, Inc. 5,924,739
    TOTAL 42,819,915
    Utilities—7.1%  
93,775   Allete, Inc. 7,711,118
129,725   El Paso Electric Co. 7,630,425
144,100   Spire, Inc. 11,857,989
    TOTAL 27,199,532
    TOTAL COMMON STOCKS
(IDENTIFIED COST $358,833,626)
371,903,934
    INVESTMENT COMPANY—4.3%  
16,556,588   Federated Institutional Prime Value Obligations Fund, Institutional Shares, 2.55%3
(IDENTIFIED COST $16,559,439)
16,559,899
    TOTAL INVESTMENT IN SECURITIES—101.7%
(IDENTIFIED COST $375,393,065)4
388,463,833
    OTHER ASSETS AND LIABILITIES - NET—(1.7)%5 (6,642,322)
    TOTAL NET ASSETS—100% $381,821,511
 
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
4

Affiliated fund holdings are investment companies which are managed by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser. Transactions with affiliated fund holdings during the period ended March 31, 2019, were as follows:
  Federated Institutional
Prime Value
Obligations Fund,
Institutional Shares
Balance of Shares Held 9/30/2018 12,527,833
Purchases/Additions 120,302,353
Sales/Reductions (116,273,598)
Balance of Shares Held 3/31/2019 16,556,588
Value $16,559,899
Change in Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation $(819)
Net Realized Gain/(Loss) $2,327
Dividend Income $165,989
1 Non-income-producing security.
2 Market quotations and price evaluations are not available. Fair value determined using significant unobservable inputs in accordance with procedures established by and under the general supervision of the Fund's Board of Trustees (the “Trustees”).
3 7-day net yield.
4 Also represents cost for federal tax purposes.
5 Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
Note: The categories of investments are shown as a percentage of total net assets at March 31, 2019.
Various inputs are used in determining the value of the Fund's investments. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:
Level 1—quoted prices in active markets for identical securities.
Level 2—other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.). Also includes securities valued at amortized cost.
Level 3—significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund's own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).
The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
5

The following is a summary of the inputs used, as of March 31, 2019, in valuing the Fund's assets carried at fair value:
Valuation Inputs        
  Level 1—
Quoted
Prices
Level 2—
Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
Level 3—
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
Total
Equity Securities:        
Common Stocks        
 Domestic $357,984,397 $— $— $357,984,397
 International 13,919,537 0 13,919,537
Investment Company 16,559,899 16,559,899
TOTAL SECURITIES $388,463,833 $— $0 $388,463,833
The following acronyms are used throughout this portfolio:
ADR —American Depositary Receipt
REIT —Real Estate Investment Trust
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
6

Financial HighlightsClass A Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)
  Six Month
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $26.36 $29.16 $24.82 $23.20 $26.29 $24.91
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)1 0.01 0.02 0.17 0.16 (0.03) 0.23
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (2.88) 1.47 4.80 1.96 (0.19) 2.55
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (2.87) 1.49 4.97 2.12 (0.22) 2.78
Less Distributions:            
Distributions from net investment income (0.02) (0.11) (0.14) (0.06) (0.14) (0.26)
Distributions from net realized gain (4.13) (4.18) (0.49) (0.44) (2.73) (1.14)
TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS (4.15) (4.29) (0.63) (0.50) (2.87) (1.40)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $19.34 $26.36 $29.16 $24.82 $23.20 $26.29
Total Return2 (10.74)% 5.64% 20.24% 9.27% (1.51)% 11.40%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 1.26%3 1.27% 1.27% 1.26% 1.26% 1.26%
Net investment income (loss) 0.12%3 0.09% 0.64% 0.70% (0.13)% 0.87%
Expense waiver/reimbursement4 0.21%3 0.16% 0.17% 0.15% 0.18% 0.17%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $72,195 $94,210 $102,606 $126,015 $149,579 $159,674
Portfolio turnover 38% 84% 66% 89% 83% 73%
1 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
2 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
3 Computed on an annualized basis.
4 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
7

Financial HighlightsClass C Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)
  Six Month
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $24.95 $27.91 $23.83 $22.40 $25.55 $24.29
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)1 (0.06) (0.17) (0.03) (0.01) (0.21) 0.03
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (2.73) 1.39 4.60 1.88 (0.18) 2.48
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (2.79) 1.22 4.57 1.87 (0.39) 2.51
Less Distributions:            
Distributions from net investment income (0.00)2 (0.03) (0.11)
Distributions from net realized gain (4.13) (4.18) (0.49) (0.44) (2.73) (1.14)
TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS (4.13) (4.18) (0.49) (0.44) (2.76) (1.25)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $18.03 $24.95 $27.91 $23.83 $22.40 $25.55
Total Return3 (11.05)% 4.82% 19.34% 8.47% (2.24)% 10.54%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 2.01%4 2.02% 2.02% 2.01% 2.01% 2.01%
Net investment income (loss) (0.63)%4 (0.68)% (0.12)% (0.05)% (0.85)% 0.12%
Expense waiver/reimbursement5 0.18%4 0.15% 0.16% 0.18% 0.17% 0.18%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $11,806 $16,028 $22,462 $21,253 $23,961 $24,664
Portfolio turnover 38% 84% 66% 89% 83% 73%
1 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
2 Represents less than $0.01.
3 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
4 Computed on an annualized basis.
5 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
8

Financial HighlightsClass R Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)
  Six Month
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $25.93 $28.78 $24.51 $22.91 $25.99 $24.68
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)1 0.01 0.02 0.16 0.15 (0.05) 0.24
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (2.83) 1.43 4.74 1.93 (0.20) 2.46
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (2.82) 1.45 4.90 2.08 (0.25) 2.70
Less Distributions:            
Distributions from net investment income (0.03) (0.12) (0.14) (0.04) (0.10) (0.25)
Distributions from net realized gain (4.13) (4.18) (0.49) (0.44) (2.73) (1.14)
TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS (4.16) (4.30) (0.63) (0.48) (2.83) (1.39)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $18.95 $25.93 $28.78 $24.51 $22.91 $25.99
Total Return2 (10.71)% 5.58% 20.22% 9.23% (1.63)% 11.20%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 1.30%3 1.29% 1.28% 1.32% 1.38% 1.47%
Net investment income (loss) 0.11%3 0.08% 0.61% 0.67% (0.19)% 0.93%
Expense waiver/reimbursement4 0.39%3 0.36% 0.36% 0.33% 0.28% 0.29%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $14,171 $16,013 $15,302 $13,010 $9,721 $7,864
Portfolio turnover 38% 84% 66% 89% 83% 73%
1 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
2 Based on net asset value. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
3 Computed on an annualized basis.
4 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
9

Financial HighlightsInstitutional Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)
  Six Month
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value,
Beginning of Period
$26.48 $29.30 $24.93 $23.31 $26.40 $25.01
Income From
Investment Operations:
           
Net investment income (loss)1 0.04 0.09 0.24 0.22 0.03 0.30
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (2.91) 1.47 4.83 1.96 (0.19) 2.55
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (2.87) 1.56 5.07 2.18 (0.16) 2.85
Less Distributions:            
Distributions from net investment income (0.10) (0.20) (0.21) (0.12) (0.20) (0.32)
Distributions from net realized gain (4.13) (4.18) (0.49) (0.44) (2.73) (1.14)
TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS (4.23) (4.38) (0.70) (0.56) (2.93) (1.46)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $19.38 $26.48 $29.30 $24.93 $23.31 $26.40
Total Return2 (10.63)% 5.87% 20.56% 9.54% (1.26)% 11.66%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 1.01%3 1.01% 1.02% 1.01% 1.01% 1.01%
Net investment income 0.38%3 0.32% 0.87% 0.95% 0.14% 1.13%
Expense waiver/reimbursement4 0.16%3 0.12% 0.13% 0.12% 0.11% 0.11%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $241,671 $333,887 $467,881 $468,727 $498,468 $480,796
Portfolio turnover 38% 84% 66% 89% 83% 73%
1 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
2 Based on net asset value. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
3 Computed on an annualized basis.
4 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
10

Financial HighlightsClass R6 Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30, Period
Ended
9/30/20161
2018 2017
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $26.39 $29.19 $24.84 $21.94
Income From Investment Operations:        
Net investment income (loss)2 0.04 0.14 0.25 0.13
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (2.89) 1.44 4.80 2.77
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (2.85) 1.58 5.05 2.90
Less Distributions:        
Distributions from net investment income (0.11) (0.20) (0.21)
Distributions from net realized gain (4.13) (4.18) (0.49)
TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS (4.24) (4.38) (0.70)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $19.30 $26.39 $29.19 $24.84
Total Return3 (10.58)% 5.98% 20.58% 13.22%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:        
Net expenses 0.94%4 0.95% 0.95% 0.94%4
Net investment income 0.43%4 0.52% 0.94% 1.07%4
Expense waiver/reimbursement5 0.14%4 0.11% 0.11% 0.11%4
Supplemental Data:        
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $41,978 $56,657 $11,006 $7,207
Portfolio turnover 38% 84% 66% 89%6
1 Reflects operations for the period from March 29, 2016 (date of initial investment) to September 30, 2016.
2 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
3 Based on net asset value. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
4 Computed on an annualized basis.
5 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income ratios shown above.
6 Portfolio turnover is calculated at the Fund level. Percentage indicated was calculated for the year ended September 30, 2016.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
11

Statement of Assets and Liabilities
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Assets:    
Investment in securities, at value including $16,559,899 of investment in an affiliated holding (identified cost $375,393,065)   $388,463,833
Income receivable   759,864
Income receivable from an affiliated holding   65,206
Receivable for investments sold   12,037,810
Receivable for shares sold   288,593
TOTAL ASSETS   401,615,306
Liabilities:    
Payable for shares redeemed $19,626,145  
Bank overdraft 5,165  
Payable for investment adviser fee (Note 5) 24,974  
Payable for administrative fees (Note 5) 2,628  
Payable for Directors'/Trustees' fees (Note 5) 345  
Payable for distribution services fee (Note 5) 10,725  
Payable for other service fees (Notes 2 and 5) 20,536  
Accrued expenses (Note 5) 103,277  
TOTAL LIABILITIES   19,793,795
Net assets for 19,777,918 shares outstanding   $381,821,511
Net Assets Consist of:    
Paid-in capital   $389,208,284
Total distributable earnings (loss)   (7,386,773)
TOTAL NET ASSETS   $381,821,511
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
12

Statement of Assets and Liabilitiescontinued
Net Asset Value, Offering Price and Redemption Proceeds Per Share    
Class A Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($72,195,090 ÷ 3,732,446 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $19.34
Offering price per share (100/94.50 of $19.34)   $20.47
Redemption proceeds per share   $19.34
Class C Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($11,806,483 ÷ 654,916 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $18.03
Offering price per share   $18.03
Redemption proceeds per share (99.00/100 of $18.03)   $17.85
Class R Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($14,170,520 ÷ 747,905 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $18.95
Offering price per share   $18.95
Redemption proceeds per share   $18.95
Institutional Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($241,671,393 ÷ 12,467,670 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $19.38
Offering price per share   $19.38
Redemption proceeds per share   $19.38
Class R6 Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($41,978,025 ÷ 2,174,981 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $19.30
Offering price per share   $19.30
Redemption proceeds per share   $19.30
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
13

Statement of Operations
Six Months Ended March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Investment Income:      
Dividends (including $165,989 received from an affiliated holding* and net of foreign taxes withheld of $16,402)     $3,012,855
Expenses:      
Investment adviser fee (Note 5)   $1,946,813  
Administrative fee (Note 5)   172,881  
Custodian fees   11,493  
Transfer agent fee (Note 2)   251,497  
Directors'/Trustees' fees (Note 5)   2,524  
Auditing fees   16,589  
Legal fees   6,055  
Portfolio accounting fees   71,096  
Distribution services fee (Note 5)   84,237  
Other service fees (Notes 2 and 5)   112,437  
Share registration costs   36,202  
Printing and postage   17,571  
Miscellaneous (Note 5)   14,736  
TOTAL EXPENSES   2,744,131  
Waivers and Reimbursements:      
Waiver/reimbursement of investment adviser fee (Note 5) $(300,674)    
Waiver/reimbursement of other operating expenses (Notes 2 and 5) (81,907)    
TOTAL WAIVERS AND REIMBURSEMENTS   (382,581)  
Net expenses     2,361,550
Net investment income     651,305
Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss) on Investments:      
Net realized loss on investments (including net realized gain of $2,327 on sales of investments in an affiliated holding*)     (15,839,617)
Net change in unrealized appreciation of investments (including net change in unrealized appreciation of $(819) on investments in an affiliated holding*)     (39,387,738)
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments     (55,227,355)
Change in net assets resulting from operations     $(54,576,050)
* See information listed after the Fund's Portfolio of Investments.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
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14

Statement of Changes in Net Assets
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets    
Operations:    
Net investment income $651,305 $1,527,016
Net realized gain (loss) (15,839,617) 94,869,125
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation (39,387,738) (61,072,844)
CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS (54,576,050) 35,323,297
Distributions to Shareholders (Note 2):    
Class A Shares (13,650,057) (14,745,909)
Class C Shares (2,464,699) (3,225,244)
Class R Shares (2,584,571) (2,265,097)
Institutional Shares (53,544,277) (63,748,725)
Class R6 Shares (7,710,867) (7,437,096)
CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS (79,954,471) (91,422,071)
Share Transactions:    
Proceeds from sale of shares 56,940,494 144,327,860
Net asset value of shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 72,936,048 83,637,768
Cost of shares redeemed (130,318,746) (274,328,925)
CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM SHARE TRANSACTIONS (442,204) (46,363,297)
Change in net assets (134,972,725) (102,462,071)
Net Assets:    
Beginning of period 516,794,236 619,256,307
End of period $381,821,511 $516,794,236
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
15

