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Class A, C, Inst, Inv, R, R6 Shares | Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund
<b>Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund—Summary</b>
<b>Investment Objective</b>
The Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund (the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
<b>Fees and Expenses of the Fund</b>
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. The table does not take into account brokerage commissions that you may pay on your purchases and sales of Institutional Shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts on purchases of Class A Shares if you invest at least $50,000 in Goldman Sachs Funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in “Shareholder Guide—Common Questions Applicable to the Purchase of Class A Shares” beginning on page 47 and in Appendix C—Additional Information About Sales Charge Variations, Waivers and Discounts on page 97 of the Prospectus and “Other Information Regarding Maximum Sales Charge, Purchases, Redemptions, Exchanges and Dividends” beginning on page B-120 of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”).
<b>Shareholder Fees</b><br/><b>(fees paid directly from your investment)</b>
Shareholder Fees - Class A, C, Inst, Inv, R, R6 Shares - Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund
Class A
Class C
Institutional
Investor
Class R
Class R6
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) 5.50% none none none none none
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or sale proceeds) [1] none 1.00% none none none none
[1] A contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of 1% is imposed on Class C Shares redeemed within 12 months of purchase.
<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</b>
Annual Fund Operating Expenses - Class A, C, Inst, Inv, R, R6 Shares - Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund
Class A
Class C
Institutional
Investor
Class R
Class R6
Management Fees 0.98% 0.98% 0.98% 0.98% 0.98% 0.98%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees 0.25% 0.75% none none 0.50% none
Other Expenses [1] 5.75% 6.00% 5.61% 5.75% 5.75% 5.60%
Service Fees none 0.25% none none none none
All Other Expenses 5.75% 5.75% 5.61% 5.75% 5.75% 5.60%
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses 0.09% 0.09% 0.09% 0.09% 0.09% 0.09%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses [2] 7.07% 7.82% 6.68% 6.82% 7.32% 6.67%
Expense Limitation [3] (5.45%) (5.45%) (5.45%) (5.45%) (5.45%) (5.45%)
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses [2],[4] 1.62% 2.37% 1.23% 1.37% 1.87% 1.22%
[1] The “Other Expenses” have been restated to reflect expenses expected to be incurred during the current fiscal year.
[2] The “Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses” do not correlate to the ratios of net and total expenses to average net assets provided in the Financial Highlights, which reflect the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses.”
[3] The Investment Adviser has agreed to reduce or limit “Other Expenses” (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, transfer agency fees and expenses, service fees, taxes, interest, brokerage fees, expenses of shareholder meetings, litigation and indemnification, and extraordinary expenses) to 0.124% of the Fund’s average daily net assets through at least February 28, 2020, and prior to such date, the Investment Adviser may not terminate the arrangement without the approval of the Board of Trustees.
[4] After Expense Limitation
<b>Expense Example</b>
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.

The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in Class A, Class C, Institutional, Investor, Class R and/or Class R6 Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Class A, Class C, Institutional, Investor, Class R and/or Class R6 Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (except that the Example incorporates the expense limitation arrangement for only the first year). The Example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you may pay on your purchases and sales of Institutional Shares of the Fund. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Assuming complete redemption at end of period
Expense Example - Class A, C, Inst, Inv, R, R6 Shares - Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund - USD ($)
1 Year
3 Years
Class A Shares 706 1,531
Class C Shares 340 1,255
Institutional Shares 125 924
Investor Shares 140 965
Class R Shares 190 1,111
Class R6 Shares 124 921
Assuming no redemption
Expense Example, No Redemption
1 Year
3 Years
Class A, C, Inst, Inv, R, R6 Shares | Goldman Sachs ESG Emerging Markets Equity Fund | Class C Shares | USD ($) 240 1,255
<b>Portfolio Turnover</b>
The Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., “turns over” its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains for taxable shareholders. These costs are not reflected in the annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example above, but are reflected in the Fund’s performance. The Fund’s portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal period ended October 31, 2018 was 23% of the average value of its portfolio.
<b>Principal Strategy</b>
The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) (“Net Assets”) in a diversified portfolio of equity investments in emerging country issuers that the Investment Adviser believes adhere to the Fund’s environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) criteria. Such equity investments may include exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), futures and other instruments with similar economic exposures. The Investment Adviser may consider classifications by the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, the United Nations (and its agencies) or the Fund’s benchmark index provider in determining whether a country is emerging or developed. Emerging countries are generally located in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Central and Eastern Europe and Central and South America.

The Fund’s ESG criteria are generally designed to exclude companies with weak corporate governance, and/or companies that are involved in, and/or derive significant revenue from, certain industries or product lines, including:
  • gambling,
  • alcohol,
  • tobacco,
  • coal, and
  • weapons.
Once the Investment Adviser determines that an issuer meets the Fund’s ESG criteria, the Investment Adviser conducts a supplemental analysis of individual companies’ corporate governance factors and a range of environmental and social factors that may vary by sector. This supplemental analysis will be conducted alongside traditional fundamental, bottom-up financial analysis of individual companies, using traditional fundamental metrics. The Investment Adviser engages in active dialogues with company management teams to further inform investment decision-making and to foster best corporate governance practices using its fundamental and ESG analysis. In addition, the Investment Adviser seeks to avoid what it believes to be structurally unattractive market segments.

