The fund normally invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in securities of companies with value characteristics. The fund considers a company to have value characteristics if the company’s securities are represented in an appropriate third-party value-oriented index. Any derivatives that provide exposure to the investment focus suggested by the fund’s name, or to one or more market risk factors associated with the investment focus suggested by the fund’s name, are counted (as applicable) toward compliance with the fund’s 80% investment policy.

The fund invests primarily in U.S. equity securities. The fund uses a value style of investing. In taking a value approach to investment selection, the adviser seeks to identify companies that appear to be undervalued by various measures, and may be temporarily out of favor, but have good prospects for capital appreciation. Some of the principal measures used to identify such stocks are: price/earnings ratio, price/book value ratio, price/sales ratio, dividend yield, price/cash flow, undervalued assets, and restructuring opportunities. The fund may purchase the stocks of companies of any size, but typically focuses on larger companies. The portfolio is typically constructed in a “bottom up” manner, an approach that focuses more on evaluations of individual stocks than on analysis of overall economic trends and market cycles.

Sector allocations are largely the result of the fund’s focus on stock selection. At times, the fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in the same economic sector.