Notes to Financial Statements
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
1. ORGANIZATION
Federated Equity Funds (the “Trust”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Act”), as an open-end management investment company. The Trust consists of ten portfolios. The financial statements included herein are only those of Federated Clover Small Value Fund (the “Fund”), a diversified portfolio. The financial statements of the other portfolios are presented separately. The assets of each portfolio are segregated and a shareholder's interest is limited to the portfolio in which shares are held. Each portfolio pays its own expenses. The Fund offers five classes of shares: Class A Shares, Class C Shares, Class R Shares, Institutional Shares and Class R6 Shares. All shares of the Fund have equal rights with respect to voting, except on class-specific matters. The investment objective of the Fund is to seek capital appreciation.
On March 30, 2017, the Fund's T Share class became effective with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), but is not yet offered for sale.
Effective August 1, 2018, an automatic conversion feature for Class C Shares was implemented. Pursuant to this automatic conversion feature, after Class C Shares have been held for ten years from the date of purchase, they will automatically convert to Class A Shares on the next monthly conversion processing date.
2. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently followed by the Fund in the preparation of its financial statements. These policies are in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
Investment Valuation
In calculating its net asset value (NAV), the Fund generally values investments as follows:
■  Equity securities listed on an exchange or traded through a regulated market system are valued at their last reported sale price or official closing price in their principal exchange or market.
■  Shares of other mutual funds or non-exchange-traded investment companies are valued based upon their reported NAVs.
■  Fixed-income securities are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Trustees.
■  Derivative contracts listed on exchanges are valued at their reported settlement or closing price, except that options are valued at the mean of closing bid and asked quotations.
■  Over-the-counter (OTC) derivative contracts are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Trustees.
■  For securities that are fair valued in accordance with procedures established by and under the general supervision of the Trustees, certain factors may be considered, such as: the last traded or purchase price of the security, information obtained by contacting the issuer or dealers, analysis of the issuer's financial statements or other available documents, fundamental analytical data, the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition, the movement of the market in which the security is normally traded, public trading in similar securities or derivative contracts of the issuer or comparable issuers, movement of a relevant index, or other factors including but not limited to industry changes and relevant government actions.
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If any price, quotation, price evaluation or other pricing source is not readily available when the NAV is calculated, if the Fund cannot obtain price evaluations from a pricing service or from more than one dealer for an investment within a reasonable period of time as set forth in the Fund's valuation policies and procedures, or if information furnished by a pricing service, in the opinion of the valuation committee (“Valuation Committee”), is deemed not representative of the fair value of such security, the Fund uses the fair value of the investment determined in accordance with the procedures described below. There can be no assurance that the Fund could obtain the fair value assigned to an investment if it sold the investment at approximately the time at which the Fund determines its NAV per share.
Fair Valuation and Significant Events Procedures
The Trustees have ultimate responsibility for determining the fair value of investments for which market quotations are not readily available. The Trustees have appointed a Valuation Committee comprised of officers of the Fund, Federated Global Investment Management Corp. (the “Adviser”) and certain of the Adviser's affiliated companies to assist in determining fair value and in overseeing the calculation of the NAV. The Trustees have also authorized the use of pricing services recommended by the Valuation Committee to provide fair value evaluations of the current value of certain investments for purposes of calculating the NAV. The Valuation Committee employs various methods for reviewing third-party pricing-service evaluations including periodic reviews of third-party pricing services' policies, procedures and valuation methods (including key inputs, methods, models and assumptions), transactional back-testing, comparisons of evaluations of different pricing services, and review of price challenges by the Adviser based on recent market activity. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the Valuation Committee determines the fair value of the investment in accordance with procedures adopted by the Trustees. The Trustees periodically review and approve the fair valuations made by the Valuation Committee and any changes made to the procedures.
Factors considered by pricing services in evaluating an investment include the yields or prices of investments of comparable quality, coupon, maturity, call rights and other potential prepayments, terms and type, reported transactions, indications as to values from dealers and general market conditions. Some pricing services provide a single price evaluation reflecting the bid-side of the market for an investment (a “bid” evaluation). Other pricing services offer both bid evaluations and price evaluations indicative of a price between the prices bid and asked for the investment (a “mid” evaluation). The Fund normally uses bid evaluations for any U.S. Treasury and Agency securities, mortgage-backed securities and municipal securities. The Fund normally uses mid evaluations for any other types of fixed-income securities and any OTC derivative contracts. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the fair value of the investment is determined in accordance with procedures adopted by the Trustees.
The Trustees also have adopted procedures requiring an investment to be priced at its fair value whenever the Adviser determines that a significant event affecting the value of the investment has occurred between the time as of which the price of the investment would otherwise be determined and the time as of which the NAV is computed. An event is considered significant if there is both an affirmative expectation that the investment's value
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
17

will change in response to the event and a reasonable basis for quantifying the resulting change in value. Examples of significant events that may occur after the close of the principal market on which a security is traded, or after the time of a price evaluation provided by a pricing service or a dealer, include:
■  With respect to securities traded principally in foreign markets, significant trends in U.S. equity markets or in the trading of foreign securities index futures contracts;
■  Political or other developments affecting the economy or markets in which an issuer conducts its operations or its securities are traded;
■  Announcements concerning matters such as acquisitions, recapitalizations, litigation developments, or a natural disaster affecting the issuer's operations or regulatory changes or market developments affecting the issuer's industry.
The Trustees have adopted procedures whereby the Valuation Committee uses a pricing service to provide factors to update the fair value of equity securities traded principally in foreign markets from the time of the close of their respective foreign stock exchanges to the pricing time of the Fund. For other significant events, the Fund may seek to obtain more current quotations or price evaluations from alternative pricing sources. If a reliable alternative pricing source is not available, the Fund will determine the fair value of the investment in accordance with the fair valuation procedures approved by the Trustees. The Trustees have ultimate responsibility for any fair valuations made in response to a significant event.
Repurchase Agreements
The Fund may invest in repurchase agreements for short-term liquidity purposes. It is the policy of the Fund to require the other party to a repurchase agreement to transfer to the Fund's custodian or sub-custodian eligible securities or cash with a market value (after transaction costs) at least equal to the repurchase price to be paid under the repurchase agreement. The eligible securities are transferred to accounts with the custodian or sub-custodian in which the Fund holds a “securities entitlement” and exercises “control” as those terms are defined in the Uniform Commercial Code. The Fund has established procedures for monitoring the market value of the transferred securities and requiring the transfer of additional eligible securities if necessary to equal at least the repurchase price. These procedures also allow the other party to require securities to be transferred from the account to the extent that their market value exceeds the repurchase price or in exchange for other eligible securities of equivalent market value.
The insolvency of the other party or other failure to repurchase the securities may delay the disposition of the underlying securities or cause the Fund to receive less than the full repurchase price. Under the terms of the repurchase agreement, any amounts received by the Fund in excess of the repurchase price and related transaction costs must be remitted to the other party.
The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements in which eligible securities are transferred into joint trading accounts maintained by the custodian or sub-custodian for investment companies and other clients advised by the Fund's Adviser and its affiliates. The Fund will participate on a pro rata basis with the other investment companies and clients in its share of the securities transferred under such repurchase agreements and in its share of proceeds from any repurchase or other disposition of such securities.
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Investment Income, Gains and Losses, Expenses and Distributions
Investment transactions are accounted for on a trade-date basis. Realized gains and losses from investment transactions are recorded on an identified-cost basis. Interest income and expenses are accrued daily. Dividend income and distributions to shareholders are recorded on the ex-dividend date. Foreign dividends are recorded on the ex-dividend date or when the Fund is informed of the ex-dividend date. Distributions of net investment income, if any, are declared and paid annually. Non-cash dividends included in dividend income, if any, are recorded at fair value. Amortization/accretion of premium and discount is included in investment income. Investment income, realized and unrealized gains and losses, and certain fund-level expenses are allocated to each class based on relative average daily net assets, except that select classes will bear certain expenses unique to those classes. The detail of the total fund expense waivers and reimbursements of $382,581 is disclosed in various locations in this Note 2 and Note 5. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, transfer agent fees for the Fund were as follows:
  Transfer Agent
Fees Incurred
Transfer Agent
Fees Reimbursed
Class A Shares $64,126 $(28,497)
Class C Shares 8,730 (2,662)
Class R Shares 9,065
Institutional Shares 164,701 (32,920)
Class R6 Shares 4,875
TOTAL $251,497 $(64,079)
Dividends are declared separately for each class. No class has preferential dividend rights; differences in per share dividend rates are generally due to differences in separate class expenses. The distributions disclosed on the Statement of Changes in Net Assets for the year ended September 30, 2018, were from the following sources:
Net Investment Income  
Class A Shares $436,859
Class R Shares 75,434
Institutional Shares 3,218,423
Class R6 Shares 391,929
    
Net Realized Gain  
Class A Shares $14,309,050
Class C Shares 3,225,244
Class R Shares 2,189,663
Institutional Shares 60,530,302
Class R6 Shares 7,045,167
Undistributed net investment income for the year ended September 30, 2018, was $1,085,913.
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19

Other Service Fees
The Fund may pay other service fees up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the Fund's Class A Shares and Class C Shares to unaffiliated financial intermediaries or to Federated Shareholder Services Company (FSSC) for providing services to shareholders and maintaining shareholder accounts. Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FSSC may voluntarily reimburse the Fund for other service fees. This reimbursement can be modified or terminated at any time. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, other service fees for the Fund were as follows:
  Other Service
Fees Incurred
Class A Shares $96,321
Class C Shares 16,116
TOTAL $112,437
Federal Taxes
It is the Fund's policy to comply with the Subchapter M provision of the Internal Revenue Code and to distribute to shareholders each year substantially all of its income. Accordingly, no provision for federal income tax is necessary. As of and during the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund did not have a liability for any uncertain tax positions. The Fund recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to tax liabilities as income tax expense in the Statement of Operations. As of March 31, 2019, tax years 2015 through 2018 remain subject to examination by the Fund's major tax jurisdictions, which include the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The Fund may be subject to taxes imposed by governments of countries in which it invests. Such taxes are generally based on either income or gains earned or repatriated. The Fund accrues and applies such taxes to net investment income, net realized gains and net unrealized gains as income and/or gains are earned.
When-Issued and Delayed-Delivery Transactions
The Fund may engage in when-issued or delayed-delivery transactions. The Fund records when-issued securities on the trade date and maintains security positions such that sufficient liquid assets will be available to make payment for the securities purchased. Securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed-delivery basis are marked to market daily and begin earning interest on the settlement date. Losses may occur on these transactions due to changes in market conditions or the failure of counterparties to perform under the contract.
Foreign Currency Translation
The accounting records of the Fund are maintained in U.S. dollars. All assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars based on the rates of exchange of such currencies against U.S. dollars on the date of valuation. Purchases and sales of securities, income and expenses are translated at the rate of exchange quoted on the respective date that such transactions are recorded. The Fund does not isolate that portion of the results of operations resulting from changes in foreign exchange rates on investments from the fluctuations arising from changes in market prices of securities held. Such fluctuations are included with the net realized and unrealized gain or loss from investments.
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Reported net realized foreign exchange gains or losses arise from sales of foreign currencies, currency gains or losses realized between the trade and settlement dates on securities transactions, the difference between the amounts of dividends, interest and foreign withholding taxes recorded on the Fund's books, and the U.S. dollar equivalent of the amounts actually received or paid. Net unrealized foreign exchange gains and losses arise from changes in the value of assets and liabilities other than investments in securities at period end, resulting from changes in the exchange rate.
Other
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts of assets, liabilities, expenses and revenues reported in the financial statements. Actual results could differ from those estimated. The Fund applies investment company accounting and reporting guidance.
3. SHARES OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST
The following tables summarize share activity:
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class A Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 335,418 $6,520,818 841,548 $22,010,914
Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 682,955 13,086,019 555,218 14,178,190
Shares redeemed (860,411) (17,988,161) (1,340,780) (35,391,255)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM CLASS A SHARE TRANSACTIONS 157,962 $1,618,676 55,986 $797,849
    
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class C Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 60,556 $1,118,575 99,924 $2,521,646
Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 132,755 2,374,981 128,712 3,114,820
Shares redeemed (180,875) (3,503,616) (391,078) (9,803,315)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM CLASS C SHARE TRANSACTIONS 12,436 $(10,060) (162,442) $(4,166,849)
    
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class R Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount  
Shares sold 70,640 $1,453,759 165,668 $4,289,143  
Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 135,548 2,544,624 88,232 2,218,821  
Shares redeemed (75,734) (1,555,319) (168,129) (4,394,004)  
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM CLASS R SHARE TRANSACTIONS 130,454 $2,443,064 85,771 $2,113,960  
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21

  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Institutional Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 2,246,601 $45,861,081 2,539,695 $66,924,952
Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 2,459,600 47,274,603 2,206,306 56,688,861
Shares redeemed (4,848,588) (96,737,921) (8,107,038) (218,737,667)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM INSTITUTIONAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS (142,387) $(3,602,237) (3,361,037) $(95,123,854)
    
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class R6 Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 97,980 $1,986,261 1,709,517 $48,581,205
Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared 399,936 7,655,821 290,461 7,437,076
Shares redeemed (469,895) (10,533,729) (229,998) (6,002,684)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM CLASS R6 SHARE TRANSACTIONS 28,021 $(891,647) 1,769,980 $50,015,597
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM TOTAL FUND SHARE TRANSACTIONS 186,486 $(442,204) (1,611,742) $(46,363,297)
4. FEDERAL TAX INFORMATION
At March 31, 2019, the cost of investments for federal tax purposes was $375,393,065. The net unrealized appreciation of investments for federal tax purposes was $13,070,768. This consists of net unrealized appreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of value over cost of $42,041,430 and net unrealized depreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of cost over value of $28,970,662.
5. INVESTMENT ADVISER FEE AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES
Investment Adviser Fee
The advisory agreement between the Fund and the Adviser provides for an annual fee equal to 0.90% of the Fund's average daily net assets. Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, the Adviser may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Adviser voluntarily waived $296,767 of its fee. In addition, for the six months ended March 31, 2019, an affiliate of the Adviser reimbursed $64,079 of transfer agent fees.
The Adviser has agreed to reimburse the Fund for certain investment adviser fees as a result of transactions in other affiliated investment companies. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Adviser reimbursed $3,907.
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Administrative Fee
Federated Administrative Services (FAS), under the Administrative Services Agreement, provides the Fund with administrative personnel and services. For purposes of determining the appropriate rate breakpoint, “Investment Complex” is defined as all of the Federated Funds subject to a fee under the Administrative Services Agreement. The fee paid to FAS is based on the average daily net assets of the Investment Complex as specified below:
Administrative Fee Average Daily Net Assets
of the Investment Complex
0.100% on assets up to $50 billion
0.075% on assets over $50 billion
Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FAS may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the annualized fee paid to FAS was 0.080% of average daily net assets of the Fund.
In addition, FAS may charge certain out-of-pocket expenses to the Fund.
Distribution Services Fee
The Fund has adopted a Distribution Plan (the “Plan”) pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Act. Under the terms of the Plan, the Fund will compensate Federated Securities Corp. (FSC), the principal distributor, from the daily net assets of the Fund's Class A Shares, Class C Shares and Class R Shares to finance activities intended to result in the sale of these shares. The Plan provides that the Fund may incur distribution expenses at the following percentages of average daily net assets annually, to compensate FSC:
Share Class Name Percentage of Average Daily
Net Assets of Class
Class A Shares 0.05%
Class C Shares 0.75%
Class R Shares 0.50%
Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FSC may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, distribution services fees for the Fund were as follows:
  Distribution Services
Fees Incurred
Distribution Services
Fees Waived
Class C Shares $48,581 $
Class R Shares 35,656 (17,828)
TOTAL $84,237 $(17,828)
When FSC receives fees, it may pay some or all of them to financial intermediaries whose customers purchase shares. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSC retained $2,956 fees paid by the Fund. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund's Class A Shares did not incur a distribution services fee; however, it may begin to incur this fee upon approval of the Trustees.
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Sales Charges
Front-end sales charges and contingent deferred sales charges (CDSC) do not represent expenses of the Fund. They are deducted from the proceeds of sales of Fund shares prior to investment or from redemption proceeds prior to remittance, as applicable. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSC retained $549 in sales charges from the sale of Class A Shares. FSC also retained $285 of CDSC relating to redemptions of Class C Shares.
Other Service Fees
For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSSC received $6,530 of the other service fees disclosed in Note 2.
Expense Limitation
The Adviser and certain of its affiliates (which may include FSC, FAS and FSSC) on their own initiative have agreed to waive certain amounts of their respective fees and/or reimburse expenses. Total annual fund operating expenses (as shown in the financial highlights, excluding interest expense, extraordinary expenses and proxy-related expenses paid by the Fund, if any) paid by the Fund's Class A Shares, Class C Shares, Class R Shares, Institutional Shares and Class R6 Shares (after the voluntary waivers and/or reimbursements) will not exceed 1.26%, 2.01%, 1.40%, 1.01% and 0.94% (the “Fee Limit”), respectively, up to but not including the later of (the “Termination Date”): (a) December 1, 2019; or (b) the date of the Fund's next effective Prospectus. While the Adviser and its applicable affiliates currently do not anticipate terminating or increasing these arrangements prior to the Termination Date, these arrangements may only be terminated or the Fee Limit increased prior to the Termination Date with the agreement of the Trustees.
Directors'/Trustees' and Miscellaneous Fees
Certain Officers and Trustees of the Fund are Officers and Directors or Trustees of certain of the above companies. To efficiently facilitate payment, Directors'/Trustees' fees and certain expenses related to conducting meetings of the Directors/Trustees and other miscellaneous expenses are paid by an affiliate of the Adviser which in due course are reimbursed by the Fund. These expenses related to conducting meetings of the Directors/Trustees and other miscellaneous expenses may be included in Accrued and Miscellaneous Expenses on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and Statement of Operations, respectively.
6. INVESTMENT TRANSACTIONS
Purchases and sales of investments, excluding long-term U.S. government securities and short-term obligations, for the six months ended March 31, 2019, were as follows:
Purchases $162,354,534
Sales $236,773,391
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7. LINE OF CREDIT
The Fund participates with certain other Federated Funds, on a several basis, in an up to $500,000,000 unsecured, 364-day, committed, revolving line of credit (LOC) agreement. The LOC was made available to finance temporarily the repurchase or redemption of shares of the Fund, failed trades, payment of dividends, settlement of trades and for other short-term, temporary or emergency general business purposes. The Fund cannot borrow under the LOC if an inter-fund loan is outstanding. The Fund's ability to borrow under the LOC also is subject to the limitations of the Act and various conditions precedent that must be satisfied before the Fund can borrow. Loans under the LOC are charged interest at a fluctuating rate per annum equal to the highest, on any day, of (a) (i) the federal funds effective rate, (ii) the one month London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), and (iii) 0.0%, plus (b) a margin. The LOC also requires the Fund to pay, quarterly in arrears and at maturity, its pro rata share of a commitment fee based on the amount of the lenders' commitment that has not been utilized. As of March 31, 2019, the Fund had no outstanding loans. During the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund did not utilize the LOC.
8. CONCENTRATION OF RISK
A substantial part of the Fund's portfolio may be comprised of obligations of banks. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to any economic, business, political or other developments which generally affect these entities.
9. INTERFUND LENDING
Pursuant to an Exemptive Order issued by the SEC, the Fund, along with other funds advised by subsidiaries of Federated Investors, Inc., may participate in an interfund lending program. This program provides an alternative credit facility allowing the Fund to borrow from other participating affiliated funds. As of March 31, 2019, there were no outstanding loans. During the six months ended March 31, 2019, the program was not utilized.
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Shareholder Expense Example (unaudited)
As a shareholder of the Fund, you incur ongoing costs, including management fees and to the extent applicable, distribution (12b-1) fees and/or other service fees and other Fund expenses. This Example is intended to help you to understand your ongoing costs (in dollars) of investing in the Fund and to compare these costs with the ongoing costs of investing in other mutual funds. It is based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of the period and held for the entire period from October 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019.
ACTUAL EXPENSES
The first section of the table below provides information about actual account values and actual expenses. You may use the information in this section, together with the amount you invested, to estimate the expenses that you incurred 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 section under the heading entitled “Expenses Paid During Period” to estimate the expenses attributable to your investment during this period.
HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE FOR COMPARISON PURPOSES
The second section of the table below 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. Thus, you should not use the hypothetical account values and expenses to estimate the actual ending account balance or your expenses for the period. Rather, these figures are required to be provided to enable you to compare the ongoing costs of investing in the Fund with 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.
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Please note that the expenses shown in the table are meant to highlight your ongoing costs only. Therefore, the second section of the table is useful in comparing ongoing costs only, and will not help you determine the relative total costs of owning different funds.
  Beginning
Account Value
10/1/2018
Ending
Account Value
3/31/2019
Expenses Paid
During Period1
Actual:      
Class A Shares $1,000 $892.60 $5.95
Class C Shares $1,000 $889.50 $9.47
Class R Shares $1,000 $892.90 $6.14
Institutional Shares $1,000 $893.70 $4.77
Class R6 Shares $1,000 $894.20 $4.44
Hypothetical (assuming a 5% return before expenses):      
Class A Shares $1,000 $1,018.60 $6.34
Class C Shares $1,000 $1,014.90 $10.10
Class R Shares $1,000 $1,018.40 $6.54
Institutional Shares $1,000 $1,019.90 $5.09
Class R6 Shares $1,000 $1,020.20 $4.73
1 Expenses are equal to the Fund's annualized net expense ratios, multiplied by the average account value over the period, multiplied by 182/365 (to reflect the one-half-year period). The annualized net expense ratios are as follows:
   
