Principal Investment
Strategies
The Fund operates under a “fund of funds”
structure, investing in other mutual funds (the “Underlying Funds”). The Fund, under normal circumstances, invests approximately 60% of its assets in Underlying
Funds that primarily invest in equity securities (stocks), and approximately 40% of its assets in Underlying Funds that primarily invest in fixed income securities (bonds).
The Underlying Funds include, but are not limited to, funds that employ a passive investment style (i.e., index funds), funds that employ a multi-factor strategy (i.e., a strategy of selecting investments that have favorable exposure to certain factors, such as quality, value, and momentum), and exchange-traded funds. The Underlying Funds are advised by the Fund's investment adviser, Lincoln Financial Investments Corporation (the “Adviser”).
The Adviser develops the Fund's asset allocation strategy based on the Fund's investment strategy. Through its investment in Underlying Funds, the Fund allocates a large percentage of assets to domestic and foreign equity securities (stocks), including stocks of small- and medium-cap companies and those with growth and value characteristics. The Fund allocates a smaller percentage of assets to Underlying Funds that invest in domestic fixed income securities (bonds), including U.S. Treasury securities, mortgage-backed securities (including to-be-announced transactions), corporate bonds and inflation-indexed bonds.
The foreign equity securities may include securities of companies in emerging market countries. An “emerging market country” is defined as an emerging or developing economy by the International Monetary Fund or defined as such by MSCI. An Underlying Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in issuers located in a single country, a small number of countries, or a particular geographic region.
On at least an annual basis, the Adviser will reassess and may make revisions in the Fund’s asset allocation strategy consistent with the Fund's investment strategy and objective, including revising the weightings among the investments described above and adding or removing Underlying Funds from the asset allocation strategy. The Adviser also will periodically rebalance the weightings in the Underlying Funds to the current asset allocation strategy. In general, the Adviser does not anticipate making frequent changes in the asset allocation strategy and will not attempt to time the market.
The Adviser uses various analytical tools and third-party research to construct the portfolio. The Underlying Fund selection is made based on the Fund’s particular asset allocation strategy, the Adviser's desired asset class exposures, and the investment styles and performance of the Underlying Funds. The Adviser also considers the portfolio characteristics and risk profile for each Underlying Fund over various periods and market environments to assess each Underlying Fund’s suitability as an investment.
The full list of Underlying Funds used by the Fund is included in the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports and quarterly holdings disclosures.
All mutual funds carry risk. Accordingly, loss of money is a risk of investing in the
Fund. Because the Fund invests its assets in shares of Underlying Funds, the Fund indirectly owns
the investments made by the Underlying Funds. By investing in the Fund, therefore, you indirectly assume the same types of risks as investing directly in the Underlying
Funds. The Fund's investment performance is affected by each Underlying Fund's investment performance, and the Fund's ability to achieve its investment objective depends, in
large part, on each Underlying Fund's ability to meet its investment objective. The following risks reflect the Fund's principal risks, which include the Underlying Funds' principal risks.
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Market Risk. The value of portfolio investments may decline. As a result, your investment in
the Fund may decline in value and you could lose money.
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Stock/Equity Investing Risk. Stocks and other equities generally fluctuate in value more than bonds and may decline significantly over
short time periods. Equity prices overall may decline because stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods of rising and falling prices.
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Fund of Funds Risk. The Fund bears all risks associated with the investment strategies of its Underlying Funds, including the
possibility that an Underlying Fund may not achieve its investment objective, which could negatively affect the Fund’s performance. In addition, among other risks, the Fund indirectly pays a proportional share of the fees and expenses of each Underlying Fund.
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Investments in Affiliated Funds Risk. Along with the general fund of funds risk, the Adviser
is subject to a conflict of interest in selecting Underlying Funds, as it also serves as the investment adviser to most, if not all, of the Underlying Funds in which the
Fund invests its assets. The Adviser will earn management fees related to the Fund’s investment in such Underlying Funds. However, the Adviser is a fiduciary and is legally obligated to act in the Fund’s best interests when selecting Underlying Funds.
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Issuer Risk. The prices of, and the income generated by, portfolio securities may decline in
response to various factors directly related to the issuers of such securities.
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Asset Allocation Risk. With an asset allocation strategy, the amount invested in various asset classes of securities may change over
time. Asset allocation risk could result in an allocation to an underperforming asset class.