| 1 Year
| 3 Years
| 5 Years
| 10 Years
|
|
Non-Service Shares
| $80
| $250
| $435
| $970
|
|
|
Service Shares
| $106
| $329
| $571
| $1,266
|
|
Portfolio Turnover. The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio
turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs. These costs, which are not reflected in the annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 9% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment
Strategies. The Fund invests mainly in common stock of U.S. and foreign companies. The Fund can invest without limit in foreign securities and can invest in any
country, including countries with developing or emerging markets. However, the Fund currently emphasizes its investments in developed markets such as the United States, Western European countries and Japan. The Fund
does not limit its investments to companies in a particular market capitalization range, but primarily invests in mid- and large-cap companies.
Under normal market conditions,
the Fund will invest in at least three different countries (one of which may be the United States). Typically, the Fund invests in a number of different countries. The Fund is not required to allocate its investments
in any set percentages in any particular countries.
The portfolio managers primarily
look for quality companies, regardless of domicile, that have sustainable growth. Their investment approach combines a thematic approach to idea generation with bottom-up, fundamental company analysis. The portfolio
managers seek to identify secular changes in the world and look for pockets of durable change that they believe will drive global growth for the next decade. These large scale structural themes are referred to
collectively as MANTRA®: Mass Affluence, New Technology, Restructuring, and Aging. The portfolio managers do not target a fixed allocation with
regard to any particular theme, and may choose to focus on various sub-themes within each theme. Within each sub-theme, the portfolio managers employ fundamental company analysis to select investments for the
Fund’s portfolio. The economic characteristics they seek include a combination of high return on invested capital, good cash flow characteristics, high barriers to entry, dominant market share, a strong
competitive position, talented management, and balance sheet strength that the portfolio managers believe will enable the company to fund its own growth. These criteria may vary. The portfolio managers also consider
how industry dynamics, market trends and general economic conditions may affect a company’s earnings outlook.
The portfolio managers have a
long-term investment horizon of typically three to five years. They also have a contrarian buy discipline; they buy high quality companies that fit their investment criteria when their valuations underestimate their
long-term earnings potential. For example, a company’s stock price may dislocate from its fundamental outlook due to a short-term earnings glitch or negative, short-term market sentiment, which can give rise to
an investment opportunity. The portfolio managers monitor individual issuers for changes in earnings potential or other effects of changing market conditions that may trigger a decision to sell a security, but do not
require a decision to do so.
Principal Risks. The price of the Fund’s shares can go up and down substantially. The value of the Fund’s investments may fall due to adverse changes in the
markets in which the Fund invests or because of poor investment selection, which could cause the Fund to underperform other funds with similar investment objectives. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve
its investment objective. When you redeem your shares, they may be worth less than what you paid for them. These risks mean that you can lose money by investing in the Fund.
Risks of Investing in
Stocks. The value of the Fund’s portfolio may be affected by changes in the stock markets. Stock markets may experience significant short-term volatility and may fall sharply at times.
Adverse events in any part of the equity or fixed-income markets may have unexpected negative effects on other market segments. Different stock markets may behave differently from each other and U.S. stock markets may
move in the opposite direction from one or more foreign stock markets.
The prices of individual stocks
generally do not all move in the same direction at the same time. A variety of factors can negatively affect the price of a particular company’s stock. These factors may include, but are not limited to: poor
earnings reports, a loss of customers, litigation against the company, general unfavorable performance of the company’s sector or industry, or changes in government regulations affecting the company or its
industry. To the extent that securities of a particular type are emphasized (for example foreign stocks, stocks of small- or mid-cap companies, growth or value stocks, or stocks of companies in a particular industry),
fund share values may fluctuate more in response to events affecting the market for those types of securities.
Industry and Sector Focus. At times the Fund may increase the relative emphasis of its investments in a particular industry or sector. The prices of stocks of issuers in a particular industry or sector may go up and
down in response to changes in economic conditions, government regulations, availability of basic resources or supplies, or other events that affect that industry or sector more than others. To the extent that the
Fund increases the relative emphasis of its investments in a particular industry or sector, its share values may fluctuate in response to events affecting that industry or sector. To some extent that risk may be
limited by the Fund’s policy of not concentrating its investments in any one industry.
Risks of Growth Investing. If a growth company’s earnings or stock price fails to increase as anticipated, or if its business plans do not produce the expected results, its securities may decline sharply.
Growth companies may be newer or smaller companies that may experience greater stock price fluctuations and risks of loss than larger, more established companies. Newer growth companies tend to retain a large part of
their earnings for research, development or investments in capital