An investor should consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks and fees and expenses carefully before investing. This and other important information can be found in the Fund’s prospectus and summary prospectus, which you can obtain by calling 877.628.2583. Please read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before making an investment. The prospectus contains a more complete discussion of the risk of investing in the Fund. Investments could result in loss of principal.
Performance data quoted represent past performance, which is no guarantee of future results. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original costs. Results are shown on a “total return” basis and include reinvestment of all dividends and capital gain distributions. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance data quoted. For performance data current to the most recent month-end, please visit www.nb.com/performance.
The inception date of Neuberger Berman Focus Fund Class A, Class C and Institutional Class is 6/21/10. The inception dates for the Investor, Trust, and Advisor Classes are 10/19/55, 8/30/93, and 9/3/96, respectively. The inception date used to calculate benchmark performance is that of the Investor Class. Average Annual Total Returns with sales charge reflect deduction of current maximum initial sales charge of 5.75% for Class A shares and applicable contingent deferred sales charges (CDSC) for Class C shares. The maximum CDSC for Class C shares is 1%, which is reduced to 0% after 1 year.
Each of the following risks, which are described in alphabetical order and not in order of importance, can significantly affect the Fund’s performance. The relative importance of, or potential exposure as a result of, each of these risks will vary based on market and other investment-specific considerations.
Depositary receipts are subject to the risk of fluctuation in the currency exchange rate if, as is often the case, the underlying foreign securities are denominated in foreign currency, and there may be an imperfect correlation between the market value of depositary receipts and the underlying foreign securities. In addition, depositary receipts involve many of the same risks of investing directly in the underlying foreign securities.
Foreign securities involve risks in addition to those associated with comparable U.S. securities. As a result, foreign securities may fluctuate more widely in price, and may also be less liquid, than comparable U.S. securities. Regardless of where a company is organized or its stock is traded, its performance may be affected significantly by events in regions from which it derives its profits or in which it conducts significant operations.
The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading and may have a high portfolio turnover rate, which may increase the Fund’s transaction costs, may adversely affect the Fund’s performance and may generate a greater amount of capital gain distributions to shareholders than if the Fund had a low portfolio turnover rate.
An individual security may be more volatile, and may perform differently, than the market as a whole.
To the extent the Fund invests in securities of small-, mid-, or large-cap companies, it takes on the associated risks.
Securities issued by U.S. entities with substantial foreign operations or holdings, or issued by foreign entities listed on a U.S. exchange, may involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions in foreign countries, as well as currency exchange rates.
A decline in the Fund’s average net assets during the current fiscal year due to market volatility or other factors could cause the Fund’s expenses for the current fiscal year to be higher than the expense information presented.
An individual security may be more volatile, and may perform differently, than the market as a whole. The Fund’s portfolio may contain fewer securities than the portfolios of other mutual funds, which increases the risk that the value of the Fund could go down because of the poor performance of one or a few investments.
To the extent the Fund invests in securities of small-, mid-, or large-cap companies, it takes on the associated risks.
Markets may be volatile and values of individual securities and other investments, including those of a particular type, may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, economic or other developments that may cause broad changes in market value, public perceptions concerning these developments, and adverse investor sentiment or publicity. Geopolitical risks may add to instability in world economies and markets generally.
The use of options involves investment strategies and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. If a strategy is applied at an inappropriate time or market conditions or trends are judged incorrectly, the use of options may lower the Fund’s return.
Private placements and other restricted securities are securities that are subject to legal and/or contractual restrictions on their sales. These securities may not be sold to the public unless certain conditions are met, which may include registration under the applicable securities laws. As a result of the absence of a public trading market, the prices of these securities may be more difficult to determine than publicly traded securities and these securities may involve heightened risk as compared to investments in securities of publicly traded companies. Markets may be volatile and values of individual securities and other investments, including those of a particular type, may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, economic or other developments that may cause broad changes in market value, public perceptions concerning these developments, and adverse investor sentiment. Geopolitical risks may add to instability in world economies and markets generally.
Some countries, including the U.S., are adopting more protectionist trade policies and moving away from the tighter financial industry regulations that followed the 2008 financial crisis. The U.S. is also said to be considering significant new investments in infrastructure and national defense which, coupled with lower federal tax rates, could lead to sharply increased government borrowing and higher interest rates. The exact shape of these policies is still being worked out through the political process, but the equity and debt markets may react strongly to expectations, which could increase volatility, especially if the market’s expectations for changes in government policies are not borne out.
The Fund may experience periods of heavy redemptions that could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value.
