The Fund, under normal circumstances, invests at least 80% of its assets in long and short positions in equity and equity related securities of U.S. and non-U.S. companies with market capitalizations at the time of initial purchase within the range of those in the S&P 500 Index that are publicly traded on a U.S. securities market. The market capitalization range of the S&P 500 Index changes constantly, and as a result, the capitalization of companies in which the Fund will invest will also change. As of September 30, 2023, the market capitalization range of the S&P 500 Index was approximately $4.00 billion to $2.68 trillion. For purposes of the 80% investment policy, equity and equity related securities include: common and preferred stocks, and warrants on common stock. In applying this 80% investment policy, the assets of the Fund include both long and short positions and Fund borrowings.

The Fund will hold long equity securities that the Adviser has identified as undervalued and take short positions (through short sales) in equity securities that the Adviser has identified as overvalued or poised for underperformance. A short sale is a transaction in which the Fund sells a stock it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the stock, and then borrows the stock to make delivery to the buyer. The Fund may engage in short sales for hedging purposes or to attempt to increase the Fund’s return as a non-hedging strategy that may be considered speculative. Short selling may result in greater risk to the Fund because losses are potentially unlimited.

When the Fund takes a long position, it purchases the stock outright. When the Fund takes a short position, it sells a stock that it does not own and settles the sale by borrowing the same stock from a lender. To close out the short position, the Fund subsequently buys back the same stock in the market and returns it to the lender. The Fund makes money on a short position if the market price of the stock goes down after the short sale. Conversely, if the price of the stock goes up after the short sale, the Fund will lose money because it will have to pay more to replace the borrowed stock than it received when it sold the stock short. Short selling is a technique that may be considered speculative and involves risk beyond the amount of money invested.

The Adviser believes that a long/short strategy will enable the Fund to reflect the Adviser’s positive and negative views on individual stocks and to seek higher performance. However, there can be no guarantee that this result will be achieved.

The Fund may, but is not required to, invest in derivative contracts, such as swaps and options on securities and securities indices, for a variety of purposes, including: in an attempt to hedge against adverse changes in the market price of securities, interest rates or currency exchange rates; as a substitute for purchasing or selling securities, including short sales; to attempt to increase the Fund’s return as a non-hedging strategy that may be considered speculative; to manage portfolio characteristics; and as a cash flow management technique. The Fund may choose not to make use of derivatives for a variety of reasons, and any use may be limited by applicable law and regulations. The Fund may also hold cash or other short-term investments.

The Adviser evaluates investment opportunities for the Fund using a proprietary value-oriented process that seeks to identify companies characterized by three attributes: change, neglect and relative valuation. The Adviser seeks to identify those changes that are material to a company’s operations, outlook and prospects while also identifying companies that it believes have been neglected by other investors. The Adviser utilizes a primarily qualitative research process focused on these attributes to identify and invest in relatively undervalued companies. These factors formulate the Adviser’s investment case for each company under consideration for investment. The Adviser’s process is focused not only on building the investment case, but also on understanding how the case might deteriorate. The Adviser’s sell discipline is ultimately dependent upon the written investment case for the stock. A position generally will be sold when one or more of the following occurs: (i) an established price target is approaching or is attained, implying the stock has reached an estimation of fair valuation; (ii) a factor in the initial investment thesis has deteriorated causing the Adviser to reassess the potential for the company; or (iii) the Adviser identifies what it believes is a more promising investment opportunity.

After a decision to sell is made, the investment generally is replaced by either a new idea or existing holdings which the Adviser believes offers greater upside. A short position may be closed out when a company’s fundamentals improve or expected underperformance fails to occur.

The Fund may borrow money from banks and use the proceeds to purchase additional securities to the extent permitted under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”).

In addition, for purposes of the Fund’s 80% investment policy, equity and equity related securities also include: (i) securities convertible into common stock (such as convertible preferred stock and convertible bonds) that are rated, at the time of initial purchase, in one of the three highest rating categories by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (“NRSRO”) such as Moody’s Investor Services, Inc. (“Moody’s”) or Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) or if unrated, are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality; and (ii) derivatives, including swaps and options.