To achieve the Fund’s investment objective, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (the “Sub-Adviser”) implements an integrated investment approach that combines research, portfolio design, portfolio management, and trading functions. As further described below, the Fund’s design emphasizes long-term drivers of expected returns identified by the Sub-Adviser’s research, while balancing risk through broad diversification across companies and sectors. The Sub-Adviser’s portfolio management and trading processes further balance those long-term drivers of expected returns with shorter-term drivers of expected returns and trading costs.

The Fund is designed to purchase a broad and diverse group of readily marketable equity securities of large and mid cap U.S. companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the Sub-Adviser, that the Sub-Adviser believes are “value” stocks at the time of investment.

The Sub-Adviser generally considers large and mid cap companies to be companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the highest 90% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are larger than or equal to the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization threshold. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of eligible U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the Sub-Adviser. Under the Sub-Adviser’s market capitalization guidelines described above, based on market capitalization data as of August 31, 2024, the market capitalization of an eligible company would be approximately $12.2 billion or above. This dollar amount will vary due to market conditions. The Fund has a non-fundamental investment policy that, under normal circumstances, it will invest at least 80% of its net assets in U.S. securities.

The Sub-Adviser uses a market capitalization weighted approach to weight the securities in the Fund’s portfolio. A company’s market capitalization is the number of its shares outstanding times its price per share. Under a market capitalization weighted approach, companies with higher market capitalizations generally represent a larger proportion of the Fund than companies with relatively lower market capitalizations. The Sub-Adviser may overweight certain stocks, including smaller companies, lower relative price stocks and/or higher profitability stocks within the large-cap value and mid-cap value segments of the U.S. market. An equity issuer is considered to have a low relative price (i.e., a value stock) primarily because it has a low price in relation to its book value. In assessing relative price, the Sub-Adviser may consider additional factors such as price-to-cash flow or price-to-earnings ratios. An equity issuer is considered to have high profitability because it has high earnings or profits from operations in relation to its book value or assets. The criteria the Sub-Adviser uses for assessing relative price and profitability are subject to change from time to time.

The Sub-Adviser may also increase or reduce the Fund’s exposure to an eligible company, or exclude a company, based on shorter-term considerations, such as a company’s price momentum and short-run reversals. In addition, the Sub-Adviser seeks to reduce trading costs using a flexible trading approach that looks for opportunities to participate in the available market liquidity, while managing turnover and explicit transaction costs.

The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to generate additional income.