Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry. As a
result of the Fund's concentration in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with that Industry. The Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry includes manufacturers of semiconductor equipment, including equipment used in the solar power industry (e.g., raw wafers, gases, liquids and related packaging & material delivery systems), and semiconductors and related products, including manufacturers of solar modules, cells, integrated circuit devices, diodes and light-emitting diodes (LEDs), microprocessors and chips. Companies in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry rely heavily on technology. The prices of the securities of companies in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry may fluctuate widely due to competitive pressures, increased sensitivity to short product cycles and aggressive pricing, heavy expenses incurred for research and development of products or services that prove unsuccessful, problems related to bringing products to market, and rapid obsolescence of products. Legislative or regulatory changes and increased government supervision also may affect companies in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry. The Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment Industry is a separate industry within the Information Technology Sector.
Software Industry. As a
result of the Fund's concentration in the Software Industry, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with that Industry. The Software Industry includes
companies engaged in developing and producing software designed for specialized applications for the business and consumer markets, including enterprise & technical software, cloud-based software and companies engaged in bitcoin mining, and in developing and producing software for operating systems & platforms, database management software and firewalls. The prices of the securities of issuers in the Software Industry may fluctuate widely due to competitive pressures, increased sensitivity to short product cycles and aggressive pricing, heavy expenses incurred for research and development of products or services that prove unsuccessful, challenges related to bringing products to market, and rapid obsolescence of products. In addition, many software companies rely on a combination of patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secret laws to establish and protect their proprietary rights in their products and technologies. There can be no assurance that the steps taken by software companies to protect their proprietary rights will be adequate to prevent misappropriation of their technology or that competitors will not independently develop technologies that are substantially equivalent or superior to such companies' technology. Legislative or regulatory changes and increased government supervision also may affect companies in the Software Industry. The Software Industry is a separate industry within the Information Technology 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 (or perceived to affect) individual companies or issuers or particular industries, or from broader influences, such as general market conditions. In addition, responses to government actions or interventions (including, but not limited, to the threat or imposition of tariffs, trade restrictions, currency restrictions or similar actions) as well as 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. Certain securities may be difficult to value under such conditions. 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.