Class A Shares 1.26%
Class C Shares 2.01%
Class R Shares 1.30%
Institutional Shares 1.01%
Class R6 Shares 0.94%
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Evaluation and Approval of Advisory ContractMay 2018
Federated Clover Small Value Fund (the “Fund”)
At its meetings in May 2018, the Fund's Board of Trustees (the “Board”), including a majority of those Trustees who are not “interested persons” of the Fund, as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Independent Trustees”), reviewed and unanimously approved the continuation of the Fund's investment advisory contract for an additional one-year term. The Board's decision regarding the contract reflects the exercise of its business judgment after considering all of the information received on whether to continue the existing arrangements.
The Board had previously appointed a Senior Officer, whose duties included specified responsibilities relating to the process by which advisory fees are to be charged to a fund advised by Federated Global Investment Management Corp. (the “Adviser”) or its affiliates (collectively, “Federated”) (each, a “Federated fund”). The Senior Officer's responsibilities included preparing and furnishing to the Board an annual independent written evaluation that covered topics discussed below. In December 2017, the Senior Officer position was eliminated. Notwithstanding the elimination of the Senior Officer position, at the request of the Independent Trustees, the Fund's Chief Compliance Officer (the CCO) furnished to the Board in advance of its May 2018 meetings an independent written evaluation covering substantially the same topics that had been covered in the Senior Officer's written evaluation in prior years. The Board considered the CCO's independent written evaluation (the “CCO Fee Evaluation Report”), along with other information, in evaluating the reasonableness of the Fund's management fee and in deciding to approve the continuation of the investment advisory contract. Consistent with the former Senior Officer position, the CCO, in preparing the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, has the authority to retain consultants, experts or staff as reasonably necessary to assist in the performance of his duties, reports directly to the Board, and can be terminated only with the approval of a majority of the Independent Trustees.
The Board also considered judicial decisions concerning allegedly excessive investment advisory fees in making its decision. Using these judicial decisions as a guide, the Board observed that the following factors may be relevant to an adviser's fiduciary duty with respect to its receipt of compensation from a fund: (1) the nature and quality of the services provided by an adviser to a fund and its shareholders (including the performance of the fund, its benchmark, and comparable funds); (2) an adviser's cost of providing the services (including the profitability to an adviser of providing advisory services to a fund); (3) the extent to which an adviser may realize “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger and, if such economies of scale exist, whether they have been shared with a fund and its shareholders or the family of funds; (4) any “fall-out” financial benefits that accrue to an adviser because of its relationship with a fund (including
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
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research services received from brokers that execute fund trades and any fees paid to affiliates of an adviser for services rendered to a fund); (5) comparative fee and expense structures (including a comparison of fees paid to an adviser with those paid by similar funds both internally and externally as well as management fees charged to institutional and other advisory clients of the Adviser or its affiliates for what might be viewed as like services); and (6) the extent of care, conscientiousness and independence with which the fund's board members perform their duties and their expertise (including whether they are fully informed about all facts the board deems relevant to its consideration of an adviser's services and fees). The Board noted that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosure requirements regarding the basis for the Board's approval of the Fund's investment advisory contract generally align with the factors listed above. The Board was aware of these factors and was guided by them in its review of the Fund's investment advisory contract to the extent it considered them to be appropriate and relevant, as discussed further below.
The Board considered and weighed these factors in light of its substantial accumulated experience in governing the Fund and working with Federated on matters relating to the Federated funds. The Independent Trustees were assisted in their deliberations by independent legal counsel.
In addition to the extensive materials that comprise and accompany the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, the Board received detailed information about the Fund and the Federated organization throughout the year, and in connection with its May meetings at which the Board's formal approval of the advisory and subadvisory contracts occurred. In this regard, Federated provided much of this information at each regular meeting of the Board, and furnished additional information specifically in connection with the May meetings. In the months preceding the May meetings, the Board requested and reviewed written materials prepared by Federated in response to requests on behalf of the Independent Trustees encompassing a wide variety of topics. At the May meetings, in addition to meeting in separate sessions of the Independent Trustees without management present, senior management of the Adviser also met with the Independent Trustees and their counsel to discuss the materials presented and such additional matters as the Independent Trustees deemed reasonably necessary to evaluate the advisory and subadvisory contracts. Between regularly scheduled meetings, the Board also received information on particular matters as the need arose.
The Board's consideration of the investment advisory contract included review of the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, accompanying data and additional information covering the following matters, among others: the Adviser's investment philosophy, revenue, profitability, personnel and processes; investment and operating strategies; the Fund's short-term and long-term performance (in absolute terms, both on a gross basis and net of expenses, as well as in terms relative to its particular investment program and certain competitor or “peer group” funds and/or other benchmarks, as appropriate) and comments on the
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reasons for performance; the Fund's investment objectives; the Fund's expenses, including the advisory fee and the overall expense structure of the Fund (both in absolute terms and relative to similar and/or competing funds), with due regard for contractual or voluntary expense limitations; the use and allocation of brokerage commissions derived from trading the Fund's portfolio securities (if any); and the nature, quality and extent of the advisory and other services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates. The Board also considered the preferences and expectations of Fund shareholders; the entrepreneurial and other risks assumed by the Adviser in sponsoring the Fund; the continuing state of competition in the mutual fund industry and market practices; the range of comparable fees for similar funds in the mutual fund industry; the Fund's relationship to the Federated funds which include a comprehensive array of funds with different investment objectives, policies and strategies which are generally available for exchange without the incurrence of additional sales charges; compliance and audit reports concerning the Federated funds and the Federated companies that service them (including communications from regulatory agencies), as well as Federated's responses to any issues raised therein; and relevant developments in the mutual fund industry and how the Federated funds and/or Federated are responding to them. The Board's evaluation process is evolutionary. The criteria considered and the emphasis placed on relevant criteria change in recognition of changing circumstances in the mutual fund marketplace.
While mindful that courts have cautioned against giving too much weight to comparative information concerning fees charged by other advisers for managing funds with comparable investment programs, the Board has found the use of such comparisons to be relevant to its deliberations. In this regard, the Board was presented with, and considered, information regarding the contractual advisory fee rates, net advisory fee rates, total expense ratios and each element of the Fund's total expense ratio (i.e., gross and net advisory fees, custody fees, portfolio accounting fees and transfer agency fees) relative to an appropriate group of peer funds compiled by Federated using data supplied by independent fund ranking organizations (the “Peer Group”). The Board received a description of the composition and methodology used to select the Peer Group. The Board focused on comparisons with other similar mutual funds more heavily than non-mutual fund products or services because it is believed that they are more relevant. For example, other mutual funds are the products most like the Fund, in that they are readily available to Fund shareholders as alternative investment vehicles. Also, they are the type of investment vehicle, in fact, chosen and maintained by the Fund's investors. The range of their fees and expenses, therefore, appears to be a relevant indicator of what consumers have found to be reasonable in the marketplace in which the Fund competes.
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The Board reviewed the contractual advisory fee rate, net advisory fee rate and other expenses of the Fund and noted the position of the Fund's fee rates relative to its Peer Group. In this regard, the Board noted that the contractual advisory fee rate was above the median of the relevant Peer Group, but the Board noted the applicable waivers and reimbursements, and that the overall expense structure of the Fund remained competitive in the context of other factors considered by the Board.
For comparison, the CCO reviewed the fees charged by Federated for providing advisory services to products other than the Federated funds (e.g., institutional and separate accounts and third-party unaffiliated mutual funds for which Federated serves as sub-adviser) (referenced to as “Comparable Funds/Accounts”). With respect to Comparable Funds/Accounts other than third-party mutual funds, the CCO concluded that they are inherently different products. Those differences include, but are not limited to, different types of targeted investors; different applicable laws and regulations; different legal structures; different average account sizes and portfolio management techniques made necessary by different cash flows and different associated costs; and the time spent by portfolio managers and their teams, as well as personnel in the Funds Financial Services, Legal, Compliance and Risk Management departments, in reviewing securities pricing, addressing different administrative responsibilities, addressing different degrees of risk associated with management and a variety of different costs. The CCO also reviewed the differences in the nature of the services required for Federated to manage its proprietary mutual fund business versus managing a discrete pool of assets as a sub-adviser to another institution's mutual fund, and that Federated generally performs significant additional services and assumes substantially greater risk in managing the Fund and other Federated funds than in its role as sub-adviser to an unaffiliated third-party mutual fund. The CCO did not consider the fees for providing advisory services to Comparable Funds/Accounts to be determinative in judging the appropriateness of the Federated funds' advisory fees.
The CCO noted that the services, administrative responsibilities and risks associated with such relationships are quite different than serving as a primary adviser to a fund.
Following such evaluation, and full deliberations, the Board concluded that the fees and expenses of the Fund are reasonable and supported renewal of the Fund's investment advisory contract.
The Board considered the nature, extent and quality of the services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and the resources of the Adviser and its affiliates dedicated to the Fund. In this regard, the Board evaluated, among other things, the Adviser's personnel, experience, track record, overall reputation and willingness to invest in personnel and infrastructure that benefit the Fund. In addition, the Board reviewed the qualifications, backgrounds and responsibilities of the portfolio management team primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund and the Adviser's ability and experience in attracting
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and retaining qualified personnel to service the Fund. The Board noted the compliance program of the Adviser and the compliance-related resources provided to the Fund by the Adviser, including the Adviser's commitment to respond to rulemaking initiatives of the SEC. The Fund's ability to deliver competitive performance when compared to its Peer Group was also deemed to be relevant by the Board as a useful indicator of how the Adviser is executing the Fund's investment program. The Adviser's ability to execute this program was one of the Board's considerations in reaching a conclusion that the nature, extent and quality of the Adviser's investment management services warrant the continuation of the investment advisory contract.
In evaluating the Fund's investment performance, the Board considered performance results in light of the Fund's investment objective, strategies and risks, as disclosed in the Fund's prospectus. The Board considered detailed investment reports on the Fund's performance that were provided to the Board throughout the year and in connection with the May meetings. The CCO also reviewed information regarding the performance of other mutual funds in the Peer Group, noting the CCO's view that comparisons to fund peer groups may be helpful, though not conclusive, in evaluating the performance of the Adviser in managing the Fund. The Board considered, in evaluating such comparisons, that in some cases individual funds may exhibit significant and unique differences in their objectives and management techniques when compared to other funds within a Peer Group.
For the periods covered by the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, the Fund's performance for the one-year period was above the median of the relevant Peer Group, and the Fund's performance fell below the median of the relevant Peer Group for the three-year and five-year periods. The Board discussed the Fund's performance with the Adviser and recognized the efforts being taken by the Adviser in the context of other factors considered relevant by the Board.
Following such evaluation, and full deliberations, the Board concluded that the performance of the Fund supported renewal of the Fund's investment advisory contract.
The Board also received financial information about Federated, including information regarding the compensation and ancillary (or “fall-out”) benefits Federated derived from its relationships with the Federated funds. This information covered not only the fees under the investment advisory contracts, but also fees received by Federated's subsidiaries for providing other services to the Federated funds under separate contracts (e.g., for serving as the Federated funds' administrator and distributor). In this regard, the Board considered that certain Federated subsidiaries provide distribution and shareholder services to the Federated funds, for which they may be compensated through distribution and servicing fees paid pursuant to Rule 12b-1 plans or otherwise. The information also detailed any indirect benefit Federated may derive from its receipt of research services from brokers who execute Federated fund trades. In addition, the Board considered the fact that, in order for a Federated fund to be
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competitive in the marketplace, the Adviser and its affiliates frequently waived fees and/or reimbursed expenses and have disclosed to Federated fund investors and/or indicated to the Board their intention to do so in the future. Moreover, the Board receives regular reporting as to the institution, adjustment or elimination of these voluntary waivers. The Board considered Federated's previous reductions in contractual management fees to certain Federated funds in response to the CCO's recommendations.
Federated furnished information, requested by the CCO, that reported revenues on a fund-by-fund basis and made estimates of the allocation of expenses on a fund-by-fund basis, using allocation methodologies specified by the CCO. The CCO noted that, while these cost allocation reports apply consistent allocation processes, the inherent difficulties in allocating costs continues to cause the CCO to question the precision of the process and to conclude that such reports may be unreliable, since a single change in an allocation estimate may dramatically alter the resulting estimate of cost and/or profitability of a Federated fund and may produce unintended consequences. The allocation information, including the CCO's view that fund-by-fund estimations may be unreliable, was considered in the evaluation by the Board.
The Board and the CCO also reviewed information compiled by Federated comparing its profitability information to other publicly held fund management companies, including information regarding profitability trends over time. In this regard, the CCO concluded that Federated's profit margins did not appear to be excessive. The CCO also noted that Federated appeared financially sound, with the resources necessary to fulfill its obligations under its contracts with the Fund.
The CCO Fee Evaluation Report also discussed the notion of possible realization of “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger. In this regard, the Board considered that the Adviser has made significant and long-term investments in areas that support all of the Federated funds, such as personnel and processes for the portfolio management, shareholder services, compliance, internal audit and risk management functions, as well as systems technology (including technology relating to cybersecurity) and that the benefits of these efforts (as well as any economies of scale, should they exist) were likely to be shared with the Federated fund family as a whole. The Board noted that the Adviser's investments in these areas are extensive. In addition, the Board considered that the Adviser and its affiliates have frequently waived fees and/or reimbursed expenses and that this has allowed fund shareholders to share potential economies of scale with shareholders. The Board also considered that such waivers and reimbursements can provide protection from an increase in expenses if a Federated fund's assets decline. Federated, as it does throughout the year, and specifically in connection with the Board's review of the advisory and subadvisory contracts, furnished information relative to revenue sharing or adviser-paid fees. Federated and the CCO noted that this information should be viewed to determine if there was an incentive to either not apply breakpoints, or
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to apply breakpoints at higher levels, and should not be viewed to determine the appropriateness of advisory fees because it would represent marketing and distribution expenses. The Board also noted the absence of any applicable regulatory or industry guidelines on this subject, which (as discussed in the CCO Fee Evaluation Report) is compounded by the lack of any common industry practice or general pattern with respect to structuring fund advisory fees with “breakpoints” that serve to reduce the fee as a fund attains a certain size.
The CCO stated that his observations and the information accompanying the CCO Fee Evaluation Report supported a finding by the Board that the management fee for the Fund was reasonable. Under these circumstances, no changes were recommended to, and no objection was raised to the continuation of, the Fund's investment advisory contract. The CCO also recognized that the Board's evaluation of the Federated funds' advisory and subadvisory arrangements is a continuing and on-going process that is informed by the information that the Board requests and receives from management throughout the course of the year and, in this regard, the CCO noted certain items for future reporting to the Board or further consideration by management as the Board continues its on-going oversight of the Federated funds.
In its decision to continue an existing investment advisory contract, the Board was mindful of the potential disruptions of the Fund's operations and various risks, uncertainties and other effects that could occur as a result of a decision to terminate or not renew an investment advisory contract. In particular, the Board recognized that many shareholders have invested in the Fund on the strength of the Adviser's industry standing and reputation and with the expectation that the Adviser will have a continuing role in providing advisory services to the Fund. Thus, the Board's approval of the investment advisory contract reflected the fact that it is the shareholders who have effectively selected the Adviser by virtue of having invested in the Fund. The Board concluded that, in light of the factors summarized above, including the nature, quality and scope of the services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates, continuation of the investment advisory contract was appropriate.
The Board based its decision to approve the investment advisory contract on the totality of the circumstances and relevant factors and with a view to past and future long-term considerations. Not all of the factors and considerations identified above were necessarily relevant to the Fund, nor did the Board consider any one of them to be determinative. With respect to the factors that were relevant, the Board's decision to approve the continuation of the contract reflects its view that Federated's performance and actions provided a satisfactory basis to support the decision to continue the existing arrangement.
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Voting Proxies on Fund Portfolio Securities
A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies, if any, relating to securities held in the Fund's portfolio is available, without charge and upon request, by calling 1-800-341-7400. A report on “Form N-PX” of how the Fund voted any such proxies during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available via the Proxy Voting Record (Form N-PX) link associated with the Fund and share class name at www.FederatedInvestors.com/FundInformation. Form N-PX filings are also available at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.
Quarterly Portfolio Schedule
Each fiscal quarter, the Fund will file with the SEC a complete schedule of its monthly portfolio holdings on “Form N-PORT.” The Fund's holdings as of the end of the third month of every fiscal quarter, as reported on Form N-PORT, will be publicly available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov within 60 days of the end of the fiscal quarter upon filing. You may also access this information via the link to the Fund and share class name at www.FederatedInvestors.com.
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Mutual funds are not bank deposits or obligations, are not guaranteed by any bank and are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. government, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board or any other government agency. Investment in mutual funds involves investment risk, including the possible loss of principal.
This Report is authorized for distribution to prospective investors only when preceded or accompanied by the Fund's Prospectus, which contains facts concerning its objective and policies, management fees, expenses and other information.
IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT FUND DOCUMENT DELIVERY    
In an effort to reduce costs and avoid duplicate mailings, the Fund(s) intend to deliver a single copy of certain documents to each household in which more than one shareholder of the Fund(s) resides (so-called “householding”), as permitted by applicable rules. The Fund's “householding” program covers its/their Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, and supplements to each, as well as Semi-Annual and Annual Shareholder Reports and any Proxies or information statements. Shareholders must give their written consent to participate in the “householding” program. The Fund is also permitted to treat a shareholder as having given consent (“implied consent”) if (i) shareholders with the same last name, or believed to be members of the same family, reside at the same street address or receive mail at the same post office box, (ii) the Fund gives notice of its intent to “household” at least sixty (60) days before it begins “householding” and (iii) none of the shareholders in the household have notified the Fund(s) or their agent of the desire to “opt out” of “householding.” Shareholders who have granted written consent, or have been deemed to have granted implied consent, can revoke that consent and opt out of “householding” at any time: shareholders who purchased shares through an intermediary should contact their representative; other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400.
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Federated Clover Small Value Fund
Federated Investors Funds
4000 Ericsson Drive
Warrendale, PA 15086-7561
Contact us at FederatedInvestors.com
or call 1-800-341-7400.
Federated Securities Corp., Distributor
CUSIP 314172289
CUSIP 314172271
CUSIP 314172172
CUSIP 314172263
CUSIP 31421N808
40449 (5/19)
Federated is a registered trademark of Federated Investors, Inc.
2019 ©Federated Investors, Inc.

