Form 497K VIRTUS ALTERNATIVE SOLUT

Summary Prospectus February 28, 2019

Virtus Newfleet Credit Opportunities Fund

Investment Objective

The fund has an investment objective of seeking long-term total return, which may include investment returns from a combination of sources including capital appreciation and interest income.

Fees and Expenses

The tables below illustrate all fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts in Class A Shares if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in Virtus Funds. More information on these and other discounts is available: (i) from your financial advisor or other financial intermediary; (ii) under “Sales Charges” on page 46 of the fund’s prospectus; (iii) with respect to purchase of shares through specific intermediaries, in Appendix A to the fund’s prospectus, entitled “Intermediary Sales Charge Discounts and Waivers;” and (iv) under “Alternative Purchase Arrangements” on page 91 of the fund’s statement of additional information.

(a)

The deferred sales charge is imposed on Class C Shares redeemed during the first year only.

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(b)

Restated to reflect current fees and expenses.

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(c)

The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses do not correlate to the ratio of expenses to average net assets appearing in the Financial Highlights tables, which tables reflect only the operating expenses of the fund and do not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

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(d)

The fund's investment adviser has contractually agreed to limit the fund's total operating expenses (excluding certain expenses, such as front-end or contingent deferred sales charges, taxes, leverage expenses, interest, brokerage commissions, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, unusual or infrequently occurring expenses (such as litigation), acquired fund fees and expenses, and dividend expenses, if any) so that such expenses do not exceed 1.35% for Class A Shares, 2.10% for Class C Shares, 1.10% for Class I Shares and 1.07% for Class R6 Shares through February 28, 2020. Following the contractual period, the adviser may discontinue these expense reimbursement arrangements at any time. Under certain conditions, the adviser may recapture operating expenses reimbursed and/or fees waived under these arrangements for a period of three years following the date such waiver or reimbursement occurred, provided that the recapture does not cause the fund to exceed its expense limit in effect at the time of the waiver or reimbursement, or at the time of recapture.

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Example

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 an investment of  $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated. It shows your costs if you sold your shares at the end of the period or continued to hold them. The example also assumes that your investment has

a 5% return each year, that the fund’s operating expenses remain the same and that the expense reimbursement agreement remains in place for the contractual period. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Portfolio Turnover

The fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 85% of the average value of its portfolio.

Investments, Risks and Performance

Principal Investment Strategies

Under normal circumstances, the fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in securities and other credit instruments the subadviser believes to offer "credit opportunities." Such instruments will include bonds and other types of credit instruments as described below. The fund intends to invest a substantial amount of its assets in credit instruments that are rated below investment grade. Securities rated below the four highest rating categories of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization are considered below investment grade, also known as “high-yield/high-risk” securities and commonly referred to as “junk bonds.” The fund seeks investments believed by the subadviser to be best suited to the current investment environment and market outlook. The fund primarily invests in a combination of performing, stressed, and distressed credit instruments including:

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Unsecured debt obligations, including high-yield/high-risk obligations;

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Secured bank loans (including those that, at the time of investment, could be considered junk securities as described above);

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Second lien or other subordinated or unsecured adjustable, variable or floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt, including convertible bonds (including those that, at the time of investment, could be considered junk securities as described above);

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Structured products, including collateralized debt and loan obligations (collectively, “structured products”) that provide long or short exposure to other credit obligations;

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Swaps and other derivative instruments (including credit default, total return, index and interest rate swaps), options (including options on swaps, futures contracts and foreign currencies), forward contracts and futures contracts;

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Short-term debt securities such as U.S. government securities, commercial paper and other money market instruments and cash equivalents (including shares of money market funds).

