Montreal-based Gestion Férique Tuesday that Férique Bond Fund will now be managed by Addenda Capital Inc. and Baker Gilmore & Associates Inc.
The change, which will take effect on or about March 21, will end the mandate of portfolio advisor State Street Global Advisors, Ltd. (SSgA), which previously managed 30% of the fund’s assets.
Due to this change, similar amendments will also be made to Férique Moderate Balanced Fund, Férique Balanced Fund, and Férique Balanced Growth Fund, which invest, respectively, 60%, 38% and 28% of their total assets in Férique Bond Fund.
The structure of Férique BondFund, which has nearly $575 million in assets under management, is based on the multi-manager approach which characterizes Férique Funds. This approach aims to diversify risk by combining the strengths of multiple managers with complementary styles. The fund will be divided equally between Montreal-based investment management firms Addenda and Baker Gilmore, which have been managing the fund since 1998 and 2013 respectively.
To provide superior long-term returns, Addenda’s strategy primarily relies on the active management of the portfolio’s duration relative to its benchmark, while Baker Gilmore focuses more on sector allocation and security selection.
“The Canadian bond market is in transition and we wanted to give our bond fund greater flexibility to remain competitive in the current environment and adapt to whatever the future holds,” said Louis Lizotte, senior director of nvestments at Gestion Férique.
Gestion Férique is the only not-for-profit mutual fund company in Canada whose sole purpose is to serve the interests of engineers, engineering graduates and their families.