Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of small capitalized (“small cap”) and medium capitalized (“mid cap”) companies. For purposes of the Fund, the Adviser considers a company to be a small cap or mid cap company if it has a market capitalization no larger than the largest capitalized company included in the Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index at the time of the Fund’s investment. Securities of companies whose market capitalizations no longer meet this definition after purchase may continue to be held in the Fund. To a limited extent, the Fund may also purchase stocks of companies with business characteristics and value prospects similar to small to mid cap companies, but that may have market capitalizations above the market capitalization of the largest member of the Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index. The Fund may invest in equity securities listed on a national securities exchange or traded in the over‑the‑counter markets. The Fund invests primarily in common stocks, but it may also invest in other types of equity securities, including real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). div style="margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: times new roman;"The Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index measures the performance of the 800 companies with the lowest market capitalizations in the Russell 1000sup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index. The size of companies in the Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index may change with market conditions. In addition, changes to the composition of the Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index can change the market capitalization range of companies included in the index. As of March 31, 2026, the Russell Midcapsup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"®/sup Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $907 million and $116.8 billion. The Russell 2500sup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"TM/sup Value Index, the Fund’s performance benchmark, measures the performance of those Russell 2500sup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"TM /supcompanies with lower price‑to‑book ratios and lower forecasted growth values./div div style="margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: times new roman;"In selecting investments for the Fund, the Adviser typically looks to invest in companies with leading market share positions, shareholder-oriented managements, and strong balance sheet and cash flow ratios. Usually, the shares of the companies the Adviser buys are selling at a price to earnings ratio below the average price to earnings ratio of the stocks that comprise the Russell 2500sup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"TM/sup Value Index. In addition, the companies selected by the Adviser usually have higher returns on equity and capital than the average company in the Russell 2500sup style="font-size: 75%; vertical-align: top;"TM/sup Value Index. The Adviser screens the Fund’s universe of potential investments to identify potentially undervalued securities based on factors such as financial strength, earnings valuation and earnings quality. The Adviser further narrows the list of potential investments through traditional fundamental security analysis, which may include interviews with company management and a review of the assessments and opinions of outside analysts and consultants. Securities are sold when the Adviser believes the shares have become relatively overvalued or it finds more attractive alternatives. The Adviser generally will not sell a security merely due to market appreciation outside the Fund’s target capitalization range if it believes the company has valuation upside potential./div