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The fund may invest in all or some of these types of instruments. The fund focuses on a relatively small number of issuers. The fund may invest without limitation in distressed securities or other debt that is in default or whose issuers are in bankruptcy. The fund may invest in both domestic and foreign securities, including securities in emerging markets, and may invest in securities of any maturity. Certain securities in which the fund will invest, including collateralized debt and loan obligations, will be subject to the limitations applicable to illiquid securities (generally 15%). With respect to credit default swaps, in addition to purchasing such securities, the fund may also write them.

The fund may hold significant positions in equity securities, including common and preferred stocks and convertible securities, including contingent convertible securities, or other assets that the fund receives as part of a reorganization process, and may hold those assets until such time as the subadviser believes that a disposition is most advantageous. Such assets will be considered “credit opportunities” for purposes of the fund’s requirement to invest 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in securities and other credit instruments the subadviser believes offer credit opportunities. The fund may also purchase significant positions in equity securities, including common and preferred stocks and convertible securities, exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), or issuers that are structured as master limited partnerships (“MLPs”), that were not received as part of a reorganization process. Such assets will not be considered “credit opportunities” for purposes of this requirement. The fund's policy of investing 80% of its assets in credit opportunities may be changed only upon 60 days' written notice to shareholders.

The fund may borrow up to 33 1/3% of its total assets (including the amount borrowed). The fund may borrow for investment purposes, to meet redemption requests, and for temporary, extraordinary or emergency purposes.

Principal Risks

The fund may not achieve its objective(s), and it is not intended to be a complete investment program. The value of the fund’s investments that supports your share value may decrease. If between the time you purchase shares and the time you sell shares the value of the fund’s investments decreases, you will lose money. Investment values can decrease for a number of reasons. Conditions affecting the overall economy, specific industries or companies in which the fund invests can be worse than expected, and investments may fail to perform as the subadvisers expect. As a result, the value of your shares may decrease. Purchase and redemption activities by fund shareholders may impact the management of the fund and its ability to achieve its investment objective(s). The principal risks of investing in the fund are:

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Call Risk.  The risk that issuers will prepay fixed rate obligations when interest rates fall, forcing the fund to reinvest in obligations with lower interest rates than the original obligations and otherwise not benefit fully from the increase in value that other fixed income securities experience when interest rates decline.

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Contingent Convertible Securities Risk.  The risk that the financial strength of the issuer of a contingent convertible security held by the fund will decline in a prescribed way or regulatory actions trigger a conversion event, causing the value of the fund's investment in the security to decrease, perhaps significantly.

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Convertible Securities Risk.  The risk that the value of a convertible security held by the fund will decline as interest rates rise and/or vary with fluctuations in the market value of the underlying securities, or that the security will be called for redemption at a time and/or price unfavorable to the fund.

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Counterparty Risk.  The risk that a party upon whom the fund relies to consummate a transaction will default.

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Credit Risk.   The risk that the issuer of a security will fail to pay interest or principal in a timely manner, or that negative perceptions of the issuer’s ability to make such payments will cause the price of the security to decline.

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Currency Rate Risk.  The risk that fluctuations in the exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies may negatively affect the value of the fund’s shares.

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Derivatives Risk.  The risk that the fund will incur a loss greater than the fund’s investment in, or will experience greater share price volatility as a result of investing in, a derivative contract. Derivatives may include, among other things, futures, options, forwards and swap agreements and may be used in order to hedge portfolio risks, create leverage, or to attempt to increase yield.

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Emerging Market Investing Risk.  The risk that prices of emerging markets securities will be more volatile, or will be more greatly affected by negative conditions, than those of their counterparts in more established foreign markets.

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Equity Securities Risk.  The risk that events negatively affecting issuers, industries or financial markets in which the fund invests will impact the value of the stocks held by the fund and, thus, the value of the fund’s shares over short or extended periods. Investments in a particular style or in small or medium-sized companies may enhance that risk.

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Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) Risk.  The risk that the value of an ETF will be more volatile than the underlying portfolio of securities the ETF is designed to track, or that the costs to the fund of owning shares of the ETF will exceed those the fund would incur by investing in such securities directly.

