The following is a list of terms with definitions that you may find helpful as you navigate through our website.

Alpha. measures the difference between a fund’s actual returns and its expected performance, given its level of risk.

Asset-Backed Securities. Securities that represent a participation in, or are secured by and payable from, payments generated by credit cards, motor vehicle or trade receivables and the like.

AuM, or Assets under Management. Defined as all client assets managed by or deposited with a financial services firm for investment purposes.

Bank Deposits. Cash, checks or drafts deposited in a financial institution for credit to a customer's account. Banks differentiate between demand deposits (checking accounts on which the customer may draw) and time deposits, which pay interest and have a specified maturity or require 30 days' notice before withdrawal.

Below Investment-Grade (High Yield) Securities. Lower rated, higher yielding securities issued by corporations. They are generally rated below investment-grade (i.e., Ba1/BB+ and below) by national bond rating agencies, or if unrated, are judged by the Adviser to be of equivalent quality. They are considered speculative and are sometimes called ‘‘junk bonds’’.

Beta. A measure of risk which shows a fund’s volatility relative to an index.

Blue Chip Stocks. Large established companies with long records of historical profit growth, that also often tend to pay dividends.

Bond. A long-term promissory note in which the issuer agrees to pay the owner the amount of the face value on a future date and to pay interest at a specified rate at regular intervals.

Bottom-Up Investing. An investing approach in which securities are researched and chosen individually with less consideration given to economic or market cycles.

Capital Gains.The profit realized when a capital asset is sold for a higher price than the purchase price.

Commercial Paper. Short-term fixed income securities issued by banks, corporations and other borrowers.

Corporate Bonds. Fixed income securities issued by corporations.

Debentures. Bonds or promissory notes that are secured by the general credit of the issuer, but not secured by specific assets of the issuer.

Diversification. The practice of investing in a broad range of securities to reduce risk.

Dividend. Distributions to stockholders of cash or stock declared by the company's board of directors.

Duration. A calculation of the average life of a bond (or portfolio of bonds) that is a useful measure of the bond's price sensitivity to interest rate changes. The higher the duration number, the greater the risk and reward potential of the bond.

Equity Securities: Ownership interests in corporations and other entities, such as: common stocks, preferred stocks, convertible securities, rights and warrants.

Expense Ratio. A fund's cost of doing business, expressed as a percentage of its assets and disclosed in a prospectus.

Fixed Income Securities. Bonds and other securities that are used by issuers to borrow money from investors. Typically, the issuer pays the investor a fixed, variable or floating rate of interest and must repay the borrowed amount at a specified time in the future (maturity).

Fundamental Analysis. A method of evaluating a security by attempting to measure its instrinsic value by examining related economic, financial and other qualitative and quantitative factors.

Growth Style Investing. An investing approach that involves buying stocks of companies that are generally industry leaders with above-average, sustainable growth rates. Typically, growth stocks are the stocks of the fastest growing companies in the most rapidly growing sectors of the economy. Growth stock valuation levels (e.g., price-to-earnings ratio) will generally be higher than value stocks.

iMoneyNet First Tier Retail Average. An average consisting of non-government funds that hold paper considered to be of the highest credit quality by at least one nationally recognized statistical rating organization.

Index. A benchmark used to compare the relative performance of securities. Examples include, The Dow Jones Industrial Average, Russell 2000 Index, and Standard & Poor's 500 Composite
Stock Index.

Index Fund. A fund designed to mirror the performance of a specific market index, such as the S&P 500 Index.

Individual Retirement Account (IRA). A retirement investing tool for employed individuals that allows an annual contribution of 100 percent of earned income up to a maximum of $4,000 (for 2006). Some or all of the contribution may be deductible from current taxes, depending on the individual’s adjusted gross income and coverage by employer-sponsored qualified retirement plans.

Investment Objective. The goal that an investor and a mutual fund seek together. Examples include current income, long-term capital growth, etc.

Issuer. The company, municipality or government agency that issues a security, such as a stock, bond or money market security.

Large-Cap Stocks. Stocks issued by large companies. Unless otherwise defined by a fund manager or the Adviser, a large-cap company is defined as one with a market capitalization of $5 billion or more. Typically, large-cap companies are established, well-known companies; some may be multinationals.

Lehman Brothers Aggregate Bond Index. An unmanaged index representing more than 5,000 taxable government, investment-grade corporate and mortgage-backed securities.

Lehman Brothers Government Credit Bond Index. An unmanaged index that includes U.S. Government and investment-grade corporate securities with at least one year to maturity.

Lehman Brothers 3-15 Year Municipal Bond Index. An unmanaged index that tracks the returns of tax-exempt municipal bonds with maturities between 3 and 15 years.