The Investment Adviser may sell holdings for several reasons, including, among others, changes in a company’s fundamentals or earnings, a company no longer meeting the Fund’s ESG criteria, or a company otherwise failing to conform to the Investment Adviser’s investment philosophy.

The Fund may invest in the aggregate up to 20% of its Net Assets in: (i) fixed income securities of private and government emerging country issuers; (ii) equity and fixed income securities, such as government, corporate and bank debt obligations, of developed country issuers; and (iii) equity and fixed income securities of issuers that may not adhere to the Fund’s ESG criteria.

The Fund’s benchmark index is the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (Net, USD, Unhedged).
<b>Principal Risks of the Fund</b>
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) or any government agency. The Fund should not be relied upon as a complete investment program. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. Investments in the Fund involve substantial risks which prospective investors should consider carefully before investing.

ESG Standards Risk.  The Fund’s adherence to its ESG criteria and the application of the Investment Adviser’s supplemental ESG analysis when selecting investments may affect the Fund’s exposure to certain companies, sectors, regions, and countries and may affect the Fund’s performance depending on whether such investments are in or out of favor. For example, the Fund will not seek to invest in companies that the Investment Adviser believes have adverse social or environmental impacts (i.e., gambling, alcohol, tobacco, coal or weapons companies), and the Fund will not seek to invest in companies that the Investment Adviser believes show inadequate governance standards (e.g., certain state-owned enterprises). Adhering to the ESG criteria and applying the Investment Adviser’s supplemental ESG analysis may also affect the Fund’s performance relative to similar funds that do not adhere to such criteria or apply such analysis. Additionally, the Fund’s adherence to the ESG criteria and the application of the supplemental ESG analysis in connection with identifying and selecting equity investments in emerging country issuers often require subjective analysis and may be relatively more difficult than applying the ESG criteria or the supplemental ESG analysis to equity investments of all issuers because data availability may be more limited with respect to emerging country issuers than developed country issuers. Certain investments may be dependent on U.S. and foreign government policies, including tax incentives and subsidies. The Fund’s ESG criteria and the application of the ESG analysis may be changed without shareholder approval.

Foreign and Emerging Countries Risk.  Foreign securities may be subject to risk of loss because of more or less foreign government regulation, less public information and less economic, political and social stability in the countries in which the Fund invests. The imposition of exchange controls, sanctions, confiscations, trade restrictions (including tariffs) and other government restrictions by the United States and other governments, or from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, may also result in losses. Foreign risk also involves the risk of negative foreign currency rate fluctuations, which may cause the value of securities denominated in such foreign currency (or other instruments through which the Fund has exposure to foreign currencies) to decline in value. Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. These risks may be more pronounced in connection with the Fund’s investments in securities of issuers located in emerging countries.

The Fund may invest heavily in issuers located in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and therefore may be particularly exposed to the economies, industries, securities and currency markets of these five countries, which may be adversely affected by protectionist trade policies, slow economic activity worldwide, political and social instability, environmental events and natural disasters, regional and global conflicts, terrorism and war, including actions that are contrary to the interests of the U.S.

Large Shareholder Transactions Risk.  The Fund may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders purchase or redeem large amounts of shares of the Fund. Such large shareholder redemptions, which may occur rapidly or unexpectedly, may cause the Fund to sell portfolio securities at times when it would not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) and liquidity. Similarly, large Fund share purchases may adversely affect the Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash or otherwise maintains a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. These transactions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income to shareholders if such sales of investments resulted in gains, and may also increase transaction costs. In addition, a large redemption could result in the Fund’s current expenses being allocated over a smaller asset base, leading to an increase in the Fund’s expense ratio.

Liquidity Risk.  The Fund may make investments that are illiquid or that may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquid investments may be more difficult to value. Liquidity risk may also refer to the risk that the Fund will not be able to pay redemption proceeds within the allowable time period because of unusual market conditions, an unusually high volume of redemption requests, or other reasons. To meet redemption requests, the Fund may be forced to sell securities at an unfavorable time and/or under unfavorable conditions. These risks may be more pronounced in connection with the Fund’s investments in securities of issuers located in emerging market countries.

Market Risk.  The value of the securities in which the Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors or governments and/or general economic conditions throughout the world due to increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets.

Sector Risk.  To the extent the Fund focuses its investments in one or more sectors (such as the financial services or telecommunications sectors), the Fund will be subject, to a greater extent than if its investments were diversified across different sectors, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions or developments that may be particular to that sector, such as: adverse economic, business, political, environmental or other developments.

Stock Risk.  Stock prices have historically risen and fallen in periodic cycles. U.S. and foreign stock markets have experienced periods of substantial price volatility in the past and may do so again in the future.
<b>Performance</b>
Because the Fund has not operated for a full calendar year as of the date of the Prospectus, there is no performance information quoted for the Fund. Updated performance information is available at no cost at www.gsamfunds.com/performance or by calling the phone number on the back of the Prospectus.