Sterling Capital Stratton Mid Cap Value Fund

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1 Performance Update: March 31, 2018 Investment Objective The seeks long-term capital appreciation. The Fund uses a value investment approach to invest primarily in common stocks of mid cap companies. We believe that undervalued companies with good earnings prospects have superior appreciation potential with reasonable levels of risk. Quantitatively, we focus on a stock s fundamental valuation relative to its peers. Qualitatively, we seek to identify business catalysts which will serve to drive future earnings growth, increase investor interest and expand valuation. Prior to its 5/1/13 strategy change, the was known as the Stratton Multi-Cap Fund. Fund Information Performance Portfolio Manager Ticker Shawn M. Gallagher, CFA STRGX Annualized Fund Net Assets $66 million Minimum Investment $1 million Total Operating Expenses (1) 0.93% Fund Inception September 30, 1972 Sterling Capital Stratton Mid Cap Value Fund Instl Q YTD 1 Yr. 3 Yrs. Since 5/1/13* 5 Yrs. 10 Yrs % -2.92% 12.07% 7.24% 11.57% 11.23% 6.34% Mid Cap Value Strategy Inception May 1, 2013 Russell Midcap Value Index -2.50% -2.50% 6.50% 7.23% 11.06% 11.11% 9.81% (1) As per prospectus dated 2/1/18 The performance shown prior to the close of business on November 13, 2015 is that of the Stratton Mid Cap Value Fund (the Predecessor Fund ) which reorganized into the Sterling Capital Stratton Mid Cap Value Fund Institutional Shares (the Fund ). Because the Fund had no investment operations prior to the closing of the reorganization, based on the similarity of the Fund to the Predecessor Fund, the Predecessor Fund is treated as the survivor of the reorganization for accounting and performance reporting purposes. The inception date of the Predecessor fund is 9/30/1972. The performance data quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. Current performance may be lower or higher. Performance data current to the most rec e n t m o n t h - e n d m a y b e o b t a i n e d a t : or call The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. *Upon its strategy/name change on 5/1/13, in order to accurately measure relative performance, the Sterling Capital Stratton Mid Cap Value Fund s benchmark became the Russell Midcap Value Index. Key Quarterly Performance Notes The Fund posted a total return of 2.92% during the three month period ended March 31, The and Health Care sectors performed best on an absolute basis while portfolio holdings within the, Discretionary, and sectors weighed on returns. For the first quarter, the Fund underperformed the Russell Midcap Value Index by 42 basis points. Relative performance was primarily driven by negative stock selection by the portfolio s holdings within the Discretionary and sectors. Serving as a partial offset was positive sector allocation for the portfolio overall, as well as positive stock selection within the Health Care and Financial Services sectors. This information must be preceded or accompanied by the current Prospectus for the Funds. You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the Fund carefully before investing. The Prospectus should be read carefully before investing. Shares of the Sterling Capital Funds are distributed by Sterling Capital Distributors, LLC. 1

2 First Quarter 2018 Market Commentary & Outlook Performance Update: March 31, 2018 Mid Cap Market Review Mid Cap equities posted a total return of 0.46% for the 1st quarter of leadership remained intact through January with Mid Caps posting positive single-digit returns. However, early February s violent spike in volatility drove Mid Caps to near correction territory before stocks recovered somewhat to finish the period. Following a prolonged period of placid markets and large cap/growth-style outperformance, Q1 s volatility shake-up in February and March could signal the beginning of a new market leadership regime. Despite a strong U.S. economy and corporate earnings outlook, investors are more concerned about rising inflation and the resultant monetary policy course, as well as negative implications of potential trade wars. Factor results within the Mid Cap universe highlight continued outperformance by stocks with high earnings growth rates and high valuation. Conversely, equities with high dividend yields notably underperformed as long-term interest rates rose. Mid Cap Growth outperformed Mid Cap Value for the fifth consecutive quarter, this time by a 467 basis point margin. Outlook We believe that the strong domestic economy and outsized projected corporate earnings growth in 2018 are generally appreciated by investors. While the immediate benefits of tax reform have largely been priced into UScentric equities, the longer-term multiplier effects of companies reinvesting the resultant higher cash flow bodes well for an even lengthier economic up-cycle. While upward pressure on wages is currently minimal, considering the low level of unemployment and greater prospects for accelerating economic growth, we feel the odds of rising inflation have increased; this will be a continued focal point for markets. Trade wars and protectionist rhetoric will serve as a headwind for equity valuations, especially those with international exposure. Risk Considerations: Value investing involves risk that the Fund s investment in companies whose securities are believed to be undervalued, relative to their underlying profitability, will not appreciate in value as anticipated. Factor Performance: Mid Cap Equity Market 3-5 Year Est Growth Beta Dividend Yield Leverage Liquidity Market Cap Price Relative Strength ROE % Short Interest Valuation (P/E) Valuation (P/B) Russell Midcap Index % Return: High Quintile minus Low Quintile This chart depicts the performance of the constituents of the Russell Midcap Index based on relative fundamental characteristics. For each characteristic the constituents of the index are sorted and grouped into quintiles. The bar adjacent to each characteristic listed shows the performance of the stocks in the highest quintile relative to the performance of the those in the lowest quintile. Terms and definitions can be found on page 5. 2

