| Fund Company | Mackenzie Financial Corporation |
| Fund Type | U.S. Equity |
| Rating | $ |
| Style | Bottom Up Value |
| Risk Level | High |
| Load Status | Optional |
| RRSP/RRIF Suitability | Poor |
| TFSA Suitability | Poor |
| Manager | David Slater since November 2009 Lawrence Chin since November 2009 |
| MER | 2.57% |
| Code | MFC 1588 – Front End Units MFC 1845 – DSC Units |
| Minimum Investment | $500 |
Analysis: Cundill and other deep value shops have struggled of late, and this fund is no exception. Over the past five years, it has an annual compound return of -3.69%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.10%. Volatility has been substantially higher than both the index and the category.
Most of this can be attributed to the management style, which is best described as contrarian deep value. The managers look for unloved names that are trading at a deep discount to their estimate of its true worth. It is a concentrated, high conviction portfolio that is built on a stock by stock basis. The managers are benchmark agnostic and this is a fund that will look nothing like the index. This approach can reap big rewards for investors, but it can also result in periods of underperformance.
We are firm believers in the investment approach that is being used with the fund and generally are fans of Cundill. In this case however, we are less enamored with their execution of that process. Between May 2007 and February 2009, it lost more than 56% in value while the S&P 500 lost 50%. While it has fought back to recoup some of the losses, it is still well underwater yet the S&P 500 is in the black. Add to that the fact that it has been experiencing above average levels of volatility and it quickly becomes our opinion that there are number of other U.S. equity funds that offer a more compelling risk reward profile than this fund.