The fund seeks capital appreciation in the long term by investing in small-size companies in the United States.
The 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 companies that are estimated to trade below their fair values.
The research process is driven by fundamental analysis of one stock at a time. In selecting securities for the portfolio, the team focuses on companies that are trading at significant discounts to their estimated intrinsic value.
The team favors quality businesses with potential to grow intrinsic value over time.
In addition, the team prefers established issuers that have superior growth prospects, the ability to earn an attractive return on invested capital and a management team with prudent capital allocation skills.
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 may invest up to 15% of its net assets in real estate investment trusts.
Also, the fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in securities of foreign issuers, including securities of issuers located in emerging markets countries, and depositary receipts.
The fund can invest in derivative instruments including futures contracts and options.