You can download our standard monthly portfolio report here. For those looking for even more detail, I am also providing additional reports generated from Morningstar which show even more detail regarding the portfolios. A summary report can be downloaded here, while the more detailed report is unavailable this month due to a delay in data from Morningstar.
It was mostly a down month in the markets, with the S&P 500 being the only major equity market to finish in positive territory in local currency terms in the month of May. Thankfully for Canadian investors, the Canadian dollar again weakened, after April’s brief recovery, pushing all major foreign markets into positive territory in Canadian dollar terms.
This proved to be a boost for the portfolios, as all finished well in positive territory, and all managed to outpace their respective benchmarks by a handsome margin. Not surprisingly, the Growth Portfolio posted the strongest gains, returning 2.9% for the month, outpacing its benchmark by 0.7%. The biggest contributors to this outperformance were the Fidelity Canadian Large Cap Fund, and the Sentry Small Mid Cap Income Fund.
The Fidelity Canadian Large Cap managed to outperform largely due to its U.S. holdings, which at the end of April made up a quarter of the fund, as well at the 15% held in cash. The Sentry Small Mid Cap Income Fund managed to outperform largely due to its income focused portfolio and overweight exposure to healthcare.
Our Conservative Portfolio gained 0.7%, just squeaking past its benchmark. The main reason for the outperformance was the shorter term focus of the fixed income sleeve, which held up better than the broader bond market in the face of rising yields.
The portfolios continue to perform within expectations, both on an absolute and relative basis. I have no immediate concerns surrounding any of the funds in the portfolios, and continue to monitor them closely. I believe they remain well positioned to deliver above average risk adjusted returns over the long term.