Strategy And Objective

The Funds investment objective is to seek capital appreciation. The Fund mainly invests in common stocks of U.S. companies that the portfolio managers expect to have above-average growth rates. The Fund seeks to invest in newer companies or in more established companies that are in the early growth phase of their business cycle, which is typically marked by above average growth rates. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of mid-cap issuers, and in derivatives and other instruments that have economic characteristics similar to such securities. The Fund defines mid-cap issuers as those issuers that are within the range of market capitalizations of the Russell Midcap Growth Index. This range is subject to change at any time due to market activity or changes in the composition of that index. The range of the Russell Midcap Growth Index is reconstituted annually to preserve its capitalization characteristics. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in companies in other market capitalization ranges. The Fund measures a companys capitalization at the time the Fund buys a security, and is not required to sell a security if the issuers capitalization moves outside of the Funds definition of mid-cap issuers. The Fund invests primarily in U.S. companies but may also purchase securities of issuers in any country, including developed countries and emerging markets. The Fund has no limits on the amount of its assets that can be invested in foreign securities. In selecting investments for the Fund, the portfolio managers look for companies with high growth potential using a bottom-up stock selection process. The bottom-up approach focuses on fundamental analysis of individual issuers before considering the impact of overall economic, market or industry trends. This approach includes analysis of a companys financial statements and management structure and consideration of the companys operations, product development, and its industry position.