From time to time, based on market or economic conditions, the Fund may have significant positions in one or more sectors of the market. To the extent the Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors.
Value stocks may remain undervalued or may decrease in value during a given period or may not ever realize what the portfolio management team believes to be their full value.
A summary of the Fund’s additional principal investment risks is as follows:
A decline in the Fund’s average net assets during the current fiscal year due to market volatility or other factors could cause the Fund’s expenses for the current fiscal year to be higher than the expense information presented.
The Fund and its service providers, and your ability to transact with the Fund, may be negatively impacted due to operational matters arising from, among other problems, human errors, systems and technology disruptions or failures, or cybersecurity incidents. Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to fund assets, customer data, or proprietary information, or cause the Fund or its service providers, as well as the securities trading venues and their service providers, to suffer data corruption or lose operational functionality. It is not possible for the Manager or the other Fund service providers to identify all of the cybersecurity or other operational risks that may affect the Fund or to develop processes and controls to completely eliminate or mitigate their occurrence or effects.
Risk is an essential part of investing. No risk management program can eliminate the Fund’s exposure to adverse events; at best, it may only reduce the possibility that the Fund will be affected by such events, and especially those risks that are not intrinsic to the Fund’s investment program.
The Fund may not be able to sell an investment at the price at which the Fund has valued the investment.
The composition, sectors, and holdings of the Fund are as of the period shown and are subject to change without notice.
Shares of the Class A, Class C, Institutional Class, Trust Class and Advisor Class may not be purchased directly from the Manager; they may only be purchased through certain institutions that have entered into administrative services contracts with the Manager. The inception date for the Focus Fund Class A, Class C and Institutional Class is 6/21/10. The inception dates for the Investor, Trust, and Advisor Classes are 10/19/55, 8/30/93, and 9/3/96, respectively. Performance prior to those inception dates is that of the Investor Class, which has lower expenses and typically higher returns than all other share classes. The Investor, Trust and Advisor Classes are closed to new investors.
The Fund’s benchmark is the MSCI ACWI Index as of April 15, 2020. Prior to that, the Fund’s benchmark was the S&P 500® Index. The MSCI ACWI (All Country World Index) is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed and emerging markets. The index consists of 49 country indexes comprising 23 developed and 26 emerging market country indexes. The developed market country indexes included are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. The emerging market country indexes included are: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and the UAE. Net total return indexes reinvest dividends after the deduction of withholding taxes, using (for international indexes) a tax rate applicable to non-resident institutional investors who do not benefit from double taxation treaties. Effective June 2016, the primary benchmark was changed from the MSCI ACWI Index (Gross) to the MSCI ACWI Index (Net) to better reflect the holdings held in the composite.
The hypothetical analysis assumes an initial investment of $10,000 made on October 19, 1955, the inception date of the Fund’s Investor Class. This analysis assumes the reinvestment of all income dividends and other distributions, if any. The analysis does not reflect the effect of taxes that would be paid on Fund distributions. The analysis is based on past performance and does not indicate future results. Given the potential fluctuation of the Fund’s Net Asset Value (NAV), the hypothetical market value may be less than the hypothetical initial investment at any point during the time period considered. The above analysis also does not compare the Fund’s relative performance to the Fund’s prospectus benchmark, The MSCI ACWI Index as of April 15, 2020. Prior to that, the Fund’s benchmark was the S&P 500® Index. Please see annualized performance table.
Figures are derived from FactSet as of 12/31/19. The Global Industry Classification StandardSM is used to derive the component economic sectors of the benchmark and the Fund. The Global Industry Classification Standard (“GICS”)SM was developed by, and is the exclusive property of, MSCI and Standard & Poor‘s. “Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS),” “GICS” and ”GICS Direct” are service marks of MSCI and Standard & Poor‘s.
This material is general in nature and is not directed to any category of investors and should not be regarded as individualized, a recommendation, investment advice or a suggestion to engage in or refrain from any investment-related course of action. Neuberger Berman is not providing this material in a fiduciary capacity and has a financial interest in the sale of its products and services. Investment decisions and the appropriateness of this material should be made based on an investor's individual objectives and circumstances and in consultation with his or her advisors. Accordingly, “retail” retirement investors are not the intended recipient of this material as they are expected to engage the services of an advisor in evaluating this material for any investment decision. If your understanding is different, we ask that you inform us immediately.
The “Neuberger Berman” name and logo and “Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers LLC” name are registered service marks of Neuberger Berman Group LLC. The individual fund names in this piece are either service marks or registered service marks of Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers LLC, an affiliate of Neuberger Berman BD LLC, distributor, member FINRA.