3 First Quarter 2018 Performance Attribution Analysis Performance Update: March 31, 2018 Top Contributors Bottom Contributors 1.25 PTC, Inc. Thor Industries Relative Return: Sector Allocation (%) 1.00 Ryman Hospitality Partners Mohawk Industries Relative Return: Stock Selection (%) Thermo Fisher Scientific Southwest Gas Holdings 0.75 ICON Plc Devon 0.50 Fiserv Masonite International Relative Contributors Positive stock selection within the Health Care sector led by portfolio holdings Thermo Fisher and ICON Positive sector allocation driven by the portfolio s overweight position of the sector. Positive stock selection within the Financial Services sector led by portfolio holdings Ryman Hospitality, Fiserv, and Hanover Insurance Group Discretionary Staples Financial Services Health Care Materials & Processing Producer Durables Relative Detractors Relative Return: Total Effect (%) Negative stock selection within the Discretionary sector driven by portfolio holdings Thor Industries and Mohawk Industries. Negative stock selection within the sector driven by portfolio holding Southwest Gas Discretionary Staples Financial Services Health Care Materials & Processing Producer Durables 3

4 Portfolio Characteristics Performance Update: March 31, 2018 Sector Allocation Relative Sector Exposures Financial Services : 31.14% Producer Durables : 11.67% : 10.78% Health Care : 10.69% Discretionary : 8.88% : 6.94% Staples : 6.53% Materials & Processing : 6.33% Cash : 4.33% Health Care S taples Producer Durables Materials & Processing Discretionary Financial Services : 2.71% -10% -8% -6% -4% -2% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% Top 10 Holdings % of Net Assets (1) ICON Plc 3.10% United Rentals, Inc. 2.79% Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. 2.71% Westlake Chemical Corp. 2.58% Mohawk Industries, Inc. 2.52% Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. 2.46% Berry Global Group, Inc. 2.41% East West Bancorp, Inc. 2.37% Phillips % Avery Dennison Corp. 2.36% Portfolio Characteristics % Over/Underweighting Versus Russell Midcap Value Stratton Mid Cap Value Russell Midcap Value Index Russell Midcap Index Number of Holdings Median Market Cap $9,316mm $7,317mm $7,899mm Wgt. Avg. Market Cap $15,092mm $13,942mm $15,037mm Forward Price/Earnings 16.4x 20.0x 23.5x Price/Cash Flow 14.0x 13.0x 18.9x Est. 3-5 Year EPS Growth% 13.3% 11.2% 13.8% Hist. 3 Year EPS Growth% 12.4% 4.7% 8.3% Return on Equity 20.8% 10.8% 15.6% Beta (Since Inception) (1) (1) Current and future portfolio holdings subject to change and risk at any time. (1) Beta is measured versus the Russell Midcap Index 4

5 Risk Considerations: The Fund invests primarily in stocks of mid cap companies which may be subject to greater earnings and price volatility in comparison to larger companies. Mid sized companies may have limited product lines or financial resources and may be dependent upon a particular niche of the market. The Fund may invest in undervalued stocks which may affect the Fund s value if the stocks do not appreciate as anticipated or remain undervalued for longer than anticipated. The Fund may invest in Real Estate Investment Trusts ( REITS ) which may be negatively affected by conditions in the real estate industry such as declining property values due to unanticipated economic developments. Terms and Definitions Factor performance on page 2 is measured by the following calculations and methodologies as of the beginning of the period under discussion: 3-5 Year Estimated Growth: FactSet mean consensus estimate of 3-5 year EPS growth Beta: 52 week beta versus the NYSE Composite Index, which is a broad, commonly cited US stock index. Beta is a measure of volatility, or systematic risk. Dividend Yield: Expressed as the current annual dividend rate, as a percentage of the company s common stock price Leverage: Amount of debt used to finance a firm s operations, expressed as the company s debt divided by its total capital Liquidity: Average dollar amount of stock traded per day, in any particular issue, based on 60 day average trading volume Market Cap: Total value of shares outstanding Price: Common stock price Relative Strength: 12 month relative price strength, measured by the price at the beginning of the period, relative to the previous 12 month average price Return on Equity: A measure of a company s profitability, expressed as the amount of income returned as a percentage of shareholder equity for the most recently completed fiscal year Short Interest: Percentage of a company s shares that are currently sold short, as a percentage of total shares outstanding P/B Valuation: Represented by the price-to-book ratio, a commonly cited measure of valuation, which is calculated by dividing the market price of a stock by the company s book value per share P/E Valuation: Represented by the price-to-earnings ratio, a commonly cited measure of valuation, which is calculated by dividing the market price of a stock by the sum of the company s consensus (sell side analyst mean) estimated earnings per share for the upcoming four quarters Additional information regarding the Fund s benchmark: The Russell Midcap Value Index is an unmanaged index (with no defined investment objective) that measures the performance of the mid cap value segment of the U.S. equity universe. Indices are not securities that can be purchased or sold, and their total returns are reflective of unmanaged portfolios. The returns include reinvestment of interest, capital gains and dividends. Sterling Capital Management LLC, a separate subsidiary of BB&T Corporation, serves as investment adviser to the Sterling Capital Funds and is paid a fee for its services. Shares of the Sterling Capital Funds are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, Branch Banking and Trust Company or its affiliates. The Funds are not insured by the FDIC or any other government agency. The Funds are distributed by Sterling Capital Distributors LLC, which is not affiliated with Branch Banking and Trust Company or its affiliates. 5