The Fund considers a company to be a
large-capitalization issuer if it has a market capitalization, at the time of purchase, within the range of the market capitalizations of the issuers included in the Russell 1000 Growth Index during the most recent
11-month period (based on month-end data) plus the most recent data during the current month. This range is subject to change at any time due to market activity or changes in the composition of that index. A company’s
“market capitalization” is the value of its outstanding stock.
The Fund invests primarily in U.S. companies but may also purchase securities of issuers in
any country, including developed countries and emerging markets. The Fund has no limits on the amount of its assets that can be invested in foreign securities.
In selecting investments for the Fund, the portfolio managers look for
companies with high growth potential using a “bottom-up” stock selection process. The
“bottom-up” approach focuses on fundamental analysis of individual issuers before considering the impact of overall economic, market or industry trends. This approach includes analysis of a company’s financial statements and management
structure and consideration of the company’s operations, product development, and its industry position. The portfolio managers currently focus on what they believe to be high-growth companies that are characterized by industry
leadership, market share growth, high caliber management teams, sustainable competitive
advantages, and strong growth themes or new innovative products or services. As reflected in the
Fund's name, the “Discovery” team of portfolio managers seek to discover such companies early. The portfolio managers monitor individual issuers for changes in the factors above, which may trigger a decision to sell a security,
but does not require a decision to do so. The factors considered by the portfolio managers may vary in particular cases and may change over time.
The Fund is non-diversified, which means it can invest a greater percentage
of its assets in a small group of issuers or any one issuer than a diversified fund can.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
As with any
mutual fund investment, loss of money is a risk of investing. An investment in the Fund is not a
deposit in a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. The risks associated with an investment in the Fund can increase during times of significant market volatility. The principal risks of investing in the Fund
are:
Market Risk. The market values of the Fund’s investments, and therefore the value of the Fund’s shares, will go up and down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably.
Market risk may affect a single issuer, industry or section of the economy, or it may affect the market as a whole. The value of the Fund’s investments may go up or down due to general market conditions that are not specifically
related to the particular issuer, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for revenues or corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates, regional or global
instability, natural or environmental disasters, widespread disease or other public health issues, war, military conflict, acts of terrorism, economic crisis or adverse investor sentiment generally. During a general downturn in the
financial markets, multiple asset classes may decline in value. When markets perform well, there can be no assurance that specific investments held by the Fund will rise in value.
Investing in Stocks
Risk. The value of the Fund’s portfolio may be affected by changes in the stock markets. Stock markets may experience significant short-term volatility and
may fall or rise sharply at times. Adverse events in any part of the equity or fixed-income markets may have unexpected negative effects on other market segments. Different stock markets may behave differently from each
other and U.S. stock markets may move in the opposite direction from one or more foreign stock markets.
The prices of individual stocks generally do not all move in the same
direction at the same time. However, individual stock prices tend to go up and down more
dramatically than those of certain other types of
investments, such as bonds. A variety of factors can negatively affect the price of a particular
company’s stock. These factors may include, but are not limited to: poor earnings reports, a loss of customers, litigation against the company, general unfavorable performance of the company’s sector or industry, or changes in government
regulations affecting the company or its industry. To the extent that securities of a particular type are emphasized (for example foreign stocks, stocks of small- or mid-cap companies, growth or value stocks, or stocks of companies
in a particular industry), Fund share values may fluctuate more in response to events affecting the market for those types of securities.
Growth Investing Risk. If a growth company’s earnings or stock price fails to increase as anticipated, or if its business
plans do not produce the expected results, the value of its securities may decline sharply. Growth
companies may be newer or smaller companies that may experience greater stock price fluctuations
and risks of loss than larger, more established companies. Newer growth companies tend to retain a large part of their earnings for research, development or investments in capital assets. Therefore, they may not pay any
dividends for some time. Growth investing has gone in and out of favor during past market cycles and is likely to continue to do so. During periods when growth investing is out of favor or when markets are unstable, it may
be more difficult to sell growth company securities at an acceptable price and the securities of growth companies may underperform the securities of value companies or the overall stock market. Growth stocks may also be more
volatile than other securities because of investor speculation.
Small- and Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk. Investing in
securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies involves greater risk than customarily is
associated with investing in larger, more established companies. Stocks of small- and mid-capitalization companies tend to be more vulnerable to changing market conditions, may have little or no operating history or track record of
success, and may have more limited product lines and markets, less experienced management and fewer
financial resources than larger companies. These companies’ securities may be more volatile
and less liquid than those of more established companies. They may be more sensitive to changes in a company’s earnings expectations and may experience more abrupt and erratic price movements. Smaller companies’ securities
often trade in lower volumes and in many instances, are traded over-the-counter or on a regional securities exchange, where the frequency and volume of trading is substantially less than is typical for securities of larger
companies traded on national securities exchanges. Therefore, the securities of smaller companies may be subject to wider price fluctuations and it might be harder for the Fund to dispose of its holdings at an acceptable
price when it wants to sell them. Since small- and mid-cap companies typically reinvest a high proportion of their earnings in their business, they may not pay dividends for some time, particularly if they are newer companies. It may
take a substantial period of time to realize a gain on an investment in a small- or mid-cap company, if any gain is realized at all.
Sector Focus Risk. The Fund may from
time to time have a significant amount of its assets invested in one market sector or group of related industries. In this event, the Fund’s performance will depend to a greater extent on the overall
condition of the sector or group of industries and there is increased risk that the Fund will lose significant value if conditions adversely affect that sector or group of industries.
Foreign Securities
Risk. The Fund's foreign investments may be adversely affected by political and social instability, changes in economic or taxation policies, difficulty
in enforcing obligations, decreased liquidity or increased volatility. Foreign investments also involve the risk of the possible seizure, nationalization or expropriation of the issuer or foreign deposits (in which the Fund could lose its
entire investments in a certain market) and the possible adoption of foreign governmental restrictions such as exchange controls. Foreign companies generally may be subject to less stringent regulations than U.S. companies,
including financial reporting requirements and auditing and accounting controls, and may therefore be more