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Foreign Currency Transactions Risk.  The risk that the fund’s transactions with respect to foreign currency are not successful or have the effect of limiting gains from favorable market movements.

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Foreign Investing Risk.  The risk that the prices of foreign securities in the fund’s portfolio will be more volatile than those of domestic securities, or will be negatively affected by currency fluctuations, less regulated or liquid securities markets, or economic, political or other developments.

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High-Yield/High-Risk Fixed Income Securities (Junk Bonds) Risk.  The risk that the issuers of high-yield/​high-risk securities in the fund’s portfolio will default, that the prices of such securities will be volatile, and that the securities will not be liquid.

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Insolvency and Bankruptcy Risk.  The risk that the issuers of certain securities in which the fund invests, including debt obligations that are in default, will fail to repay their obligations to the fund, in whole or in part, or that the fund will be adversely affected by the bankruptcy of such issuers.

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Interest Rate Risk.  The risk that when interest rates rise, the values of the fund’s debt securities, especially those with longer maturities, will fall.

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Large Market Capitalization Companies Risk.  The risk that the value of investments in larger companies may not rise as much as smaller companies, or that larger companies may be unable to respond quickly to competitive challenges, such as changes in technology and consumer tastes.

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Leverage Risk.  The risk that leverage created from borrowing or certain types of transactions or instruments, including derivatives, may impair the fund's liquidity, cause it to liquidate positions at an unfavorable time, increase its volatility or otherwise cause it not to achieve its intended result.

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Liquidity Risk.  The risk that certain securities may be difficult or impossible to sell at the time and price beneficial to the fund.

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Loan Risk.  The risks that, in addition to the risks typically associated with high-yield/high-risk fixed income securities, loans (including floating rate loans) in which the fund invests may be unsecured or not fully collateralized, may be subject to restrictions on resale, and/or some loans may trade infrequently on the secondary market. Loans settle on a delayed basis, potentially leading to the sale proceeds of loans not being available to meet redemptions for a substantial period of time after the sale of the loans.

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Long-Term Maturities/Durations Risk.  The risk of greater price fluctuations than would be associated with securities having shorter maturities or durations.

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Market Volatility Risk.  The risk that the value of the securities in which the fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual issuers and/or general economic conditions. Such price changes may be temporary or may last for extended periods.

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Master Limited Partnership (MLP) Risk.  The risk that the fund’s investments in MLP units will be negatively impacted by tax law changes, changes in interest rates, the failure of the MLP's parent or sponsor to make payments as expected, regulatory developments or other factors affecting the MLP’s underlying assets, which are typically in the natural resources and energy sectors.

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Preferred Stock Risk.  The risk that a preferred stock will decline in price, fail to pay dividends when expected, or be illiquid.

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Redemption Risk.  The risk that redemption by one or more large shareholders or groups of shareholders of their holdings in the fund has an adverse impact on the remaining shareholders in the fund by causing the fund to take actions it would not otherwise take at a given time.

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Short Sales Risk.  The risk that the fund will experience a loss if the price of a borrowed security increases between the date of a short sale and the date on which the fund replaces the security.

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Short-Term Investments Risk.  The risk that the fund’s short-term investments will not provide the liquidity or protection intended or will prevent the fund from experiencing positive movements in the fund’s principal investment strategies.

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Small and Medium Market Capitalization Risk.  The risk that the fund's investments in small and medium market capitalization companies will increase the volatility and risk of loss to the fund, as compared with investments in larger, more established companies.

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Structured Products Risk.  The risk that, in addition to the general risks associated with investing in debt securities, the fund’s exposure to certain risks -- such as counterparty risk, liquidity risk and market volatility risk -- will be different or greater as a result of investing through structured products.

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U.S. Government Securities Risk.  The risk that U.S. Government securities in the fund’s portfolio will be subject to price fluctuations, or that an agency or instrumentality will default on an obligation not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States.

