CI Signature High Income Fund
Fund Card Despite gaining 1.2% in the quarter, the fund underperformed its peers. There were a couple of reasons for this underperformance. The fund has about half of its bond exposure invested in high yield issues, which were hit hard in the final quarter of the year. It also has an overweight position in REITs, which have struggled and had a tough Q4. Finally, financials, particularly U.S....
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 MoreRBC O’Shaughnessy U.S. Value Fund
Fund Card With a modest 2.3% gain in the final quarter of the year, and an 8.9% loss for 2015, this quantitatively managed U.S. equity offering was the worst performing funds on the Recommended List. There were a couple of key factors contributing to the underperformance. The first is the fund’s currency exposure, which is fully hedged back to Canadian dollars. Because of this, it missed out on...
Read MoreMackenzie U.S. Large Cap Class
Fund Card Using a mix of top down thematic investing and bottom up security selection, this fund managed by Erik Becker and Gus Zinn, posted a very strong 10.6% gain in the final quarter of the year. It was largely the technology and consumer names that propelled it higher, while the unhedged currency position bolstered gains further, as the Canadian dollar continued its slide against the U.S....
Read MoreIA Clarington Canadian Conservative Equity Fund
Fund Card This is a fund that I continue to struggle with. There is no denying that recent performance has been abysmal, and there was a definite uptick in the volatility, and an erosion in the downside protection offered in the most recent selloff. But unlike the Franklin U.S. Rising Dividends Fund, which I removed from the Recommended List, I am more comfortable with the reasons for the...
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