Quebec City-based Desjardins Investments Inc. announced on Friday that it has modified the investment strategies to several mutual funds, which has also led to name changes for those affected funds.

The changes apply to products within the Chorus II portfolio lineup. Desjardins Investments has added a volatility reduction criterion to the portfolio’s other criteria that will be taken into account when determining what percentage of the portfolios’ assets will be invested in each security. However, the fundamental objective of each affected portfolio will remain the same.

The products that are affected by this new criterion and their subsequent change of name are:

  • Chorus II Conservative Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Conservative Low Volatility Portfolio
  • Chorus II Balanced Income Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Moderate Low Volatility Portfolio
  • Chorus II Balanced Growth Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Balanced Low Volatility Portfolio
  • Chorus II Corporate Class Conservative Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Corporate Class Conservative Low Volatility Portfolio
  • Chorus II Corporate Class Balanced Income Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Corporate Class Moderate Low Volatility Portfolio
  • Chorus II Corporate Class Balanced Growth Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Corporate Class Balanced Low Volatility Portfolio

The names of the following portfolios will also change:

  • Chorus II High Growth Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Dynamic Growth Portfolio
  • Chorus II Corporate Class High Growth Portfolio, which will be renamed Chorus II Corporate Class Dynamic Growth Portfolio

Desjardins Investments also announced that New York City-based Lazard Asset Management LLC will act as expert advisor to provide asset-allocation recommendations for the Chorus II portfolios.

If approved by regulatory authorities, the changes are expected to be implemented on or about Dec. 5. However, the firm is not required to implement the changes announced and reserves the right to postpone implementation of some or all of the changes, according to Desjardins Investments’ announcement.