February 2016 Portfolio Review
February was another tough month for investors, with most global equity indices finishing in negative territory. The S&P 500 was down 0.13% in U.S. dollar terms, while the MSCI EAFE Index was lower by nearly 2%. With both gold and oil showing some strength, the S&P/TSX Composite managed to eke out a modest 0.5% rise. Another benefactor to this strength was the Canadian dollar, which...
Read MoreSocially Responsible Investing Report – February 2016
With environmental and human rights concerns becoming more important to people, interest in the Socially Responsible Investing segment has never been stronger. In an effort to help keep investors and advisors informed on the SRI funds available, we have created our monthly Socially Responsible Investing Fund Report, which will be published on a monthly basis. You can download the February 2016...
Read MoreTD U.S. Equity Index Fund
Fund Card The fund had a decent year, gaining 20.5% compared with the S&P 500, which was up by 20.8%. This underperformance is not surprising, given it is designed to track the Canadian dollar return of the S&P 500, net of fees. I should emphasize that nearly 19% of the gain was the result of the falling Canadian dollar, something that is not likely to be repeated in the coming year. If...
Read MoreCambridge Canadian Equity Class
Fund Card With a gain of 1.5% the fund managed to outperform the S&P/TSX Composite Index, but trailed its peer group. The managers have kept the sector positioning mostly unchanged over the quarter, adding slightly to consumer staples and financials, while reducing consumer discretionary names. At the end of the year, it looked much different than the broader Canadian equity market, with...
Read MoreManulife Global Small Cap
Fund Card With a one year gain of 30.7%, this was the top performing global small cap fund in 2015. But this was no fluke. The fund, launched in April 2008 is identical to the highly regarded Mawer Global Small Cap Fund (MAW 150 – No Load Units). For the five years ending December 31, it has gained nearly 21 per year on an annualized basis, making it one of the best performing funds. In fact,...
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