Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities of smaller Japanese companies, typically considered to be companies with market capitalizations in the bottom 20% of all publicly traded Japanese companies. As of December 31, 2025, the bottom 20% of publicly traded Japanese companies had market capitalizations below approximately 705.6 billion Japanese yen, or the equivalent of $4.6 billion. This market capitalization range will vary due to market conditions. The Fund considers a Japanese company to be a company organized under the laws of Japan, for which the principal securities trading market is Japan, or that has a majority of its assets or business in Japan. Investments primarily include common stocks. As a non-principal investment strategy, the Fund may also invest in preferred stocks, warrants and other rights, securities convertible into or exchangeable for common stocks, such as convertible bonds, and investments in Japan real estate investment trusts or other investment companies (including exchange-traded funds, referred to as ETFs) that invest in equity securities of Japanese companies.

Using in-depth analysis and on-site research, the Portfolio Managers focus on stocks with a potential “value gap” by screening for small-cap companies that they identify as having strong businesses and management, trading at attractive prices. The portfolio is limited to what the Portfolio Managers consider to be their best ideas and is unconstrained by its benchmarks. The Portfolio Managers typically sell an investment when the reasons for buying it no longer apply, such as when they determine that a company’s prospects have changed, that a company’s stock is fully valued by the market, or that the company is beginning to show deteriorating fundamentals. They also may sell an investment if it becomes, in their determination, too large of a position in the Fund.