v3.25.0.1
Dec. 31, 2024
T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund
Equity Income Fund
Investment Objective(s)

The fund seeks a high level of dividend income and long-term capital growth primarily through investments in stocks.

Fees and Expenses

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the fund. You may also incur brokerage commissions and other charges when buying or selling shares of the fund, which are not reflected in the table or example below.

Shareholder fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
Shareholder Fees - T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund - USD ($)
Investor Class
I Class
Advisor Class
R Class
Z Class
Maximum account fee $ 20 [1] none none none none
[1]

Subject to certain exceptions and account minimums, accounts are charged an annual $20 fee.

Annual fund operating expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Annual Fund Operating Expenses - T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund
Investor Class
I Class
Advisor Class
R Class
Z Class
Management fees 0.53% 0.53% 0.53% 0.53% 0.53%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees none none 0.25% 0.50% [1] none
Other expenses 0.14% 0.03% 0.20% 0.22% none
Total annual fund operating expenses 0.67% 0.56% 0.98% 1.25% 0.53%
Fee waiver/expense reimbursement none none none none (0.53%) [2]
Total annual fund operating expenses after fee waiver/expense reimbursement 0.67% 0.56% 0.98% 1.25% none [2]
[1]

Restated to show maximum 12b-1 fee rate of 0.25%. Actual rate for the prior fiscal year was 0.47%.

[2]

T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., has contractually agreed to waive and/or bear all the Z Class’ expenses (excluding interest; expenses related to borrowings, taxes, and brokerage; nonrecurring, extraordinary expenses; and acquired fund fees and expenses) in their entirety. T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., expects this fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement arrangement to remain in place indefinitely, and the agreement may only be amended or terminated with approval by the fund’s Board of Directors.

Example
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods, that your investment has a 5% return each year, and that the fund’s operating expenses remain the same. The example also assumes that any current expense limitation arrangement remains in place for the period noted in the previous table; therefore, the figures have been adjusted to reflect fee waivers or expense

reimbursements only in the periods for which the expense limitation arrangement is expected to continue. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Expense Example - T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund - USD ($)
Investor Class
I Class
Advisor Class
R Class
Z Class
1 Year $ 68 $ 57 $ 100 $ 127 none
3 Years 214 179 312 397 none
5 Years 373 313 542 686 none
10 Years $ 835 $ 701 $ 1,201 $ 1,511 none
Portfolio Turnover

Portfolio Turnover The fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when the fund’s shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 21.4% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The fund normally invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities with a track record of paying dividends. The fund considers a company to have a track record of paying dividends if the security has paid a dividend within the past 12 months. Any derivatives that provide exposure to the investment focus suggested by the fund’s name, or to one or more market risk factors associated with the investment focus suggested by the fund’s name, are counted (as applicable) toward compliance with the fund’s 80% investment policy.

The fund generally seeks investments in large-cap companies. The fund typically employs a value approach in selecting investments. The adviser’s in-house research team seeks dividend-paying companies that appear to be undervalued by various measures and may be temporarily out of favor but have good prospects for capital appreciation and dividend growth.

In selecting investments, the adviser generally looks for companies with one or more of the following:

· an established operating history;

· above-average dividend yield relative to the broader equity market;

· low price/earnings ratio relative to the broader equity market;

· a sound balance sheet and other positive financial characteristics; or

· low stock price relative to a company’s underlying value as measured by assets, cash flow, or business franchises.

 

At times, the fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in the same economic sector. While most assets are typically invested in U.S. common stocks, the fund may invest in foreign stocks in keeping with its objective(s).

Principal Risks
Risk Table - T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund
Risk [Text Block]
Risk Lose Money [Member] The fund’s share price fluctuates, which means you could lose money by investing in the fund.
Dividend-paying stocks

Dividend-paying stocks: The fund’s emphasis on dividend-paying stocks could cause the fund to underperform similar funds that invest without consideration of a company’s track record of paying dividends. Stocks of companies with a history of paying dividends may not participate in a broad market advance to the same degree as most other stocks, and a sharp rise in interest rates or economic downturn could cause a company to unexpectedly reduce or eliminate its dividend.

Stock investing

Stock investing: Stocks generally fluctuate in value more than bonds and may decline significantly over short time periods. There is a chance that stock prices overall will decline because stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods of rising and falling prices. The value of stocks held by the fund may decline due to general weakness or volatility in the stock markets in which the fund invests or because of factors that affect a particular company or industry.

Value investing

Value investing: The fund’s value approach to investing could cause it to underperform other stock funds that employ a different investment style. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time (or at all) or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level. Value stocks may fail to appreciate for long periods and may never reach what the adviser believes are their full market values.

