The fund seeks capital appreciation in the long term by investing in companies across any size outside the United States.
The sub-adviser’s investment process starts with a list of companies in the benchmark index and the research team utilizes quantitative techniques and fundamental analysis to identify investment opportunities.
Next, the research team invests in securities of issuers located throughout the world, including non-dollar securities and securities of emerging market issuers.
The team focuses on securities of issuers that meet its impact investing criteria.
According to the team, companies that focus their operations in areas that are likely to address major social and environmental challenges meet its impact investing criteria.
The research process is driven by fundamental analysis of one stock at a time.
Next, the team relies on fundamental analysis to identify attractive investments across economic sectors within both developed and emerging countries.
As part of its fundamental analysis, the team evaluates a company’s industry structure, asset quality, business environment, management quality, balance sheet, income statement, anticipated earnings, growth prospects, revenues and dividends.
Also, the research team integrates environmental, social and governance factors as part of its process.
Then the manager constructs a portfolio of stocks from a list of companies favored by the research team and allocates capital based on its conviction level.
The fund will invest at least 40% of its net assets in foreign securities of at least three different countries outside the United States.
However, during periods of unfavorable market conditions, the fund may invest at least 30% of its net assets in foreign securities.
Investments are deemed to be foreign if an issuer’s domicile or location of headquarters is in a foreign country, or an issuer derives a significant proportion of its revenues or profits from goods produced or sold, investments made, or services performed in a foreign country or has at least 50% of its assets situated in a foreign country.
Also, investments are deemed to be foreign if the principal trading market for a security is located in a foreign country; or it is a foreign currency.
In addition, the fund excludes companies engaged in businesses: such as tobacco, firearms, defense, nuclear, coal, petroleum, alcohol, adult entertainment and gambling.
The fund may also invest in depositary receipts or other securities that are convertible into securities of foreign issuers and could, at times hold a portion of its assets in cash.