Lehman Brothers Municipal Five-Year General Obligations Bond Index. An unmanaged index that tracks the returns of investment-grade tax-exempt general obligations.

Lipper Equity Income Index. An equally weighted index of the 30 largest funds in the Lipper Equity Income Category. These funds seek high current income and growth of income by investing 60% or more of their assets in common stock.

Lipper. A mutual fund performance monitor providing comprehensive and accurate fund analysis and relevant comparisons, remaining solely focused on information, analysis, and benchmarking of funds and other collective investments.

Lipper Balanced Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the balanced funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Equity Income Index. An equally weighted index of 220 equity mutual funds that seek high current income and growth of income by investing 60% or more of their assets in common stock.

Lipper Intermediate Investment Grade Debt Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the intermediate investment grade funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Intermediate Municipal Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the intermediate municipal funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Large-Cap Growth Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the large company growth funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Large-Cap Value Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the large cap value funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Mid-Cap Value Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the mid-sized company value funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Multi-Cap Core Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the multi-capitalization core funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Real Estate Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the real estate funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Science and Technology Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 10 funds within the science and technology funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Small-Cap Core Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the small company core funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Lipper Small-Cap Growth Fund Index. An equally weighted index of the largest 30 funds within the small company growth funds investment objective as defined by Lipper Inc. The index is adjusted for the reinvestment of capital gains and income dividends.

Load. A sales charge associated with buying shares in some mutual funds. (See No-Load Fund.)

Management Fee. The amount that a mutual fund pays to the investment adviser for its services.

Market Capitalization. Value of a corporation or other entity as determined by the market price of its securities.

Merrill Lynch U.S. High Yield Master II Index. An unmanaged index that tracks the performance of below investment-grade U.S. Dollar-denominated corporate bonds issued in the U.S. domestic market.

Merrill Lynch U.S. High Yield Master II Constrained Index. An unmanged index that tracks the performance of below investment-grade U.S. Dollar-denominated corporate bonds issued in the U.S. domestice market, where issuer allocation is limited to 2% of the index.

Mid-Cap Stocks. Stocks issued by mid-sized companies. Unless otherwise defined by a fund manager or the Adviser, a mid-cap company is defined as one with a market capitalization between $1.5 billion and $5 billion, which is similar to the range of the Standard & Poor’s MidCap 400 Index (S&P 400).

Money Market Securities. Short-term fixed income securities of federal and local governments, banks and corporations.

Morgan Stanley REIT Equity Index. An unmanaged market capitalization weighted total return index of over 100 REITs that exceed certain minimum liquidity criteria concerning market capitalization, shares outstanding, trading volume and per share market price.

Morningstar. A mutual fund performance monitor that offers independent investment research via extensive line of Internet, software, and print-based products to help investors reach their financial goals.

Morningstar Rating System. A system created by Morningstar Inc. Which ranks mutual funds based on their risk-adjusted performance over various periods. 5 stars is best, 1 star is worst.

Mortgage-Backed Securities. Securities backed by Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). These securities represent collections (pools) of commercial and residential mortgages.

Municipal Securities. Fixed income obligations of state and local governments. Investments in municipal securities may support special construction projects, such as roads or hospitals, in the municipality that issues them. Interest from municipal bonds is usually exempt from federal taxes and from state taxes only in the state of issue. Some municipal securities are insured and guarantee the timely payment of interest and repayment of principal.

Mutual Fund. An investment company that stands ready to buy back its shares at their current net asset value. Most mutual funds continuously offer new shares to investors.

Net Asset Value (NAV). The per share value of a mutual fund, found by subtracting the fund's liabilities from its assets and dividing by the number of shares outstanding. Mutual funds calculate their NAVs at least once a day.

No-Load Fund. A mutual fund whose shares are sold without a sales charge and without a 12b-1 fee of more than 0.25% per year.

NYSE Arca Tech 100 Index. A price-weighted, broad based index, representing 100 listed and over-the-counter stocks designed to mirror the technology sector.

Pacific Stock Exchange (PSE) Technology Index. A price-weighted, broad-based index, comprised of no more than 100 listed and over-the-counter stocks representing the technology sector.

Prospectus. A formal written offer to sell securities that sets forth the plan for a proposed business enterprise, or the facts concerning an existing one that an investor needs to make an informed decision.

Qualitative Analysis. A securities analysis that uses subjective judgment based on nonquantifiable information, such as management expertise, industry cycles, strength of research and developement, and labor relations.

Quantitative Analysis. A business or financial analysis technique that seeks to understand behavior by using complex mathematical and statistical modeling, measurement and research.

REITs. Real estate investment trusts are publicly traded entities that invest in office buildings, apartment complexes, industrial facilities, shopping centers and other commercial spaces. Most REITs trade on major stock exchanges or over-the-counter.