Market conditions

Market conditions: The value of the fund’s investments may decrease, sometimes rapidly or unexpectedly, due to factors affecting an issuer held by the fund, particular industries, or the overall securities markets. A variety of factors can increase the volatility of the fund’s holdings and markets generally, including economic, political, or regulatory developments, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, war, military conflict, acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and outbreaks of infectious illnesses or other widespread public health issues (such as the coronavirus pandemic) and related governmental and public responses (including sanctions). Certain events may cause instability across global markets, including reduced liquidity and disruptions in trading markets, while some events may affect certain geographic regions, countries, sectors, and industries more significantly than others. Government intervention in markets may impact interest rates, market volatility, and security pricing. These adverse developments may cause broad declines in market value due to short-term market movements or for significantly longer periods during more prolonged market downturns.

Large-cap stocks

Large-cap stocks: Securities issued by large-cap companies tend to be less volatile than securities issued by small- and mid-cap companies. However, large-cap companies may not be

able to attain the high growth rates of successful small- and mid-cap companies, especially during strong economic periods, and may be unable to respond as quickly to competitive challenges.

Sector exposure

Sector exposure: Issuers in the same economic sector may be similarly affected by economic or market events, making the fund more vulnerable to unfavorable developments in that economic sector than funds that invest more broadly.

Foreign investing

Foreign investing: Non-U.S. securities tend to be more volatile and have lower overall liquidity and trading volume than investments in U.S. securities and may lose value because of adverse local, political, social, or economic developments overseas, or due to changes in the exchange rates between foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar. Further, securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to trading markets with potential governmental interference, varying regulatory, auditing, and accounting standards, and settlement and clearance practices that differ from those of U.S. issuers. Investment in non-U.S. securities also carries currency risk. Any attempts to hedge currency risk could be unsuccessful. Such investments may have higher transaction costs compared with U.S. markets. The fund’s overall foreign investing risk is increased to the extent it has exposure to emerging markets.

Active management

Active management: The fund’s overall investment program and holdings selected by the fund’s investment adviser may underperform the broad markets, relevant indices, or other funds with similar objectives and investment strategies.

Cybersecurity breaches

Cybersecurity breaches: The fund could be harmed by intentional cyberattacks and other cybersecurity breaches, including unauthorized access to the fund’s assets, confidential information, or other proprietary information. In addition, a cybersecurity breach could cause one of the fund’s service providers or financial intermediaries to suffer unauthorized data access, data corruption, or loss of operational functionality.

Performance

The following performance information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the fund. The fund’s performance information represents only past performance (before and after taxes) and is not necessarily an indication of future results.

The following bar chart illustrates how much returns can differ from year to year by showing calendar year returns and the best and worst calendar quarter returns during those years for the fund’s Investor Class. Returns for other share classes vary since they have different expenses.

Calendar Year Returns
Bar Chart
         
  

Quarter Ended

Total

Return

  

Quarter Ended

Total

Return

 
 

Best Quarter

12/31/20

20.94%

 

Worst Quarter

3/31/20

-28.36%

 
Average Annual Total Returns Periods ended December 31, 2024

The following table shows the average annual total returns for each class of the fund that has been in operation for at least one full calendar year. The fund’s performance information included in the table is compared with a regulatory required index that represents an overall securities market (Regulatory Benchmark). In addition, the table may also include one or more indexes that more closely aligns to the fund’s investment strategy (Strategy Benchmark(s)).

In addition, the table shows hypothetical after-tax returns to demonstrate how taxes paid by a shareholder may influence returns. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as a 401(k) account or an IRA. After-tax returns are shown only for the Investor Class and will differ for other share classes.

Average Annual Total Returns - T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund
Label
1 Year
5 Years
10 Years
Since Inception
Inception Date
Investor Class   11.88% 8.60% 8.42%   Oct. 31, 1985
Investor Class | After Taxes on Distributions   9.72% 6.89% 6.52%    
Investor Class | After Taxes on Distributions and Sales   8.63% 6.57% 6.37%    
I Class   12.00% 8.72%   10.39% Dec. 17, 2015
Advisor Class   11.52% 8.28% 8.09%   Mar. 31, 2000
R Class   11.27% 7.99% 7.81%   Sep. 30, 2002
Z Class   12.62%     9.53% Feb. 22, 2021
Russell 3000® Index [1] Russell 3000® Index          
Russell 3000® Index Russell 3000® Index          
Russell 3000® Index [2]         13.94%  
Russell 3000® Index   23.81% 13.86% 12.55% 11.35% [3]  
Russell 1000® Value Index Russell 1000® Value Index          
Russell 1000® Value Index [2]         9.96%  
Russell 1000® Value Index   14.37% 8.68% 8.49% 8.83% [3]  
Lipper Equity Income Funds Index Lipper Equity Income Funds Index          
Lipper Equity Income Funds Index [2]         10.46%  
Lipper Equity Income Funds Index   14.12% 9.13% 8.97% 9.59% [3]  
[1] Due to new SEC Rules on shareholder reporting, the fund adopted a new broad-based securities market index, referred to as the Regulatory Benchmark.
[2] Return since 12/17/15.
[3] Return since 2/22/21.
Updated performance information is available through troweprice.com.