Strategy. Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small-cap companies included in the Russell 2000 Index (Russell 2000). The Portfolios investments in equity securities of small-cap companies included in the Russell 2000 may include financial instruments that derive their value from such securities. As of December 31, 2024, the market capitalizations of companies in the Russell 2000 ranged from approximately $ 9.12 million to $13.19 billion. The Sub-Adviser seeks to match the returns (before expenses) of the Russell 2000. This strategy is commonly referred to as an indexing strategy. The Portfolio invests in a statistically selected sample of the securities found in the Russell 2000, using … Show more… Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small-cap companies included in the Russell 2000 Index (Russell 2000). The Portfolios investments in equity securities of small-cap companies included in the Russell 2000 may include financial instruments that derive their value from such securities. As of December 31, 2024, the market capitalizations of companies in the Russell 2000 ranged from approximately $ 9.12 million to $13.19 billion. The Sub-Adviser seeks to match the returns (before expenses) of the Russell 2000. This strategy is commonly referred to as an indexing strategy. The Portfolio invests in a statistically selected sample of the securities found in the Russell 2000, using a process known as optimization. This process selects stocks for the Portfolio so that industry weightings, market capitalizations and fundamental characteristics (price to book ratios, price to earnings ratios, debt to asset ratios and dividend yields) closely match those of the securities included in the Russell 2000. This approach helps to increase the Portfolios liquidity and reduce costs. The securities held by the Portfolio are weighted to make the Portfolios total investment characteristics similar to those of the Russell 2000 as a whole. Over time, the correlation between the performance of the Portfolio and the Russell 2000 is expected to be 95% or higher before the deduction of Portfolio expenses. The Portfolio seeks to track the Russell 2000; therefore, the Sub-Adviser generally will not attempt to judge the merits of any particular security as an investment. Show less