 

 

 

 

Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
March 31, 2019
Share Class | Ticker A | BEARX C | PBRCX Institutional | PBRIX  

Federated Prudent Bear Fund
Successor to the Prudent Bear Fund Established 1995

A Portfolio of Federated Equity Funds
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING REPORT DELIVERY
Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of the Fund's shareholder reports like this one will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports from the Fund or from your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead, the reports will be made available on a website, 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 already elected to receive 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 the Fund or your financial intermediary electronically by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank); other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400, Option 4.
You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. You can inform the Fund or your financial intermediary that you wish to continue receiving paper copies of your shareholder reports by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank); other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400, Option 4. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held with the Fund complex or your financial intermediary.

Not FDIC Insured ■ May Lose Value ■ No Bank Guarantee

J. Christopher
Donahue
President
Federated Prudent Bear Fund
Letter from the President
Dear Valued Shareholder,
I am pleased to present the Semi-Annual Shareholder Report for your fund covering the period from October 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019. This report includes a complete listing of your fund's holdings, performance information and financial statements along with other important fund information.
In addition, our website, FederatedInvestors.com, offers easy access to Federated resources that include timely fund updates, economic and market insights from our investment strategists, and financial planning tools.
Thank you for investing with Federated. I hope you find this information useful and look forward to keeping you informed.
Sincerely,
J. Christopher Donahue, President
         


Portfolio of Investments Summary Tables (unaudited)
At March 31, 2019, the Fund's portfolio composition was as follows:
  Percentage of
Total Net Assets
Securities Sold Short (78.1)%
Derivative Contracts—Short (notional value)1 (47.3)%
Common Stocks 50.7%
U.S. Treasury Securities 29.6%
Other Security Type2 1.0%
Exchange-Traded Fund 0.6%
Cash Equivalents3 14.0%
Adjustment for Derivative Contracts (notional value)1 46.0%
Collateral on Deposit for Securities Sold Short 82.4%
Other Assets and Liabilities—Net4 1.1%
TOTAL 100.0%
1 Derivative contracts may consist of futures, forwards, written options and swaps. More complete information regarding the Fund's direct investments in derivative contracts, including unrealized appreciation (depreciation), value and notional values or amounts of such contracts, can be found in the table at the end of the Portfolio of Investments included in this Report.
2 Other Security Type consists of purchased put options.
3 Cash Equivalents include any investments in money market mutual funds and/or overnight repurchase agreements.
4 Assets, other than investments in securities, securities sold short, derivative contracts and collateral on deposit for securities sold short, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
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1

At March 31, 2019, the Fund's sector composition5 for its short positions was as follows:
Sector Composition Percentage of Total
Securities Sold Short6
Broad Equity Index 60.4%
Information Technology 7.5%
Financials 5.2%
Consumer Discretionary 4.4%
Industrials 3.8%
Consumer Staples 3.0%
Materials 0.8%
Real Estate 1.3%
Energy 2.4%
Health Care 6.3%
Telecommunications 3.4%
Utilities 1.5%
TOTAL 100.0%
5 Sector classifications are based upon, and individual portfolio securities are assigned to, the classifications of the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) except that the Adviser assigns a classification to securities not classified by the GICS and to securities for which the Adviser does not have access to the classification made by the GICS.
6 Includes any short positions on futures contracts.
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2

Portfolio of Investments
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Shares,
Contracts or
Principal
Amount
    Value
    COMMON STOCKS—50.7%  
    Communication Services—4.7%  
2,000 1 Alphabet, Inc. $2,353,780
24,000   Comcast Corp., Class A 959,520
11,000 1 Facebook, Inc. 1,833,590
54,200   Verizon Communications, Inc. 3,204,846
    TOTAL 8,351,736
    Consumer Discretionary—5.7%  
1,100 1 AutoZone, Inc. 1,126,532
400 1 Booking Holdings, Inc. 697,964
14,000   Darden Restaurants, Inc. 1,700,580
8,500   Dollar General Corp. 1,014,050
6,000   Expedia Group, Inc. 714,000
3,591 1 Levi Strauss & Co. 84,568
13,000 1 Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. 714,480
11,200   Ross Stores, Inc. 1,042,720
14,000   Starbucks Corp. 1,040,760
19,800   TJX Cos., Inc. 1,053,558
17,300   Williams-Sonoma, Inc. 973,471
    TOTAL 10,162,683
    Consumer Staples—4.2%  
25,000   Altria Group, Inc. 1,435,750
15,000   Molson Coors Brewing Co., Class B 894,750
15,100   Philip Morris International, Inc. 1,334,689
14,000   Procter & Gamble Co. 1,456,700
22,500   Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. 1,423,575
9,100   WalMart, Inc. 887,523
    TOTAL 7,432,987
    Energy—1.9%  
15,600   Chevron Corp. 1,921,608
12,000   Marathon Petroleum Corp. 718,200
38,900 1 Parsley Energy, Inc. 750,770
    TOTAL 3,390,578
    Financials—4.7%  
21,000   Aflac, Inc. 1,050,000
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
3

Shares,
Contracts or
Principal
Amount
    Value
    COMMON STOCKS—continued  
    Financials—continued  
33,800   Ally Financial, Inc. $929,162
20,000   CIT Group Holdings, Inc. 959,400
8,800   Cboe Global Markets, Inc. 839,872
12,600   Discover Financial Services 896,616
15,000   Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. 1,142,100
13,400   Popular, Inc. 698,542
10,000   Prudential Financial, Inc. 918,800
17,600   TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. 879,824
    TOTAL 8,314,316
    Health Care—7.9%  
18,000   Agilent Technologies, Inc. 1,446,840
6,000 1 Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 811,080
4,600   Amgen, Inc. 873,908
3,000 1 Biogen, Inc. 709,140
7,000 1 Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. 1,016,750
14,000   Gilead Sciences, Inc. 910,140
3,500 1 Illumina, Inc. 1,087,415
5,000 1 Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC. 714,750
11,100   Medtronic PLC 1,010,988
23,100   Merck & Co., Inc. 1,921,227
2,400 1 Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 985,488
6,000   UnitedHealth Group, Inc. 1,483,560
8,000 1 Veeva Systems, Inc. 1,014,880
    TOTAL 13,986,166
    Industrials—4.7%  
3,200   Boeing Co. 1,220,544
4,000   Cummins, Inc. 631,480
19,200   Delta Air Lines, Inc. 991,680
4,400   Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. 911,680
31,000   Robert Half International, Inc. 2,019,960
35,600   Southwest Airlines Co. 1,847,996
6,000 1 United Rentals, Inc. 685,500
    TOTAL 8,308,840
    Information Technology—10.2%  
11,000   Accenture PLC 1,936,220
12,000 1 Akamai Technologies, Inc. 860,520
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
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Shares,
Contracts or
Principal
Amount
    Value
    COMMON STOCKS—continued  
    Information Technology—continued  
6,000   Apple, Inc. $1,139,700
3,500   Broadcom, Inc. 1,052,485
8,200 1 Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. 1,037,218
29,400   Cisco Systems, Inc. 1,587,306
13,200   Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. 956,340
12,400 1 Fortinet, Inc. 1,041,228
5,000   IBM Corp. 705,500
37,400   Intel Corp. 2,008,380
4,400   Intuit, Inc. 1,150,204
44,000   Oracle Corp. 2,363,240
11,500   Paychex, Inc. 922,300
4,000 1 VMware, Inc., Class A 722,040
3,000 1 Zebra Technologies Corp., Class A 628,590
    TOTAL 18,111,271
    Materials—1.2%  
24,000   Mosaic Co./The 655,440
7,000   Packaging Corp. of America 695,660
10,000   Westlake Chemical Corp. 678,600
    TOTAL 2,029,700
    Real Estate—2.7%  
18,000   EPR PPTYS 1,384,200
5,600   Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc. 863,408
18,000   Lamar Advertising Co. 1,426,680
5,600   Simon Property Group, Inc. 1,020,376
    TOTAL 4,694,664
    Utilities—2.8%  
67,000   CenterPoint Energy, Inc. 2,056,900
8,000   Entergy Corp. 765,040
43,000   Exelon Corp. 2,155,590
    TOTAL 4,977,530
    TOTAL COMMON STOCKS
(IDENTIFIED COST $86,433,518)
89,760,471
    EXCHANGE-TRADED FUND—0.6%  
    Financials—0.6%  
37,800   Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund
(IDENTIFIED COST $913,651)
971,838
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
5

Shares,
Contracts or
Principal
Amount
    Value
    U.S. TREASURIES—29.6%  
    U.S. Treasury Bills—5.5%  
$10,000,000 2 United States Treasury Bills, 2.468%, 1/30/2020 $9,803,076
    U.S. Treasury Notes—24.1%  
43,000,000   United States Treasury Note, 1.375%, 1/15/2020 42,646,088
    TOTAL U.S. TREASURIES
(IDENTIFIED COST $52,558,156)
52,449,164
    PURCHASED PUT OPTIONS—1.0%  
400 1 SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Notional Amount $11,299,200, Exercise Price $270.00, Expiration Date 4/18/2019 21,800
400 1 SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Notional Amount $11,299,200, Exercise Price $270.00, Expiration Date 6/21/2019 141,600
800 1 SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Notional Amount $22,598,400, Exercise Price $230.00, Expiration Date 1/17/2020 270,800
800 1 SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Notional Amount $22,598,400, Exercise Price $250.00, Expiration Date 1/17/2020 474,000
800 1 SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Notional Amount $22,598,400, Exercise Price $270.00, Expiration Date 1/17/2020 805,600
    TOTAL PURCHASED PUT OPTIONS
(IDENTIFIED COST $2,806,979)
1,713,800
    INVESTMENT COMPANY—14.0%  
24,784,082   Federated Government Obligations Fund, Premier Shares, 2.33%3
(IDENTIFIED COST $24,784,082)
24,784,082
    TOTAL INVESTMENT IN SECURITIES—95.9%
(IDENTIFIED COST $167,496,386)4
169,679,355
    OTHER ASSETS AND LIABILITIES - NET—4.1%5 7,280,090
    TOTAL NET ASSETS—100% $176,959,445
SECURITIES SOLD SHORT (78.1)%
Shares     Value
    Broad Equity Index—(28.4)%  
178,000   S&P Depositary Receipts Trust $50,281,440
    Communication Services—(4.3)%  
16,000   Communication Services Select Sector SPDR 748,320
40,000   Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. 840,400
19,100   Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. 1,213,614
4,600   NetFlix, Inc. 1,640,176
25,500   T-Mobile USA, Inc. 1,762,050
8,000   Walt Disney Co. 888,240
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
6

