Derivatives, which are
instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate or index, may be used as
substitutes for securities in which the Fund can invest. To the extent the Fund uses derivatives,
the Fund will primarily use futures contracts to more effectively gain targeted equity exposure
from its cash positions.
Investment Process: In managing the Fund, the
adviser employs a fundamental bottom-up investment process and seeks to invest in attractively
valued companies with leading competitive positions and predictable and durable business models. It also seeks to invest the Fund’s assets in companies whose management has a successful track record of prudent
capital allocation. As part of its investment process, the adviser seeks to assess the impact of
environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors on many issuers in the universe in which the Fund may invest. The adviser’s assessment is based on an analysis of key opportunities and risks across
industries to seek to identify financially material issues with respect to the Fund’s investments in securities and ascertain key issues that merit engagement with issuers. These assessments may not be
conclusive and securities of issuers that may be negatively impacted by such factors may be
purchased and retained by the Fund while the Fund may divest or not invest in securities of issuers that may be positively impacted by such factors.
The adviser may sell a security for several reasons. A security may be sold due to a change in a
company’s fundamentals or if the adviser believes the security is no longer attractively valued. Investments may also be sold if the adviser identifies a stock that it believes offers a better investment
opportunity.
The Fund’s Main Investment
Risks
The Fund is subject to management risk and may not achieve
its objective if the adviser’s expectations regarding particular instruments or markets are
not met.
An investment in this Fund or any other fund may not provide a complete investment program. The suitability of an investment in the Fund
should be considered based on the investment objective, strategies and risks described in this Prospectus, considered in light of all of the other investments in your
portfolio, as well as your risk tolerance, financial goals and time horizons. You may want to consult with a financial advisor to determine if this Fund is suitable for you.
The Fund is subject to the main risks noted below, any of which may
adversely affect the Fund’s performance and ability to meet its investment objective.
Equity Market Risk. The price of equity securities may rise or fall because of changes in the broad market or changes in a
company’s financial condition, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. These price movements
may result from factors affecting individual companies, sectors or industries selected for the
Fund’s portfolio or the securities market as a whole, such as changes in economic or
political conditions. When the value of the Fund’s portfolio securities goes down, your investment in the Fund decreases in value.
General Market Risk. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or
conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in
other countries or regions. Securities in
the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in general financial
markets, a particular financial market or other asset classes due to a number of factors,
including inflation (or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability,
debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, sanctions and other trade barriers, regulatory
events, other governmental trade or market control programs and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such
as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and
infectious disease epidemics or pandemics.
Smaller
Company Risk. Investments in securities of smaller companies (mid cap and small cap companies)
may be riskier, less liquid, more volatile and more vulnerable to economic, market and industry
changes than securities of larger, more established companies. The securities of smaller companies
may trade less frequently and in smaller volumes than securities of larger companies. As a
result, changes in the price of securities issued by such companies may be more sudden or erratic
than the prices of securities of large capitalization companies, especially over the short term.
These risks are higher for small cap companies.
Derivatives Risk. Derivatives, including futures contracts, may be riskier than other types of investments and may increase the volatility of the Fund. Derivatives may be
sensitive to changes in economic and market conditions and may create leverage, which could
result in losses that significantly exceed the Fund’s original investment. The Fund may be more volatile than if the Fund had not been leveraged because the leverage tends to exaggerate any effect on the value of the
Fund’s portfolio securities. Certain derivatives expose the Fund to counterparty risk,
which is the risk that the derivative counterparty will not fulfill its contractual obligations (and includes credit risk associated with the counterparty). Certain derivatives are synthetic instruments that attempt to replicate the
performance of certain reference assets. With regard to such derivatives, the Fund does not have
a claim on the reference assets and is subject to enhanced counterparty risk. Derivatives may not
perform as expected, so the Fund may not realize the intended benefits. When used for hedging,
the change in value of a derivative may not correlate as expected with the security or other risk
being hedged. In addition, given their complexity, derivatives expose the Fund to risks of mispricing or improper valuation. Derivatives also can expose the Fund to derivative liquidity risk, which includes risks involving
the liquidity demands that derivatives can create to make payments of margin, collateral, or
settlement payments to counterparties, legal risk, which includes the risk of loss resulting from insufficient or unenforceable contractual documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of the Fund’s
counterparty and operational risk, which includes documentation or settlement issues, system
failures, inadequate controls and human error.
Industry and Sector Focus Risk. At times, the Fund may increase the relative emphasis of its investments in a particular industry or sector. The prices of securities of
issuers in a particular industry or sector may be more susceptible to fluctuations due to changes
in economic or business conditions, government regulations, availability of basic resources or supplies, contagion risk within a particular industry or sector or to other industries