Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small-cap companies. This investment policy may be changed by the Fund upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders. The Fund considers small-cap companies to be those companies within the market capitalization range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of initial purchase. While the market capitalization range of the Russell 2000® Index changes throughout the year, it undergoes an annual reconstitution in June of each year. As of December 31, 2023, the market capitalization range of the companies in the index was between $16.8 million and $15.9 billion. The equity securities in which the Fund invests are primarily common stocks, but may also include shares of exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and master limited partnerships (“MLPs”). The Fund generally invests in securities of domestic companies, but may also invest in equity securities of foreign companies and American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). In the event the Fund invests in foreign securities and ADRs, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s investment in such securities would normally represent less than 25% of the Fund’s assets.

The Fund invests in approximately 50-70 securities that are well diversified among market sectors. The Adviser utilizes a value style of investing to select securities for the Fund that it believes are undervalued,

generally maintain high quality characteristics, and offer an attractive opportunity for price appreciation coupled with downside risk limitation. Value investing focuses on companies with stocks that appear undervalued in light of factors such as the company’s earnings, book values, revenues and cash flow. The Fund considers quality characteristics from a quantitative perspective, such as free cash flow generation, attractive returns on capital, and conservative balance sheets. Additionally, from a qualitative perspective, quality characteristics include strong management teams, durable competitive advantages, and reasonable growth prospects. Key metrics for evaluating the risk/return profile of an investment may include strong free cash flow, an improving return on equity, a strengthening balance sheet and, in the case of common equities, positive earnings surprises without a corresponding change in the stock price. The Adviser has disciplines in place that serve as sell signals, such as a security reaching a predetermined price target, a change to a company’s fundamentals that makes the risk/return profile unattractive, or a need to improve the overall risk/return profile of the Fund. The Adviser will not necessarily sell a security that has appreciated or depreciated outside the Fund’s target capitalization range.