Shares     Value
    Communication Services—continued  
14,500   Zillow Group, Inc. $503,730
    TOTAL 7,596,530
    Consumer Discretionary—(5.5)%  
11,100   Aptiv PLC 882,339
21,500   CarMax, Inc. 1,500,700
21,000   D. R. Horton, Inc. 868,980
10,000   Dollar Tree, Inc. 1,050,400
12,000   Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. 901,200
5,500   Grand Canyon Education, Inc. 629,805
33,000   LKQ Corp. 936,540
6,900   Mohawk Industries, Inc. 870,435
6,700   Pool Corp. 1,105,299
12,700   ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. 593,090
4,000   Wynn Resorts Ltd. 477,280
    TOTAL 9,816,068
    Consumer Staples—(3.8)%  
21,000   Hormel Foods Corp. 939,960
35,000   Keurig Dr Pepper, Inc. 978,950
28,000   Kraft Heinz Co./The 914,200
21,000   Mondelez International, Inc. 1,048,320
11,700   PepsiCo, Inc. 1,433,835
30,000   The Coca-Cola Co. 1,405,800
    TOTAL 6,721,065
    Energy—(3.0)%  
19,000   Baker Hughes a GE Co. LLC 526,680
23,000   Exxon Mobil Corp. 1,858,400
7,500   ONEOK, Inc. 523,800
31,000   Schlumberger Ltd. 1,350,670
34,000   Williams Cos., Inc. 976,480
    TOTAL 5,236,030
    Financials—(6.6)%  
45,000   American International Group, Inc. 1,937,700
37,000   Bank of New York Mellon Corp. 1,865,910
12,900   Berkley, W. R. Corp. 1,092,888
13,300   First Republic Bank 1,336,118
23,300   Gallagher (Arthur J.) & Co. 1,819,730
19,000   Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. 944,680
39,500   State Street Corp. 2,599,495
    TOTAL 11,596,521
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
7

Shares     Value
    Health Care—(7.8)%  
8,200   Becton Dickinson & Co. $2,047,786
34,500   Boston Scientific Corp. 1,324,110
7,300   Danaher Corp. 963,746
19,100   Dentsply Sirona, Inc. 947,169
45,000   Elanco Animal Health, Inc. 1,443,150
15,500   Henry Schein, Inc. 931,705
6,700   Humana, Inc. 1,782,200
1,700   Intuitive Surgical, Inc. 969,986
10,000   PerkinElmer, Inc. 963,600
3,300   Teleflex, Inc. 997,128
14,800   Zoetis, Inc. 1,489,916
    TOTAL 13,860,496
    Industrials—(4.8)%  
11,700   Deere & Co. 1,870,128
8,400   Equifax, Inc. 995,400
11,000   General Dynamics Corp. 1,862,080
6,100   Lockheed Martin Corp. 1,830,976
7,000   Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. 953,190
15,000   TransUnion 1,002,600
    TOTAL 8,514,374
    Information Technology—(9.4)%  
24,800   Amdocs Ltd. 1,341,928
21,100   Amphenol Corp., Class A 1,992,684
3,600   Arista Networks, Inc. 1,132,056
11,800   Arrow Electronics, Inc. 909,308
250,000   Au Optronics Corp., ADR 910,000
20,000   Avnet, Inc. 867,400
45,000   FireEye, Inc. 755,550
11,500   Fiserv, Inc. 1,015,220
10,500   Guidewire Software, Inc. 1,020,180
6,800   Henry Jack & Associates, Inc. 943,432
38,000   Jabil, Inc. 1,010,420
18,000   Juniper Networks, Inc. 476,460
17,000   Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. 903,890
14,000   Microchip Technology, Inc. 1,161,440
8,000   Monolithic Power Systems 1,083,920
14,000   Square, Inc. 1,048,880
    TOTAL 16,572,768
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
8

Shares     Value
    Materials—(1.1)%  
11,000   International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. $1,416,690
4,200   PPG Industries, Inc. 474,054
    TOTAL 1,890,744
    Real Estate—(1.6)%  
26,400   ProLogis, Inc. 1,899,480
11,900   Welltower, Inc. 923,440
    TOTAL 2,822,920
    Utilities—(1.8)%  
20,200   Duke Energy Corp. 1,818,000
11,200   Sempra Energy 1,409,632
    TOTAL 3,227,632
    TOTAL SECURITIES SOLD SHORT
(PROCEEDS $128,616,126)
$138,136,588
Affiliated fund holdings are investment companies which are managed by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser. Transactions with affiliated fund holdings during the period ended March 31, 2019, were as follows:
  Federated
Government
Obligations Fund,
Premier Shares
Balance of Shares Held 9/30/2018 43,754,068
Purchases/Additions 171,577,520
Sales/Reductions (190,547,506)
Balance of Shares Held 3/31/2019 24,784,082
Value $24,784,082
Change in Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation N/A
Net Realized Gain/(Loss) N/A
Dividend Income $539,825
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
9

At March 31, 2019, the Fund had the following outstanding futures contracts:
Description Number of
Contracts
Notional
Value
Expiration
Date
Value and
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)
1S&P 500 E-mini Index Short Futures 590 $83,715,100
June 2019
$(2,375,980)
Net Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation on Futures Contracts and on, the Value of Securities Sold Short are included in “Other Assets and Liabilities—Net.”
1 Non-income-producing security.
2 Discount rate at time of purchase.
3 7-day net yield.
4 The cost of investments for federal tax purposes amounts to $167,496,306.
5 Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
Note: The categories of investments are shown as a percentage of total net assets at March 31, 2019.
Various inputs are used in determining the value of the Fund's investments. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:
Level 1—quoted prices in active markets for identical securities.
Level 2—other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.). Also includes securities valued at amortized cost.
Level 3—significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund's own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).
The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
10

The following is a summary of the inputs used, as of March 31, 2019, in valuing the Fund's assets carried at fair value:
Valuation Inputs        
  Level 1—
Quoted
Prices
Level 2—
Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs
Level 3—
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
Total
Equity Securities:        
Common Stocks        
 Domestic $88,024,711 $$— $88,024,711
 International 1,735,760 1,735,760
Debt Securities:        
U.S. Treasuries 52,449,164 52,449,164
Exchange-Traded Funds 971,838 971,838
Purchased Put Options 1,713,800 1,713,800
Investment Company 24,784,082 24,784,082
TOTAL SECURITIES $117,230,191 $52,449,164 $— $169,679,355
Other Financial Instruments        
Assets        
Securities Sold Short $$$— $
Futures Contracts
Liabilities        
Securities Sold Short (138,136,588) (138,136,588)
Futures Contracts (2,375,980) (2,375,980)
TOTAL OTHER FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS $(140,512,568) $$— $(140,512,568)
The following acronyms are used throughout this portfolio:
ADR —American Depositary Receipt
ETF —Exchange-Traded Fund
SPDR —Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipt
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
11

Financial HighlightsClass A Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)1
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
  2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $13.27 $16.27 $19.50 $22.70 $23.90 $29.30
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)2 0.05 (0.11) (0.25) (0.26) (0.50) (0.80)
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (0.09) (2.89) (2.98) (2.94) (0.70) (4.60)
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (0.04) (3.00) (3.23) (3.20) (1.20) (5.40)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $13.23 $13.27 $16.27 $19.50 $22.70 $23.90
Total Return3 (0.30)% (18.44)% (16.56)% (14.10)% (5.02)% (18.43)%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 2.78%4 3.54% 3.34% 3.23%5 3.23%5 2.99%
Net expenses excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales 1.82%4 1.89% 1.78% 1.76%5 1.76%5 1.76%
Net investment income (loss) 0.72%4 (0.74)% (1.40)% (1.22)% (2.10)% (2.90)%
Expense waiver/reimbursement6 0.06%4 0.10% 0.07% 0.04% 0.05% 0.03%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $57,337 $57,253 $82,782 $151,943 $176,614 $203,644
Portfolio turnover 166% 284% 315% 430% 394% 465%
1 On February 5, 2016, the Fund effected a 1 for 10 reverse share split. As a result of the reverse share split: (1) the number of outstanding Shares of the Fund decreased by a factor of 10; and (2) since the Fund's total number of shares outstanding decreased, the net asset value per Fund Share (NAV/Share) increased. The reverse share split did not affect the value of the Fund's net assets or each shareholders proportional ownership interest in those assets. Per share data has been restated where applicable.
2 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
3 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
4 Computed on an annualized basis.
5 The net expense ratios are calculated without reduction for fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements. The net expense ratios are 3.23% and 3.23%, after taking into account these expense reductions for the years ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, respectively. The net expense ratios excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales are also calculated without reduction for these fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements.
6 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
12

Financial HighlightsClass C Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)1
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
  2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $11.67 $14.42 $17.41 $20.40 $21.70 $26.80
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)2 (0.00)3 (0.20) (0.34) (0.37) (0.60) (0.90)
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (0.08) (2.55) (2.65) (2.62) (0.70) (4.20)
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (0.08) (2.75) (2.99) (2.99) (1.30) (5.10)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $11.59 $11.67 $14.42 $17.41 $20.40 $21.70
Total Return4 (0.69)% (19.07)% (17.17)% (14.66)% (5.99)% (19.03)%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 3.53%5 4.28% 4.09% 3.98%6 3.98%6 3.74%
Net expenses excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales 2.56%5 2.63% 2.53% 2.51%6 2.51%6 2.51%
Net investment income (loss) (0.02)%5 (1.49)% (2.16)% (1.98)% (2.84)% (3.65)%
Expense waiver/reimbursement7 0.06%5 0.10% 0.07% 0.04% 0.05% 0.03%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $12,618 $12,090 $18,278 $29,624 $35,556 $44,321
Portfolio turnover 166% 284% 315% 430% 394% 465%
1 On February 5, 2016, the Fund effected a 1 for 10 reverse share split. As a result of the reverse share split: (1) the number of outstanding Shares of the Fund decreased by a factor of 10; and (2) since the Fund's total number of shares outstanding decreased, the net asset value per Fund Share (NAV/Share) increased. The reverse share split did not affect the value of the Fund's net assets or each shareholders proportional ownership interest in those assets. Per share data has been restated where applicable.
2 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
3 Represents less than $0.01.
4 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
5 Computed on an annualized basis.
6 The net expense ratios are calculated without reduction for fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements. The net expense ratios are 3.98% and 3.98%, after taking into account these expense reductions for the years ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, respectively. The net expense ratios excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales are also calculated without reduction for these fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements.
7 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
13

Financial HighlightsInstitutional Shares
(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)1
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended September 30,
  2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period $13.59 $16.63 $19.88 $23.00 $24.30 $29.70
Income From Investment Operations:            
Net investment income (loss)2 0.07 (0.07) (0.20) (0.20) (0.40) (0.70)
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) (0.09) (2.97) (3.05) (2.92) (0.90) (4.70)
TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS (0.02) (3.04) (3.25) (3.12) (1.30) (5.40)
Net Asset Value, End of Period $13.57 $13.59 $16.63 $19.88 $23.00 $24.30
Total Return3 (0.15)% (18.28)% (16.35)% (13.57)% (5.35)% (18.18)%
Ratios to Average Net Assets:            
Net expenses 2.54%4 3.26% 3.04% 2.93%5 2.97%5 2.72%
Net expenses excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales 1.57%4 1.63% 1.53% 1.51%5 1.51%5 1.51%
Net investment income (loss) 0.97%4 (0.48)% (1.09)% (0.92)% (1.85)% (2.64)%
Expense waiver/reimbursement6 0.06%4 0.10% 0.06% 0.04% 0.05% 0.03%
Supplemental Data:            
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted) $107,005 $86,727 $107,720 $172,765 $181,811 $202,690
Portfolio turnover 166% 284% 315% 430% 394% 465%
1 On February 5, 2016, the Fund effected a 1 for 10 reverse share split. As a result of the reverse share split: (1) the number of outstanding Shares of the Fund decreased by a factor of 10; and (2) since the Fund's total number of shares outstanding decreased, the net asset value per Fund Share (NAV/Share) increased. The reverse share split did not affect the value of the Fund's net assets or each shareholders proportional ownership interest in those assets. Per share data has been restated where applicable.
2 Per share numbers have been calculated using the average shares method.
3 Based on net asset value. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.
4 Computed on an annualized basis.
5 The net expense ratios are calculated without reduction for fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements. The net expense ratios are 2.93% and 2.97%, after taking into account these expense reductions for the years ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, respectively. The net expense ratios excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales are also calculated without reduction for these fees paid indirectly for expense offset arrangements.
6 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income (loss) ratios shown above.
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
14

Statement of Assets and Liabilities
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Assets:    
Investment in securities, at value including $24,784,082 of investment in an affiliated holding (identified cost $167,496,386)   $169,679,355
Restricted cash (Note 2)   765
Deposit at broker for short sales   145,850,300
Income receivable   235,634
Income receivable from an affiliated holding   46,979
Receivable for investments sold   8,696,193
Receivable for shares sold   270,532
TOTAL ASSETS   324,779,758
Liabilities:    
Securities sold short, at value (proceeds $128,616,126) $138,136,588  
Dividends payable on short positions 159,797  
Payable for investments purchased 8,656,973  
Payable for shares redeemed 204,072  
Bank overdraft 65,201  
Payable for daily variation margin on futures contracts 495,568  
Payable for investment adviser fee (Note 5) 17,350  
Payable for administrative fees (Note 5) 1,165  
Payable for Directors'/Trustees' fees (Note 5) 137  
Payable for distribution services fee (Note 5) 8,145  
Payable for other service fees (Notes 2 and 5) 21,379  
Accrued expenses (Note 5) 53,938  
TOTAL LIABILITIES   147,820,313
Net assets for 13,305,896 shares outstanding   $176,959,445
Net Assets Consist of:    
Paid-in capital   $1,347,689,518
Total distributable earnings (loss)   (1,170,730,073)
TOTAL NET ASSETS   $176,959,445
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
15

Statement of Assets and Liabilitiescontinued
Net Asset Value, Offering Price and Redemption Proceeds Per Share    
Class A Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($57,336,871 ÷ 4,333,097 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $13.23
Offering price per share (100/94.50 of $13.23)   $14.00
Redemption proceeds per share   $13.23
Class C Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($12,617,859 ÷ 1,088,322 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $11.59
Offering price per share   $11.59
Redemption proceeds per share (99.00/100 of $11.59)   $11.47
Institutional Shares:    
Net asset value per share ($107,004,715 ÷ 7,884,477 shares outstanding), no par value, unlimited shares authorized   $13.57
Offering price per share   $13.57
Redemption proceeds per share   $13.57
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
16

Statement of Operations
Six Months Ended March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
Investment Income:      
Interest     $2,499,811
Dividends (including $539,825 received from an affiliated holding* and net of foreign taxes withheld of $2,756)     741,997
TOTAL INCOME     3,241,808
Expenses:      
Investment adviser fee (Note 5)   $1,154,799  
Administrative fee (Note 5)   74,720  
Custodian fees   18,227  
Transfer agent fee   101,731  
Directors'/Trustees' fees (Note 5)   934  
Auditing fees   18,733  
Legal fees   6,165  
Portfolio accounting fees   36,681  
Distribution services fee (Note 5)   50,395  
Other service fees (Notes 2 and 5)   90,563  
Share registration costs   24,179  
Printing and postage   20,317  
Miscellaneous (Note 5)   46,371  
Expenses related to short positions   893,751  
TOTAL EXPENSES   2,537,566  
Waiver/reimbursement of investment adviser fee (Note 5)   (53,639)  
Net expenses     2,483,927
Net investment income     $757,881
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
17

