To pursue its goal, the Fund invests mainly in common stocks of small- and mid-capitalization companies, which it defines as those companies with a total market value between $50 million and $10 billion at the time the Fund first invests in them. The Fund may continue to hold or add to a position in a stock after the company’s market value has increased above or decreased below this range.

The Fund’s strategy consists of using a bottom-up, research driven approach to identify stocks of companies that are available at market prices below the Portfolio Managers’ estimate of their intrinsic value and that the Portfolio Managers believe have the potential for appreciation in value over time. The Portfolio Managers’ estimate of a company’s intrinsic value represents their view of the company’s true, long-term economic value, the market’s view of which may be currently distorted by market inefficiencies. The intrinsic value estimate represents what the Portfolio Managers believe a company could be worth if it is acquired, if its profitability returns to its long-term average level, or if its valuation moves in line with those companies that the Portfolio Managers see as its publicly traded peers.

The Portfolio Managers believe that while markets are often efficient, certain investment opportunities tend to be mispriced due to market inefficiencies. For example, market inefficiencies may exist at times in the small capitalization segment of the market due to a lack of widely available research on these companies. The Portfolio Managers attempt to exploit these market inefficiencies and look for opportunities to invest in companies they believe to be undervalued, such as companies with the following characteristics:

In seeking to identify these types of companies, the Portfolio Managers perform an initial screening to identify those companies that have stock prices that are trailing the performance of the overall market and that the Portfolio Managers believe are attractive relative to current cash flows. Next, the Portfolio Managers establish an estimate of a company’s intrinsic value. The Portfolio Managers will invest in a company’s stock on the basis of the company’s discount to the Portfolio Managers’ estimate of intrinsic value and the Portfolio Managers’ belief in its potential for appreciation over time. In addition, the Portfolio Managers may invest in anticipation of a catalyst, such as a merger, liquidation, spin off, or management change. The Portfolio Managers will typically visit a company and interview its management team to help understand management’s incentives (such as equity ownership in the company and compensation plans), the merits of its strategic plan, and other factors that have the potential to increase the value of the company’s stock. The Portfolio Managers also integrate governance factors into the investment process. They seek to invest in companies that have effective and independent boards composed of diverse, and currently active, CEOs and other C-level executives. They look for companies where management and shareholder interests are aligned (often through high ownership of the company by management), with long-term incentive plans and CEO and management compensation and succession plans in place. The Portfolio Managers also seek out companies that have full transparency and disclosure, effective capital deployment strategies and value enhancing merger and acquisition policies. When appropriate, the Portfolio Managers may engage with portfolio companies on a variety of topics, including governance, strategy and financing in an effort to enhance shareholder value. The Portfolio Managers may also engage with portfolio companies on financially material environmental and social issues.

The Portfolio Managers establish an intrinsic value for a company’s stock when it is purchased and then continue to evaluate the company’s stock price versus their estimate of its intrinsic value to determine whether to maintain, add to, reduce or eliminate the position. The Portfolio Managers typically reduce or eliminate a position in a company’s stock if the stock’s price appreciates and the company’s discount to their estimate of its intrinsic value narrows. The Portfolio Managers’ decision to reduce or eliminate a position in a particular stock may also be driven by their belief that another company’s stock has a wider discount to their estimate of its intrinsic value. Changes in a company’s management or corporate strategy, or the failure of a company to perform as expected, may also cause the Portfolio Managers to reduce or eliminate a position in that company’s stock.

As part of their fundamental investment analysis the Portfolio Managers consider Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors they believe are financially material to individual investments, where applicable. This includes seeking to identify and engage with issuers where the Portfolio Managers believe an improvement in a financially material ESG factor may enhance shareholder value. Accordingly, this may result in the Fund making an investment in a company with one or more financially material ESG risks at the time of investments. While consideration of financially material ESG factors is inherently subjective and may be informed by both internally generated and third-party metrics, data and other information, the Portfolio Managers believe that the consideration of financially material ESG factors, alongside traditional financial metrics, may enhance the Fund’s overall investment process. The consideration of ESG factors does not apply to certain instruments, such as certain derivative instruments, other registered investment companies, cash and cash equivalents and ESG factors may not be deemed financially material to other investments. The consideration of ESG factors as part of the investment process does not mean that the Fund pursues a specific “impact” or “sustainable” investment strategy.

The Fund may invest in restricted securities, including private placements, which are securities that are subject to legal restrictions on their sale and may not be sold to the public unless registered under the applicable securities law or pursuant to an applicable exemption.

At times, the Portfolio Managers may emphasize certain sectors that they believe will benefit from market or economic trends.