Steadyhand Income Fund
Managed by Connor, Clark & Lunn, this is the closest thing Steadyhand has to a bond fund. It has a target asset mix of 75% fixed income and 25% high yielding equities, which makes it a good bond fund substitute for those with a risk tolerance that is average or higher. Within the fixed income portion, it is heavily tilted towards corporate bonds, which make up about half the fund. The...
Read MoreBMO Asian Growth & Income Fund
The outlook for Asia remains very challenging – with the backdrop of slowing economic growth across the region, combined with a rising U.S. dollar. Recently, many governments, from India to China have taken steps to spur growth, and speed up market reforms. Still, it will be a challenging place to invest in the near term. In my view, this fund remains the best way to play the region. By...
Read MoreTrimark U.S. Small Companies Class
Not surprisingly, the fund lagged both the benchmark and its peer group in the first quarter of the year. This was because of the drag caused by the nearly 30% currently in cash. This high cash balance is the byproduct of the managers’ struggle to find opportunities that are trading at valuations they believe make them strong investment candidates. In a recent commentary, they expressed...
Read MoreFidelity Small Cap America Fund
Manager Steve MacMillan has done a stellar job with this small cap offering since taking it over in 2011. In the past three years, it has gained more than 33%, outpacing both the index and peer group by a wide margin. This outperformance continued in the first quarter, gaining an impressive 18.9%, thanks to a strong showing from its consumer and technology names, combined with a falling Canadian...
Read MoreIA Clarington Canadian Conservative Equity Fund
Low volatility and excellent downside protection have been why this has been one of my favourite Canadian equity funds for the past few years. However, a recent uptick volatility has me a bit concerned. According to the managers, the reason for the higher volatility has been the fund’s significant weighting in the energy sector. Because of this, it has been un-characteristically dragged lower in...
Read More