Statement of Operationscontinued
Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss) on Investments, Futures Contracts, Short Sales and Foreign Currency Transactions:      
Net realized loss on investments     $(4,165,480)
Net realized loss on foreign currency transactions     (7,386)
Net realized gain on futures contracts     5,037,505
Net realized gain on short sales     198,947
Net change in unrealized depreciation of investments     2,491,609
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation of translation of assets and liabilities in foreign currency     (492)
Net change in unrealized depreciation of futures contracts     (2,201,280)
Net change in unrealized depreciation of securities sold short     (5,421,635)
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments, futures contracts, short sales and foreign currency transactions     (4,068,212)
Change in net assets resulting from operations     $(3,310,331)
* See information listed after the Fund's Portfolio of Investments
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
18

Statement of Changes in Net Assets
  Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets    
Operations:    
Net investment income (loss) $757,881 $(1,172,706)
Net realized gain (loss) 1,063,586 (31,972,504)
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation (5,131,798) 78,921
CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS (3,310,331) (33,066,289)
Share Transactions:    
Proceeds from sale of shares 142,957,775 153,327,029
Cost of shares redeemed (118,758,162) (172,971,225)
CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM SHARE TRANSACTIONS 24,199,613 (19,644,196)
Change in net assets 20,889,282 (52,710,485)
Net Assets:    
Beginning of period 156,070,163 208,780,648
End of period $176,959,445 $156,070,163
See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
19

Notes to Financial Statements
March 31, 2019 (unaudited)
1. ORGANIZATION
Federated Equity Funds (the “Trust”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Act”), as an open-end management investment company. The Trust consists of 10 portfolios. The financial statements included herein are only those of Federated Prudent Bear Fund (the “Fund”), a diversified portfolio. The financial statements of the other portfolios are presented separately. The assets of each portfolio are segregated and a shareholder's interest is limited to the portfolio in which shares are held. Each portfolio pays its own expenses. The Fund offers three classes of shares: Class A Shares, Class C Shares and Institutional Shares. All shares of the Fund have equal rights with respect to voting, except on class-specific matters. The investment objective of the Fund is to seek capital appreciation.
On March 30, 2017, the Fund's T Share Class became effective with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), but is not yet offered for sale.
2. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently followed by the Fund in the preparation of its financial statements. These policies are in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
Investment Valuation
In calculating its net asset value (NAV), the Fund generally values investments as follows:
■  Equity securities including shares of exchange traded funds listed on an exchange or traded through a regulated market system are valued at their last reported sale price or official closing price in their principal exchange or market.
■  Fixed-income securities are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Fund's Board of Trustees (the “Trustees”).
■  Shares of other mutual funds or non-exchange-traded investment companies are valued based upon their reported NAVs.
■  Derivative contracts listed on exchanges are valued at their reported settlement or closing price, except that options are valued at the mean of closing bid and asked quotations.
■  Over-the-counter (OTC) derivative contracts are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Trustees.
■  For securities that are fair valued in accordance with procedures established by and under the general supervision of the Trustees, certain factors may be considered, such as: the last traded or purchase price of the security, information obtained by contacting the issuer or dealers, analysis of the issuer's financial statements or other available documents, fundamental analytical data, the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition, the movement of the market in which the security is normally traded, public trading in similar securities or derivative contracts of the issuer or comparable issuers, movement of a relevant index, or other factors including but not limited to industry changes and relevant government actions.
If any price, quotation, price evaluation or other pricing source is not readily available when the NAV is calculated, if the Fund cannot obtain price evaluations from a pricing service or from more than one dealer for an investment within a reasonable period of time as set forth in the Fund's valuation policies and procedures, or if information furnished by a pricing service, in the opinion of the valuation committee (“Valuation Committee”), is deemed not
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
20

representative of the fair value of such security, the Fund uses the fair value of the investment determined in accordance with the procedures described below. There can be no assurance that the Fund could obtain the fair value assigned to an investment if it sold the investment at approximately the time at which the Fund determines its NAV per share.
Fair Valuation and Significant Events Procedures
The Trustees have ultimate responsibility for determining the fair value of investments for which market quotations are not readily available. The Trustees have appointed a Valuation Committee comprised of officers of the Fund, Federated Equity Management Company of Pennsylvania (the “Adviser”) and certain of the Adviser's affiliated companies to assist in determining fair value and in overseeing the calculation of the NAV. The Trustees have also authorized the use of pricing services recommended by the Valuation Committee to provide fair value evaluations of the current value of certain investments for purposes of calculating the NAV. The Valuation Committee employs various methods for reviewing third-party pricing-service evaluations including periodic reviews of third-party pricing services' policies, procedures and valuation methods (including key inputs, methods, models and assumptions), transactional back-testing, comparisons of evaluations of different pricing services, and review of price challenges by the Adviser based on recent market activity. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the Valuation Committee determines the fair value of the investment in accordance with procedures adopted by the Trustees. The Trustees periodically review and approve the fair valuations made by the Valuation Committee and any changes made to the procedures.
Factors considered by pricing services in evaluating an investment include the yields or prices of investments of comparable quality, coupon, maturity, call rights and other potential prepayments, terms and type, reported transactions, indications as to values from dealers and general market conditions. Some pricing services provide a single price evaluation reflecting the bid-side of the market for an investment (a “bid” evaluation). Other pricing services offer both bid evaluations and price evaluations indicative of a price between the prices bid and asked for the investment (a “mid” evaluation). The Fund normally uses bid evaluations for any U.S. Treasury and Agency securities, mortgage-backed securities and municipal securities. The Fund normally uses mid evaluations for any other types of fixed-income securities and any OTC derivative contracts. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the fair value of the investment is determined in accordance with procedures adopted by the Trustees.
The Trustees also have adopted procedures requiring an investment to be priced at its fair value whenever the Adviser determines that a significant event affecting the value of the investment has occurred between the time as of which the price of the investment would otherwise be determined and the time as of which the NAV is computed. An event is considered significant if there is both an affirmative expectation that the investment's value will change in response to the event and a reasonable basis for quantifying the resulting change in value. Examples of significant events that may occur after the close of the principal market on which a security is traded, or after the time of a price evaluation provided by a pricing service or a dealer, include:
■  With respect to securities traded principally in foreign markets, significant trends in U.S. equity markets or in the trading of foreign securities index futures contracts;
■  Political or other developments affecting the economy or markets in which an issuer conducts its operations or its securities are traded;
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■  Announcements concerning matters such as acquisitions, recapitalizations, litigation developments, or a natural disaster affecting the issuer's operations or regulatory changes or market developments affecting the issuer's industry.
The Trustees have adopted procedures whereby the Valuation Committee uses a pricing service to provide factors to update the fair value of equity securities traded principally in foreign markets from the time of the close of their respective foreign stock exchanges to the pricing time of the Fund. For other significant events, the Fund may seek to obtain more current quotations or price evaluations from alternative pricing sources. If a reliable alternative pricing source is not available, the Fund will determine the fair value of the investment in accordance with the fair valuation procedures approved by the Trustees. The Trustees have ultimate responsibility for any fair valuations made in response to a significant event.
Repurchase Agreements
The Fund may invest in repurchase agreements for short-term liquidity purposes. It is the policy of the Fund to require the other party to a repurchase agreement to transfer to the Fund's custodian or sub-custodian eligible securities or cash with a market value (after transaction costs) at least equal to the repurchase price to be paid under the repurchase agreement. The eligible securities are transferred to accounts with the custodian or sub-custodian in which the Fund holds a “securities entitlement” and exercises “control” as those terms are defined in the Uniform Commercial Code. The Fund has established procedures for monitoring the market value of the transferred securities and requiring the transfer of additional eligible securities if necessary to equal at least the repurchase price. These procedures also allow the other party to require securities to be transferred from the account to the extent that their market value exceeds the repurchase price or in exchange for other eligible securities of equivalent market value.
The insolvency of the other party or other failure to repurchase the securities may delay the disposition of the underlying securities or cause the Fund to receive less than the full repurchase price. Under the terms of the repurchase agreement, any amounts received by the Fund in excess of the repurchase price and related transaction costs must be remitted to the other party.
The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements in which eligible securities are transferred into joint trading accounts maintained by the custodian or sub-custodian for investment companies and other clients advised by the Fund's Adviser and its affiliates. The Fund will participate on a pro rata basis with the other investment companies and clients in its share of the securities transferred under such repurchase agreements and in its share of proceeds from any repurchase or other disposition of such securities.
Investment Income, Gains and Losses, Expenses and Distributions
Investment transactions are accounted for on a trade-date basis. Realized gains and losses from investment transactions are recorded on an identified-cost basis. Interest income and expenses are accrued daily. Dividend income and distributions to shareholders are recorded on the ex-dividend date. Foreign dividends are recorded on the ex-dividend date or when the Fund is informed of the ex-dividend date. Distributions of net investment income, if any, are declared and paid annually. Non-cash dividends included in dividend income, if any, are recorded at fair value. Amortization/accretion of premium and discount is included in
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investment income. Investment income, realized and unrealized gains and losses, and certain fund-level expenses are allocated to each class based on relative average daily net assets, except that select classes will bear certain expenses unique to those classes. The detail of the total fund expense waiver and reimbursement of $53,639 is disclosed in various locations in Note 5.
Dividends are declared separately for each class. No class has preferential dividend rights; differences in per share dividend rates are generally due to differences in separate class expenses. Accumulated net investment income (loss) at September 30, 2018, was $(998,956).
Other Service Fees
The Fund may pay other service fees up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the Fund's Class A Shares and Class C Shares to unaffiliated financial intermediaries or to Federated Shareholder Services Company (FSSC) for providing services to shareholders and maintaining shareholder accounts.
Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FSSC may voluntarily reimburse the Fund for other service fees. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, other service fees for the Fund were as follows:
  Other Service
Fees Incurred
Class A Shares $74,061
Class C Shares 16,502
TOTAL $90,563
Federal Taxes
It is the Fund's policy to comply with the Subchapter M provision of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and to distribute to shareholders each year substantially all of its income. Accordingly, no provision for federal income tax is necessary. As of and during the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund did not have a liability for any uncertain tax positions. The Fund recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to tax liabilities as income tax expense in the Statement of Operations. As of March 31, 2019, tax years 2015 through 2018 remain subject to examination by the Fund's major tax jurisdictions, which include the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The Fund may be subject to taxes imposed by governments of countries in which it invests. Such taxes are generally based on either income or gains earned or repatriated. The Fund accrues and applies such taxes to net investment income, net realized gains and net unrealized gains as income and/or gains are earned.
When-Issued and Delayed-Delivery Transactions
The Fund may engage in when-issued or delayed-delivery transactions. The Fund records when-issued securities on the trade date and maintains security positions such that sufficient liquid assets will be available to make payment for the securities purchased. Securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed-delivery basis are marked to market daily and begin earning interest on the settlement date. Losses may occur on these transactions due to changes in market conditions or the failure of counterparties to perform under the contract.
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Futures Contracts
The Fund purchases and sells financial futures contracts to manage market risk and sector/asset class risk. Upon entering into a financial futures contract with a broker, the Fund is required to deposit in a segregated account, either U.S. government securities or a specified amount of Restricted cash, which is shown in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Futures contracts are valued daily and unrealized gains or losses are recorded in a “variation margin” account. Daily, the Fund receives from or pays to the broker a specified amount of cash based upon changes in the variation margin account. When a contract is closed, the Fund recognizes a realized gain or loss. Futures contracts have market risks, including the risk that the change in the value of the contract may not correlate with the changes in the value of the underlying securities. There is minimal counterparty risk to the Fund since futures contracts are exchange traded and the exchange's clearinghouse, as counterparty to all exchange traded futures contracts, guarantees the futures contracts against default.
Futures contracts outstanding at period end are listed after the Fund's Portfolio of Investments.
The average notional value of short futures contracts held by the Fund throughout the period was $67,730,989. This is based on amounts held as of each month-end throughout the six-month fiscal period.
Foreign Exchange Contracts
The Fund enters into foreign exchange contracts to manage currency risk and market risk. Purchased contracts are used to acquire exposure to foreign currencies, whereas, contracts to sell are used to hedge the Fund's securities against currency fluctuations. Risks may arise upon entering into these transactions from the potential inability of counterparties to meet the terms of their commitments and from unanticipated movements in security prices or foreign exchange rates. The foreign exchange contracts are adjusted by the daily exchange rate of the underlying currency and any gains or losses are recorded for financial statement purposes as unrealized until the settlement date.
At March 31, 2019, the Fund had no outstanding foreign exchange contracts.
Foreign Currency Translation
The accounting records of the Fund are maintained in U.S. dollars. All assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars based on the rates of exchange of such currencies against U.S. dollars on the date of valuation. Purchases and sales of securities, income and expenses are translated at the rate of exchange quoted on the respective date that such transactions are recorded. The Fund does not isolate that portion of the results of operations resulting from changes in foreign exchange rates on investments from the fluctuations arising from changes in market prices of securities held. Such fluctuations are included with the net realized and unrealized gain or loss from investments.
Reported net realized foreign exchange gains or losses arise from sales of foreign currencies, currency gains or losses realized between the trade and settlement dates on securities transactions, the difference between the amounts of dividends, interest and foreign withholding taxes recorded on the Fund's books, and the U.S. dollar equivalent of the amounts actually received or paid. Net unrealized foreign exchange gains and losses arise from changes in the value of assets and liabilities other than investments in securities at period end, resulting from changes in the exchange rate.
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Option Contracts
The Fund buys or sells put and call options to seek to manage individual security risk, market risk and sector/asset class risk. The seller (“writer”) of an option receives a payment or premium, from the buyer, which the writer keeps regardless of whether the buyer exercises the option. When the Fund writes a put or call option, an amount equal to the premium received is recorded as a liability and subsequently marked to market to reflect the current value of the option written. Premiums received from writing options which expire are treated as realized gains. The Fund, as a writer of an option, bears the market risk of an unfavorable change in the price of the underlying reference instrument. When the Fund purchases a put or call option, an amount equal to the premium paid is recorded as an increase to the cost of the investment and subsequently marked to market to reflect the current value of the option purchased. Premiums paid for purchasing options which expire are treated as realized losses. Premiums received/paid for writing/purchasing options which are exercised or closed are added to the proceeds or offset against amounts paid on the underlying reference instrument to determine the realized gain or loss. The risk associated with purchasing put and call options is limited to the premium paid. Options can trade on securities or commodities exchanges. In this case, the exchange sets all the terms of the contract except for the price. Most exchanges require investors to maintain margin accounts through their brokers to cover their potential obligations to the exchange. This protects investors against potential defaults by the counterparty.
Purchased option contracts outstanding at period end are listed in the Fund's Portfolio of Investments.
The average market value of purchased put and call options held by the Fund throughout the period was $660,757 and $101,443, respectively. This is based on amounts held as of each month-end throughout the six-month fiscal period.
Short Sales
In a short sale, the Fund sells a security it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the fair market value of the security. When the Fund sells a security short, it must borrow the security in order to deliver it at the completion of the sale. A gain, limited to the price at which the Fund sold the security short, or a loss, unlimited in size, will be recognized upon the termination of the short sale.
The Fund has an obligation to replace the borrowed security (e.g., to purchase the security at a future date and deliver it to the lender of the security). While the security is borrowed, the proceeds from the sale are deposited with the lender (“Prime Broker”). The Fund may incur two types of expenses from short sales: borrowing expenses and dividend expenses. Borrowing expenses may occur because the Fund may be obligated to pay fees to the Prime Broker on borrowed securities. This fee is normally based upon the market value of the borrowed security and is dependent upon the availability of the security. Dividend expenses may occur because the Fund has to pay the Prime Broker the equivalent of any dividends earned on the borrowed security.
For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the net realized gain (loss) and the net change in unrealized gain (loss) on short sales was $198,947 and $(5,421,635), respectively.
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Restricted Securities
The Fund may purchase securities which are considered restricted. Restricted securities are securities that either: (a) cannot be offered for public sale without first being registered, or being able to take advantage of an exemption from registration, under the Securities Act of 1933; or (b) are subject to contractual restrictions on public sales. In some cases, when a security cannot be offered for public sale without first being registered, the issuer of the restricted security has agreed to register such securities for resale, at the issuer's expense, either upon demand by the Fund or in connection with another registered offering of the securities. Many such restricted securities may be resold in the secondary market in transactions exempt from registration. Restricted securities may be determined to be liquid under criteria established by the Trustees. The Fund will not incur any registration costs upon such resales. The Fund's restricted securities, like other securities, are priced in accordance with procedures established by and under the general supervision of the Trustees.
Additional Disclosure Related to Derivative Instruments
Fair Value of Derivative Instruments
  Assets Liabilities
  Statement of
Assets and
Liabilities
Location
Fair
Value
Statement of
Assets and
Liabilities
Location
Fair
Value
Derivatives not accounted for as
hedging instruments under ASC Topic 815
       
