Strategy And Objective

The Fund s investment objective is to seek capital appreciation. The Fund mainly invests in common stocks of U.S. companies that the portfolio managers believe have favorable growth prospects. The Fund emphasizes stocks of small-capitalization (or small-cap ) companies, which are defined as those issuers that are at the time of purchase within the range of market capitalizations of the Russell 2000 Growth Index. A company s market capitalization is the value of its outstanding common stock and the determination of whether the company is small- , mid- or large-cap is based on the company s market capitalization relative to that of other companies. The portfolio managers look for companies with high growth potential. This approach includes fundamental analyses of a company s financial statements and management structure and consideration of the company s operations and product development, as well as its position in its industry. The portfolio managers also evaluate research on particular industries, market trends and general economic conditions. The portfolio managers currently seek companies with proven management records that are able to handle rapid growth, companies with innovative products or services, and companies that have above average growth profiles and have what the portfolio managers believe are sustainable growth rates. These criteria can vary.