Repurchase Agreements (Repos). Transactions in which a security (usually a government security) is purchased with a simultaneous commitment to sell it back to the seller (a commercial bank or recognized securities dealer) at an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date, usually the next day.

Risk/Reward Trade-Off. The principle that an investment must offer higher potential returns as compensation for the likelihood of increased volatility.

R-Squared. The percentage of a fund’s movement that can be explained by movements in its benchmark index.

Russell 1000 Growth Index. An unmanaged index measuring the performance of those Russell 1000 companies with higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth values.

Russell 1000 Index. An unmanaged index which measures the performance of the 1,000 largest companies in the Russell 3000 Index (which contains the 3000 largest stocks in the U.S. based on total market capitalization).

Russell 1000 Value Index. An unmanaged index comprised of securities in the Russell 1000 Index. Companies in this index tend to exhibit lower price-to-book ratios and lower cost-to-growth values.

Russell 2000 Index. An unmanaged index that contains the 2000 smallest common stocks in the Russell 3000 (which contains the 3000 largest stocks in the U.S. based on total market capitalization).

Russell 2000 Growth Index. Comprised of securities in the Russell 2000 Index with a greater than average growth orientation. Companies in this index tend to exhibit higher price to book and price-earnings ratios.

Russell 1000 Value Index. Comprised of securities in the Russell 1000 Index. Companies in this index tend to exhibit lower price to book ratios and lower cost to growth values.

Russell 2000 Value Index. An unmanaged index comprised of securities in the Russell 2000 Index with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values.

Russell 2500 Value Index. An unmanaged index comprised of the 2500 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 Index, which measure the performance of those 2500 companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth.

Russell 3000 Index. An unmanaged index that contains the 3000 largest U.S. companies based on total market capitalization.

Russell 3000 Value Index. Is unmanaged and measures the performance of those Russell 3000 companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values.

Sharpe Ratio. A risk-adjusted measure used to determine reward per unit of risk.

Small-cap stocks. Stocks issued by smaller companies. Unless otherwise defined by a fund manager or the Adviser, a small-cap company is defined as one with a market capitalization of less than $1.5 billion, which approximates the size of the largest company in the Russell 2000 Index.

Standard Deviation. A statistical measure of the historical volatility of a mutual fund or portfolio, usually computed using 36 monthly returns. More generally, a measure of the extent to which numbers are spread around their average.

Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 Index. An unmanaged index of 500 widely traded industrial, transportation, financial and public utility stocks.

S&P/Citigroup Value Index. An unmanaged market value weighted index made up of companies with lower book-to-price ratios.

S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index. An unmanaged market-value weighted index that consists of 400 domestic stocks chosen for market size, liquidity and industry group representation.

Top-down investing. An investing approach in which securities are chosen by looking at the industry or sector level based on market trends and/or economic forecasts.

Total Return. A measure of a fund's performance that encompasses all elements of return: dividends, capital gains distributions and changes in net asset value. Total return is the change in value of an investment over a given period, assuming investment of dividends and capital gains distributions, expressed as a percentage of the initial investment.

Turnover. The number of shares traded for a period as a percentage of the total shares in a portfolio or of an exchange.

12b-1 Fee. A mutual fund fee, named for the SEC rule that permits it, used to pay for distribution costs, such as advertising and commissions paid to dealers. If a fund has a 12b-1 fee, it is found in the fee table of its prospectus.

U.S. Government Securities. Fixed income obligations of the U.S. government and its various agencies. U.S. government securities issued by the Treasury (bills, notes and bonds) are backed by the full faith and credit of the federal government. Some government securities not issued by the U.S. Treasury also carry the government's full faith and credit backing on principal or interest payments. Some securities are backed by the issuer's right to borrow from the U.S. Treasury and some are backed only by the credit of the issuing organization. All government securities are considered highly creditworthy.

Value Style Investing. An investing approach that involves buying stocks that are out of favor and/or undervalued compared to their peers. Generally, value stock valuation levels are lower than growth stocks.

Variable Rate Securities. Securities that have interest rates that may be adjusted periodically to reflect changes in interest rates. Interest rate adjustments can either raise or lower the income generated by the securities.

Yankee Bonds. Dollar-denominated bonds issued in the U.S. by foreign banks and corporations.

Yield. A measure of net income (dividends and interest) earned by the securities in a fund's portfolio, less a fund's expenses, during a specified period. A fund's yield is expressed as a percentage of the maximum offering price per share on a specified date.

Zero-Coupon Bonds. Debt securities that do not pay interest at regular intervals and are issued at a discount from face value. The discount approximates the total amount of interest the bond will accrue from the date of issuance to maturity.