Equity contracts Purchased
options, in
securities
at value
$1,713,800   $
Equity contracts   $Payable
for daily
variation
margin on
futures contracts
$2,375,980*
Total derivatives not accounted for as
hedging instruments under ASC Topic 815
  $ 1,713,800   $ 2,375,980
* Includes cumulative net depreciation of futures contracts as reported in the footnotes to the Portfolio of Investments. Only the current day's variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
The Effect of Derivative Instruments on the Statement of Operations for the Six Months Ended March 31, 2019
Amount of Realized Gain or (Loss) on Derivatives Recognized in Income
  Futures
Contracts
Purchased
Options
Contracts1
Total
Equity contracts $5,037,505 $(477,214) $4,560,291
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Change in Unrealized Appreciation or (Depreciation) on Derivatives Recognized in Income
  Futures
Contracts
Purchased
Options
Contracts2
Total
Equity contracts $(2,201,280) $(1,104,229) $(3,305,509)
1 The net realized loss on Purchased Options Contracts is found within the Net realized loss on investments on the Statement of Operations.
2 The net change in unrealized appreciation of Purchased Options Contracts is found within the Net change in unrealized depreciation of investments on the Statement of Operations.
Other
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts of assets, liabilities, expenses and revenues reported in the financial statements. Actual results could differ from those estimated. The Fund applies investment company accounting and reporting guidance.
3. SHARES OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST
The following tables summarize share activity:
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class A Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 1,183,250 $16,766,225 1,811,221 $27,376,914
Shares redeemed (1,164,654) (16,224,331) (2,584,040) (39,123,065)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM
CLASS A SHARE TRANSACTIONS
18,596 $541,894 (772,819) $(11,746,151)
    
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Class C Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 214,975 $2,652,164 207,471 $2,791,842
Shares redeemed (162,599) (1,994,258) (439,286) (5,784,336)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM
CLASS C SHARE TRANSACTIONS
52,376 $657,906 (231,815) $(2,992,494)
    
  Six Months Ended
3/31/2019
Year Ended
9/30/2018
Institutional Shares: Shares Amount Shares Amount
Shares sold 8,615,114 $123,539,386 8,192,497 $123,158,273
Shares redeemed (7,110,636) (100,539,573) (8,291,664) (128,063,824)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM INSTITUTIONAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS 1,504,478 $22,999,813 (99,167) $(4,905,551)
NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM
TOTAL FUND SHARE TRANSACTIONS
1,575,450 $24,199,613 (1,103,801) $(19,644,196)
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4. FEDERAL TAX INFORMATION
At March 31, 2019, the cost of investments for federal tax purposes was $167,496,306. The net unrealized depreciation of investments for federal tax purposes was $9,713,393. This consists of net unrealized appreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of value over cost of $7,528,255 and net unrealized depreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of cost over value of $17,241,648. The amounts presented are inclusive of derivative contracts and short positions.
At September 30, 2018, the Fund had a capital loss carryforward of $1,156,710,576 which will reduce the Fund's taxable income arising from future net realized gains on investments, if any, to the extent permitted by the Code, thereby reducing the amount of distributions to shareholders which would otherwise be necessary to relieve the Fund of any liability for federal income tax. Pursuant to the Code, a net capital loss incurred in taxable years beginning on or before December 22, 2010, is characterized as short-term and may be carried forward for a maximum of eight tax years (“Carryforward Limit”), whereas a net capital loss incurred in taxable years beginning after December 22, 2010, retains its character as either short-term or long-term, does not expire and is required to be utilized prior to the losses which have a Carryforward Limit.
The following schedule summarizes the Fund's capital loss carryforwards and expiration years:
Expiration Year Short-Term Long-Term Total
No Expiration $621,411,459 $178,987,780 $800,399,239
2019 NA $356,311,337 $356,311,337
Under current tax rules, a late-year ordinary loss may be deferred, in whole or in part, and treated as occurring on the first day of the following fiscal year. As of September 30, 2018, for federal income tax purposes, a late year ordinary loss of $998,956 was deferred to October 1, 2018. At September 30, 2018, for federal income tax purposes, the Fund had $20,650 in straddle loss deferrals.
5. INVESTMENT ADVISER FEE AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES
Investment Adviser Fee
The advisory agreement between the Fund and the Adviser provides for an annual fee equal to 1.25% of the Fund's average daily net assets. Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, the Adviser may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. The Adviser can modify or terminate this voluntary waiver at any time at its sole discretion. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Adviser voluntarily waived $36,770 of its fee.
The Adviser has agreed to reimburse the Fund for certain investment adviser fees as a result of transactions in other affiliated investment companies. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Adviser reimbursed $16,869.
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Administrative Fee
Federated Administrative Services (FAS), under the Administrative Services Agreement, provides the Fund with administrative personnel and services. For purposes of determining the appropriate rate breakpoint, “Investment Complex” is defined as all of the Federated Funds subject to a fee under the Administrative Services Agreement. The fee paid to FAS is based on the average daily net assets of the Investment Complex as specified below:
Administrative Fee Average Daily Net Assets
of the Investment Complex
0.100% on assets up to $50 billion
0.075% on assets over $50 billion
Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FAS may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the annualized fee paid to FAS was 0.081% of average daily net assets of the Fund.
In addition, FAS may charge certain out-of-pocket expenses to the Fund.
Distribution Services Fee
The Fund has adopted a Distribution Plan (the “Plan”) pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Act. Under the terms of the Plan, the Fund will compensate Federated Securities Corp. (FSC), the principal distributor, from the daily net assets of the Fund's Class A Shares and Class C Shares to finance activities intended to result in the sale of these shares. The Plan provides that the Fund may incur distribution expenses at the following percentages of average daily net assets annually, to compensate FSC:
  Percentage of Average Daily
Net Assets of Class
Class A Shares 0.05%
Class C Shares 0.75%
Subject to the terms described in the Expense Limitation note, FSC may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, distribution services fees for the Fund were as follows:
  Distribution Services
Fees Incurred
Class C Shares $50,395
When FSC receives fees, it may pay some or all of them to financial intermediaries whose customers purchase shares. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSC retained $8,748 fees paid by the Fund. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund's Class A Shares did not incur a distribution services fee; however, it may begin to incur this fee upon approval of the Trustees.
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Sales Charges
Front-end sales charges and contingent deferred sales charges (CDSC) do not represent expenses of the Fund. They are deducted from the proceeds of sales of Fund shares prior to investment or from redemption proceeds prior to remittance, as applicable. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSC retained $8,324 in sales charges from the sale of Class A Shares. For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSC retained $2,248 in sales charges from the sale of Class C Shares.
Other Service Fees
For the six months ended March 31, 2019, FSSC received $12,058 of the other service fees disclosed in Note 2.
Expense Limitation
The Adviser and certain of its affiliates (which may include FSC, FAS and FSSC) on their own initiative have agreed to waive certain amounts of their respective fees and/or reimburse expenses. Effective December 1, 2018, total annual fund operating expenses (as shown in the financial highlights, excluding dividends and other expenses related to short sales, interest expense, extraordinary expenses and proxy-related expenses paid by the Fund, if any) paid by the Fund's Class A Shares, Class C Shares and Institutional Shares (after the voluntary waivers and/or reimbursements) will not exceed 1.78%, 2.53% and 1.53% (the “Fee Limit”), respectively, up to but not including the later of (the “Termination Date”): (a) December 1, 2019; or (b) the date of the Fund's next effective Prospectus. While the Adviser and its applicable affiliates currently do not anticipate terminating or increasing these arrangements prior to the Termination Date, these arrangements may only be terminated or the Fee Limit increased prior to the Termination Date with the agreement of the Trustees.
Directors'/Trustees' and Miscellaneous Fees
Certain Officers and Trustees of the Fund are Officers and Directors or Trustees of certain of the above companies. To efficiently facilitate payment, Directors'/Trustees' fees and certain expenses related to conducting meetings of the Directors/Trustees and other miscellaneous expenses are paid by an affiliate of the Adviser which in due course are reimbursed by the Fund. These expenses related to conducting meetings of the Directors/Trustees and other miscellaneous expenses may be included in Accrued and Miscellaneous Expenses on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and Statement of Operations, respectively.
6. INVESTMENT TRANSACTIONS
Purchases and sales of investments, excluding long-term U.S. government securities and short-term obligations, for the six months ended March 31, 2019, were as follows:
Purchases $460,321,171
Sales $459,461,030
7. CONCENTRATION OF RISK
A substantial portion of the Fund's portfolio may be comprised of securities deemed by the Adviser to be in similar sectors. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to any economic, business, political or other developments which generally affect these entities.
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8. LINE OF CREDIT
The Fund participates with certain other Federated Funds, on a several basis, in an up to $500,000,000 unsecured, 364-day, committed, revolving line of credit (LOC) agreement. The LOC was made available to finance temporarily the repurchase or redemption of shares of the Fund, failed trades, payment of dividends, settlement of trades and for other short-term, temporary or emergency general business purposes. The Fund cannot borrow under the LOC if an inter-fund loan is outstanding. The Fund's ability to borrow under the LOC also is subject to the limitations of the Act and various conditions precedent that must be satisfied before the Fund can borrow. Loans under the LOC are charged interest at a fluctuating rate per annum equal to the highest, on any day, of (a) (i) the federal funds effective rate, (ii) the one month London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), and (iii) 0.0%, plus (b) a margin. The LOC also requires the Fund to pay, quarterly in arrears and at maturity, its pro rata share of a commitment fee based on the amount of the lenders' commitment that has not been utilized. As of March 31, 2019, the Fund had no outstanding loans. During the six months ended March 31, 2019, the Fund did not utilize the LOC.
9. INTERFUND LENDING
Pursuant to an Exemptive Order issued by the SEC, the Fund, along with other funds advised by subsidiaries of Federated Investors, Inc., may participate in an interfund lending program. This program provides an alternative credit facility allowing the Fund to borrow from other participating affiliated funds. As of March 31, 2019, there were no outstanding loans. During the six months ended March 31, 2019, the program was not utilized.
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Shareholder Expense Example (unaudited)
As a shareholder of the Fund, you incur ongoing costs, including management fees and to the extent applicable, distribution (12b-1) fees and/or other service fees and other Fund expenses. This Example is intended to help you to understand your ongoing costs (in dollars) of investing in the Fund and to compare these costs with the ongoing costs of investing in other mutual funds. It is based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of the period and held for the entire period from October 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019.
ACTUAL EXPENSES
The first section of the table below provides information about actual account values and actual expenses. You may use the information in this section, together with the amount you invested, to estimate the expenses that you incurred 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 section under the heading entitled “Expenses Paid During Period” to estimate the expenses attributable to your investment during this period.
HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE FOR COMPARISON PURPOSES
The second section of the table below 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. Thus, you should not use the hypothetical account values and expenses to estimate the actual ending account balance or your expenses for the period. Rather, these figures are required to be provided to enable you to compare the ongoing costs of investing in the Fund with 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.
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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 sales charges (loads) on purchase or redemption payments. Therefore, the second section of 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
10/1/2018
Ending
Account Value
3/31/2019
Expenses Paid
During Period1
Actual:      
Class A Shares $1,000 $997.00 $13.84
Class C Shares $1,000 $993.10 $17.54
Institutional Shares $1,000 $998.50 $12.66
Hypothetical (assuming a 5% return
before expenses):
     
Class A Shares $1,000 $1,011.00 $13.94
Class C Shares $1,000 $1,007.30 $17.67
Institutional Shares $1,000 $1,012.30 $12.74
1 Expenses are equal to the Fund's annualized net expense ratios, multiplied by the average account value over the period, multiplied by 182/365 (to reflect the one-half-year period). The annualized net expense ratios are as follows:
   