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Performance Information

The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the potential risks of investing in the fund. The fund’s past performance, before and after taxes, is not necessarily an indication of how the fund will perform in the future.

The bar chart shows changes in the fund’s performance from year to year over the life of the fund. The table shows how the fund’s average annual returns compare to those of a broad-based securities market index and a composite benchmark that reflects the market sectors in which the fund invests. Updated performance information is available at virtus.com or by calling 800-243-1574.

Calendar year total returns for Class I Shares

Returns do not reflect sales charges and would be lower if they did.

Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended 12/31/18)

Returns reflect deduction of maximum sales charges and full redemption at end of periods shown.

The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. High-Yield 2% Issuer Capped Bond Index is a market capitalization-weighted index that measures fixed rate non-investment grade debt securities of U.S. and non-U.S. corporations. No single issuer accounts for more than 2% of market cap. The index is calculated on a total return basis. The index is unmanaged and not available for direct investment.

After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. After-tax returns are shown only for Class I Shares; after-tax returns for other classes will vary. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold fund shares in tax-deferred accounts or to shares held by non-taxable entities. In certain cases, the Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares for a period may be higher than other return figures for the same period. This will occur when a capital loss is realized upon the sale of fund shares and provides an assumed tax benefit that increases the return.

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Management

The fund’s investment adviser is Virtus Alternative Investment Advisers, Inc. (“VAIA”).

The fund’s subadviser is Newfleet Asset Management, LLC (“Newfleet”), an affiliate of VAIA.

Portfolio Management

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David L. Albrycht, CFA,  President and Chief Investment Officer at Newfleet. Mr. Albrycht has served as Portfolio Manager of the fund since inception in June 2015.

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Eric Hess, CFA,  Managing Director and Credit Research Analyst at Newfleet. Mr. Hess has served as a Portfolio Manager of the fund since March 2017.

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Jonathan R. Stanley, CFA,  Managing Director of Fixed Income Research at Newfleet. Mr. Stanley has served as a Portfolio Manager of the fund since January 2019.

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Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

Minimum initial investments applicable to Class A and Class C Shares:

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$2,500, generally

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$100 for Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), systematic purchase or exchange accounts

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No minimum for defined contribution plans, asset-based fee programs, profit-sharing plans or employee benefit plans.

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Minimum additional investments applicable to Class A and Class C Shares:

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$100, generally

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No minimum for defined contribution plans, asset-based fee programs, profit-sharing plans or employee benefit plans.

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For Class I Shares, the minimum initial purchase is $100,000; there is no minimum for additional purchases.

Class R6 Shares are available only to the following investors without a minimum initial investment or minimum additional purchases: certain employer-sponsored retirement plans, including Section 401(k), 403(b) and 457 plans, profit-sharing plans, money purchase pension and defined benefit plans, and non-qualified deferred compensation plans, in each case provided that plan level or omnibus accounts are held on the books of the fund. Other institutional investors may be permitted to purchase Class R6 Shares subject to the fund’s determination of eligibility and may be subject to a $2,500,000 minimum initial investment requirement.

In general, you may buy or sell shares of the fund by mail or telephone on any business day. You also may buy and sell shares through a financial advisor, broker-dealer or other financial intermediary.

Taxes

The fund’s distributions are taxable to you as either ordinary income or capital gains, except when your investment is through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account. Such tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of monies from those arrangements.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase the fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your financial advisor to recommend the fund over another investment.

No compensation, administrative payments, sub-transfer agency payments or service payments are paid to brokers or other entities from fund assets or the Distributor’s or an affiliate’s resources on sales of or investments in Class R6 Shares. Class R6 Shares do not carry sales commissions or pay Rule 12b-1 fees, or make payments to brokers or other entities to assist in, or in connection with, the sale of the fund’s shares.

Ask your financial advisor or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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Virtus Mutual Funds
P.O. Box 9874
Providence, RI 02940-8074