Foreign
Issuer Exposure Risk—The Fund may invest in securities of foreign companies directly or in financial instruments that are indirectly linked to the performance of foreign issuers, such as ADRs. The Fund’s exposure to foreign issuers and investments in foreign securities, if any, are subject to additional risks in comparison to U.S. securities and U.S. issuers, including currency fluctuations, adverse political (including geopolitical) and economic developments, unreliable or untimely information, less liquidity, limited legal recourse and higher transactional costs.
Industry Concentration Risk—The Fund expects to concentrate its investments in a limited number of issuers conducting
business in the same industry or group of related industries. To the extent the Fund does so, the Fund is more vulnerable to adverse market, economic, regulatory,
political or other developments affecting that industry or group of related industries than a fund that invests its assets more broadly. As of June 30, 2024, the
Fund’s investments are concentrated in securities issued by companies in the Beverages Industry and Food Products Industry. As a result of the Fund’s concentration in the Beverages Industry and Food Products Industry, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with those Industries. The Beverages Industry includes producers of alcoholic (e.g., beers, malt liquors and wine) and non-alcoholic (e.g., sodas and mineral waters) beverages. The Food Products Industry includes producers of agricultural products and packaged foods, including dairy products, fruit juices, meats, poultry, fish and pet foods. The Beverages Industry and Food Products Industry are highly competitive and can be significantly affected by demographic and product trends, competitive pricing, fads, marketing campaigns, environmental factors, consumer preferences, nutritional and health concerns, federal, state and local food inspection and processing controls, consumer product liability claims, possible product tampering and the availability and expense of liability insurance. Legislative or regulatory changes and increased government supervision also may affect companies in the Beverages Industry and Food Products Industry. The Beverages Industry and Food Products Industry are separate industries within the Consumer Staples Sector.
Market Risk—The value of, or income generated by, the investments held by the Fund may fluctuate rapidly and
unpredictably. These fluctuations may be frequent and significant. In addition, the Fund may incur losses as a result of various market and economic factors, such as those affecting individual companies or issuers or particular industries, or from broader influences, such as general market conditions. In addition, developments related to economic, political (including geopolitical), social, public health, market, extreme weather, natural or man-made disasters or other conditions or events may cause volatility in financial markets and reduced liquidity in equity, credit and/or debt markets, which could adversely impact the Fund and its investments and their value and performance. Under such conditions, the Fund (or an underlying fund) may experience significant redemption activity by shareholders and could be forced to sell portfolio securities or other assets at unfavorable prices in an effort to generate sufficient cash to pay redeeming shareholders. The Fund’s investments may perform poorly or underperform the general securities markets or other types of securities.
Mid-Capitalization Securities Risk—The Fund
is subject to the risk that mid-capitalization securities may underperform other segments of the equity market or the equity market as a whole. Securities of
mid-capitalization companies may be more speculative, volatile and less liquid than securities of large companies. Mid-capitalization companies tend to have inexperienced management as well as limited product and market diversification and
financial resources and may be more vulnerable to adverse developments than large capitalization companies.
Portfolio Turnover Risk—The Fund’s strategy may frequently involve buying and selling portfolio securities, which
may lead to increased costs to the Fund. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund’s performance to be less than you expect.
Regulatory and Legal Risk—U.S. and non-U.S. governmental agencies and other
regulators regularly implement additional regulations and legislators pass new laws that affect the investments held by the Fund, the strategies used by the Fund or the level of regulation or taxation applying to the Fund (such as regulations related to the use of derivatives and other transactions). These regulations and laws impact the investment strategies, performance, costs and operations of the Fund or taxation of shareholders.
Sector Risk—To the extent the Fund’s holdings have significant exposure to
one or more market sectors, the Fund may be especially sensitive to the developments affecting and risks of such market sectors. As of June 30, 2024, the Fund is subject to the Sector Risk described below.
Consumer
Staples Sector Risk. The Fund’s investments are exposed to issuers conducting business in the Consumer Staples Sector. The Consumer Staples Sector includes manufacturers and distributors of food, beverages and tobacco and producers of non-durable household goods and personal products. It also includes food and drug retailing companies as well as hypermarkets and consumer super centers. The Fund is subject