Class A Shares 2.78%
Class C Shares 3.53%
Institutional Shares 2.54%
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Evaluation and Approval of Advisory ContractMay 2018
Federated Prudent Bear Fund (the “Fund”)
At its meetings in May 2018, the Fund's Board of Trustees (the “Board”), including a majority of those Trustees who are not “interested persons” of the Fund, as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Independent Trustees”), reviewed and unanimously approved the continuation of the Fund's investment advisory contract for an additional one-year term. The Board's decision regarding the contract reflects the exercise of its business judgment after considering all of the information received on whether to continue the existing arrangements.
The Board had previously appointed a Senior Officer, whose duties included specified responsibilities relating to the process by which advisory fees are to be charged to a fund advised by Federated Equity Management Company of Pennsylvania (the “Adviser”) or its affiliates (collectively, “Federated”) (each, a “Federated fund”). The Senior Officer's responsibilities included preparing and furnishing to the Board an annual independent written evaluation that covered topics discussed below. In December 2017, the Senior Officer position was eliminated. Notwithstanding the elimination of the Senior Officer position, at the request of the Independent Trustees, the Fund's Chief Compliance Officer (the CCO) furnished to the Board in advance of its May 2018 meetings an independent written evaluation covering substantially the same topics that had been covered in the Senior Officer's written evaluation in prior years. The Board considered the CCO's independent written evaluation (the “CCO Fee Evaluation Report”), along with other information, in evaluating the reasonableness of the Fund's management fee and in deciding to approve the continuation of the investment advisory contract. Consistent with the former Senior Officer position, the CCO, in preparing the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, has the authority to retain consultants, experts or staff as reasonably necessary to assist in the performance of his duties, reports directly to the Board, and can be terminated only with the approval of a majority of the Independent Trustees.
The Board also considered judicial decisions concerning allegedly excessive investment advisory fees in making its decision. Using these judicial decisions as a guide, the Board observed that the following factors may be relevant to an adviser's fiduciary duty with respect to its receipt of compensation from a fund: (1) the nature and quality of the services provided by an adviser to a fund and its shareholders (including the performance of the fund, its benchmark, and comparable funds); (2) an adviser's cost of providing the services (including the profitability to an adviser of providing advisory services to a fund); (3) the extent to which an adviser may realize “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger and, if such economies of scale exist, whether they have been shared with a fund and its shareholders or the family of funds; (4) any “fall-out” financial benefits
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that accrue to an adviser because of its relationship with a fund (including research services received from brokers that execute fund trades and any fees paid to affiliates of an adviser for services rendered to a fund); (5) comparative fee and expense structures (including a comparison of fees paid to an adviser with those paid by similar funds both internally and externally as well as management fees charged to institutional and other advisory clients of the Adviser or its affiliates for what might be viewed as like services); and (6) the extent of care, conscientiousness and independence with which the fund's board members perform their duties and their expertise (including whether they are fully informed about all facts the board deems relevant to its consideration of an adviser's services and fees). The Board noted that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosure requirements regarding the basis for the Board's approval of the Fund's investment advisory contract generally align with the factors listed above. The Board was aware of these factors and was guided by them in its review of the Fund's investment advisory contract to the extent it considered them to be appropriate and relevant, as discussed further below.
The Board considered and weighed these factors in light of its substantial accumulated experience in governing the Fund and working with Federated on matters relating to the Federated funds. The Independent Trustees were assisted in their deliberations by independent legal counsel.
In addition to the extensive materials that comprise and accompany the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, the Board received detailed information about the Fund and the Federated organization throughout the year, and in connection with its May meetings at which the Board's formal approval of the advisory and subadvisory contracts occurred. In this regard, Federated provided much of this information at each regular meeting of the Board, and furnished additional information specifically in connection with the May meetings. In the months preceding the May meetings, the Board requested and reviewed written materials prepared by Federated in response to requests on behalf of the Independent Trustees encompassing a wide variety of topics. At the May meetings, in addition to meeting in separate sessions of the Independent Trustees without management present, senior management of the Adviser also met with the Independent Trustees and their counsel to discuss the materials presented and such additional matters as the Independent Trustees deemed reasonably necessary to evaluate the advisory and subadvisory contracts. Between regularly scheduled meetings, the Board also received information on particular matters as the need arose.
The Board's consideration of the investment advisory contract included review of the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, accompanying data and additional information covering the following matters, among others: the Adviser's investment philosophy, revenue, profitability, personnel and processes; investment and operating strategies; the Fund's short-term and long-term performance (in absolute terms, both on a gross basis and net of expenses, as well as in terms relative to its particular investment program and certain competitor or “peer
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group” funds and/or other benchmarks, as appropriate) and comments on the reasons for performance; the Fund's investment objectives; the Fund's expenses, including the advisory fee and the overall expense structure of the Fund (both in absolute terms and relative to similar and/or competing funds), with due regard for contractual or voluntary expense limitations; the use and allocation of brokerage commissions derived from trading the Fund's portfolio securities (if any); and the nature, quality and extent of the advisory and other services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates. The Board also considered the preferences and expectations of Fund shareholders; the entrepreneurial and other risks assumed by the Adviser in sponsoring the Fund; the continuing state of competition in the mutual fund industry and market practices; the range of comparable fees for similar funds in the mutual fund industry; the Fund's relationship to the Federated funds which include a comprehensive array of funds with different investment objectives, policies and strategies which are generally available for exchange without the incurrence of additional sales charges; compliance and audit reports concerning the Federated funds and the Federated companies that service them (including communications from regulatory agencies), as well as Federated's responses to any issues raised therein; and relevant developments in the mutual fund industry and how the Federated funds and/or Federated are responding to them. The Board's evaluation process is evolutionary. The criteria considered and the emphasis placed on relevant criteria change in recognition of changing circumstances in the mutual fund marketplace.
While mindful that courts have cautioned against giving too much weight to comparative information concerning fees charged by other advisers for managing funds with comparable investment programs, the Board has found the use of such comparisons to be relevant to its deliberations. In this regard, the Board was presented with, and considered, information regarding the contractual advisory fee rates, net advisory fee rates, total expense ratios and each element of the Fund's total expense ratio (i.e., gross and net advisory fees, custody fees, portfolio accounting fees and transfer agency fees) relative to an appropriate group of peer funds compiled by Federated using data supplied by independent fund ranking organizations (the “Peer Group”). The Board received a description of the composition and methodology used to select the Peer Group. The Board focused on comparisons with other similar mutual funds more heavily than non-mutual fund products or services because it is believed that they are more relevant. For example, other mutual funds are the products most like the Fund, in that they are readily available to Fund shareholders as alternative investment vehicles. Also, they are the type of investment vehicle, in fact, chosen and maintained by the Fund's investors. The range of their fees and expenses, therefore, appears to be a relevant indicator of what consumers have found to be reasonable in the marketplace in which the Fund competes.
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The Board reviewed the contractual advisory fee rate, net advisory fee rate and other expenses of the Fund and noted the position of the Fund's fee rates relative to its Peer Group. In this regard, the Board noted that the contractual advisory fee rate was above the median of the relevant Peer Group, but the Board noted the applicable waivers and reimbursements, and that the overall expense structure of the Fund remained competitive in the context of other factors considered by the Board.
For comparison, the CCO reviewed the fees charged by Federated for providing advisory services to products other than the Federated funds (e.g., institutional and separate accounts and third-party unaffiliated mutual funds for which Federated serves as sub-adviser) (referenced to as “Comparable Funds/Accounts”). With respect to Comparable Funds/Accounts other than third-party mutual funds, the CCO concluded that they are inherently different products. Those differences include, but are not limited to, different types of targeted investors; different applicable laws and regulations; different legal structures; different average account sizes and portfolio management techniques made necessary by different cash flows and different associated costs; and the time spent by portfolio managers and their teams, as well as personnel in the Funds Financial Services, Legal, Compliance and Risk Management departments, in reviewing securities pricing, addressing different administrative responsibilities, addressing different degrees of risk associated with management and a variety of different costs. The CCO also reviewed the differences in the nature of the services required for Federated to manage its proprietary mutual fund business versus managing a discrete pool of assets as a sub-adviser to another institution's mutual fund, and that Federated generally performs significant additional services and assumes substantially greater risk in managing the Fund and other Federated funds than in its role as sub-adviser to an unaffiliated third-party mutual fund. The CCO did not consider the fees for providing advisory services to Comparable Funds/Accounts to be determinative in judging the appropriateness of the Federated funds' advisory fees.
Following such evaluation, and full deliberations, the Board concluded that the fees and expenses of the Fund are reasonable and supported renewal of the Fund's investment advisory contract.
The Board considered the nature, extent and quality of the services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and the resources of the Adviser and its affiliates dedicated to the Fund. In this regard, the Board evaluated, among other things, the Adviser's personnel, experience, track record, overall reputation and willingness to invest in personnel and infrastructure that benefit the Fund. In addition, the Board reviewed the qualifications, backgrounds and responsibilities of the portfolio management team primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund and the Adviser's ability and experience in attracting and retaining qualified personnel to service the Fund. The Board noted the compliance program of the Adviser and the compliance-related resources provided to the Fund by the Adviser, including the Adviser's commitment to
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respond to rulemaking initiatives of the SEC. The Fund's ability to deliver competitive performance when compared to its Peer Group was also deemed to be relevant by the Board as a useful indicator of how the Adviser is executing the Fund's investment program. The Adviser's ability to execute this program was one of the Board's considerations in reaching a conclusion that the nature, extent and quality of the Adviser's investment management services warrant the continuation of the investment advisory contract.
In evaluating the Fund's investment performance, the Board considered performance results in light of the Fund's investment objective, strategies and risks, as disclosed in the Fund's prospectus. The Board considered detailed investment reports on the Fund's performance that were provided to the Board throughout the year and in connection with the May meetings. The CCO also reviewed information regarding the performance of other mutual funds in the Peer Group, noting the CCO's view that comparisons to fund peer groups may be helpful, though not conclusive, in evaluating the performance of the Adviser in managing the Fund. The Board considered, in evaluating such comparisons, that in some cases individual funds may exhibit significant and unique differences in their objectives and management techniques when compared to other funds within a Peer Group.
For the periods covered by the CCO Fee Evaluation Report, the Fund's performance for the one-year period was at the median of the relevant Peer Group, and the Fund's performance fell below the median of the relevant Peer Group for the three-year and five-year periods. The Board discussed the Fund's performance with the Adviser and recognized the efforts being taken by the Adviser in the context of the other factors considered relevant by the Board.
Following such evaluation, and full deliberations, the Board concluded that the performance of the Fund supported renewal of the Fund's investment advisory contract.
The Board also received financial information about Federated, including information regarding the compensation and ancillary (or “fall-out”) benefits Federated derived from its relationships with the Federated funds. This information covered not only the fees under the investment advisory contracts, but also fees received by Federated's subsidiaries for providing other services to the Federated funds under separate contracts (e.g., for serving as the Federated funds' administrator and distributor). In this regard, the Board considered that certain Federated subsidiaries provide distribution and shareholder services to the Federated funds, for which they may be compensated through distribution and servicing fees paid pursuant to Rule 12b-1 plans or otherwise. The information also detailed any indirect benefit Federated may derive from its receipt of research services from brokers who execute Federated fund trades. In addition, the Board considered the fact that, in order for a Federated fund to be competitive in the marketplace, the Adviser and its affiliates frequently waived fees and/or reimbursed expenses and have disclosed to Federated fund investors and/or indicated to the Board their intention to do so in the future. Moreover,
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the Board receives regular reporting as to the institution, adjustment or elimination of these voluntary waivers. The Board considered Federated's previous reductions in contractual management fees to certain Federated funds in response to the CCO's recommendations.
Federated furnished information, requested by the CCO, that reported revenues on a fund-by-fund basis and made estimates of the allocation of expenses on a fund-by-fund basis, using allocation methodologies specified by the CCO. The CCO noted that, while these cost allocation reports apply consistent allocation processes, the inherent difficulties in allocating costs continues to cause the CCO to question the precision of the process and to conclude that such reports may be unreliable, since a single change in an allocation estimate may dramatically alter the resulting estimate of cost and/or profitability of a Federated fund and may produce unintended consequences. The allocation information, including the CCO's view that fund-by-fund estimations may be unreliable, was considered in the evaluation by the Board.
The Board and the CCO also reviewed information compiled by Federated comparing its profitability information to other publicly held fund management companies, including information regarding profitability trends over time. In this regard, the CCO concluded that Federated's profit margins did not appear to be excessive. The CCO also noted that Federated appeared financially sound, with the resources necessary to fulfill its obligations under its contracts with the Fund.
The CCO Fee Evaluation Report also discussed the notion of possible realization of “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger. In this regard, the Board considered that the Adviser has made significant and long-term investments in areas that support all of the Federated funds, such as personnel and processes for the portfolio management, shareholder services, compliance, internal audit and risk management functions, as well as systems technology (including technology relating to cybersecurity) and that the benefits of these efforts (as well as any economies of scale, should they exist) were likely to be shared with the Federated fund family as a whole. The Board noted that the Adviser's investments in these areas are extensive. In addition, the Board considered that the Adviser and its affiliates have frequently waived fees and/or reimbursed expenses and that this has allowed fund shareholders to share potential economies of scale with shareholders. The Board also considered that such waivers and reimbursements can provide protection from an increase in expenses if a Federated fund's assets decline. Federated, as it does throughout the year, and specifically in connection with the Board's review of the advisory and subadvisory contracts, furnished information relative to revenue sharing or adviser-paid fees. Federated and the CCO noted that this information should be viewed to determine if there was an incentive to either not apply breakpoints, or to apply breakpoints at higher levels, and should not be viewed to determine the appropriateness of advisory fees because it would represent marketing and distribution expenses. The Board also noted the absence of any applicable
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regulatory or industry guidelines on this subject, which (as discussed in the CCO Fee Evaluation Report) is compounded by the lack of any common industry practice or general pattern with respect to structuring fund advisory fees with “breakpoints” that serve to reduce the fee as a fund attains a certain size.
The CCO stated that his observations and the information accompanying the CCO Fee Evaluation Report supported a finding by the Board that the management fee for the Fund was reasonable. Under these circumstances, no changes were recommended to, and no objection was raised to the continuation of, the Fund's investment advisory contract. The CCO also recognized that the Board's evaluation of the Federated funds' advisory and subadvisory arrangements is a continuing and on-going process that is informed by the information that the Board requests and receives from management throughout the course of the year and, in this regard, the CCO noted certain items for future reporting to the Board or further consideration by management as the Board continues its on-going oversight of the Federated funds.
In its decision to continue an existing investment advisory contract, the Board was mindful of the potential disruptions of the Fund's operations and various risks, uncertainties and other effects that could occur as a result of a decision to terminate or not renew an investment advisory contract. In particular, the Board recognized that many shareholders have invested in the Fund on the strength of the Adviser's industry standing and reputation and with the expectation that the Adviser will have a continuing role in providing advisory services to the Fund. Thus, the Board's approval of the investment advisory contract reflected the fact that it is the shareholders who have effectively selected the Adviser by virtue of having invested in the Fund. The Board concluded that, in light of the factors summarized above, including the nature, quality and scope of the services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates, continuation of the investment advisory contract was appropriate.
The Board based its decision to approve the investment advisory contract on the totality of the circumstances and relevant factors and with a view to past and future long-term considerations. Not all of the factors and considerations identified above were necessarily relevant to the Fund, nor did the Board consider any one of them to be determinative. With respect to the factors that were relevant, the Board's decision to approve the continuation of the contract reflects its view that Federated's performance and actions provided a satisfactory basis to support the decision to continue the existing arrangement.
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Voting Proxies on Fund Portfolio Securities
A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies, if any, relating to securities held in the Fund's portfolio is available, without charge and upon request, by calling 1-800-341-7400. A report on “Form N-PX” of how the Fund voted any such proxies during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available via the Proxy Voting Record (Form N-PX) link associated with the Fund and share class name at www.FederatedInvestors.com/FundInformation. Form N-PX filings are also available at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.
Quarterly Portfolio Schedule
Each fiscal quarter, the Fund will file with the SEC a complete schedule of its monthly portfolio holdings on “Form N-PORT.” The Fund's holdings as of the end of the third month of every fiscal quarter, as reported on Form N-PORT, will be publicly available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov within 60 days of the end of the fiscal quarter upon filing. You may also access this information via the link to the Fund and share class name at www.FederatedInvestors.com.
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Mutual funds are not bank deposits or obligations, are not guaranteed by any bank and are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. government, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board or any other government agency. Investment in mutual funds involves investment risk, including the possible loss of principal.
This Report is authorized for distribution to prospective investors only when preceded or accompanied by the Fund's Prospectus, which contains facts concerning its objective and policies, management fees, expenses and other information.
IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT FUND DOCUMENT DELIVERY    
In an effort to reduce costs and avoid duplicate mailings, the Fund(s) intend to deliver a single copy of certain documents to each household in which more than one shareholder of the Fund(s) resides (so-called “householding”), as permitted by applicable rules. The Fund's “householding” program covers its/their Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, and supplements to each, as well as Semi-Annual and Annual Shareholder Reports and any Proxies or information statements. Shareholders must give their written consent to participate in the “householding” program. The Fund is also permitted to treat a shareholder as having given consent (“implied consent”) if (i) shareholders with the same last name, or believed to be members of the same family, reside at the same street address or receive mail at the same post office box, (ii) the Fund gives notice of its intent to “household” at least sixty (60) days before it begins “householding” and (iii) none of the shareholders in the household have notified the Fund(s) or their agent of the desire to “opt out” of “householding.” Shareholders who have granted written consent, or have been deemed to have granted implied consent, can revoke that consent and opt out of “householding” at any time: shareholders who purchased shares through an intermediary should contact their representative; other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400.
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Federated Prudent Bear Fund
Federated Investors Funds
4000 Ericsson Drive
Warrendale, PA 15086-7561
Contact us at FederatedInvestors.com
or call 1-800-341-7400.
Federated Securities Corp., Distributor
CUSIP 31421N709
CUSIP 31421N600
CUSIP 31421N501
40432 (5/19)
Federated is a registered trademark of Federated Investors, Inc.
2019 ©Federated Investors, Inc.

 

 

 

 

 

Item 2.Code of Ethics

 

Not Applicable

Item 3.Audit Committee Financial Expert

 

Not Applicable

Item 4.Principal Accountant Fees and Services

 

Not Applicable

 

Item 5.Audit Committee of Listed Registrants

 

Not Applicable

 

Item 6.Schedule of Investments

 

(a) The registrant’s Schedule of Investments is included as part of the Report to Stockholders filed under Item 1 of this form.

 

(b) Not Applicable; Fund had no divestments during the reporting period covered since the previous Form N-CSR filing.

 

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

 

Item 9.Purchases 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

 

No Changes to Report

 

Item 11.Controls and Procedures

 

(a) The registrant’s President and Treasurer have concluded that the

registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in rule 30a-3(c) under the Act) are effective in design and operation and are sufficient to form the basis of the certifications required by Rule 30a-(2) under the Act, based on their evaluation of these disclosure controls and procedures within 90 days of the filing date of this report on Form N-CSR.

 

(b) There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in rule 30a-3(d) under the Act) during the second fiscal quarter of 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) Code of Ethics- Not Applicable to this Report.

 

(a)(2) Certifications of Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer.

 

(a)(3) Not Applicable.

 

(b) Certifications pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.

 

Registrant Federated Equity Funds

 

By /S/ Lori A. Hensler

 

Lori A. Hensler

Principal Financial Officer

 

Date May 22, 2019

 

 

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/ J. Christopher Donahue

 

J. Christopher Donahue

Principal Executive Officer

 

Date May 22, 2019

 

 

By /S/ Lori A. Hensler

 

Lori A. Hensler

Principal Financial Officer

 

Date May 22, 2019