Canadian Investment Awards winners announced

The awards encompass a wide range of investment products, including mutual funds, pooled funds, and hedge funds. Additional awards recognize outstanding individual managers, career achievement, discount brokerage, and marketing. The awards program represents the year-long evaluation efforts of dozens of firms, analysts, and expert jury members.

The Morningstar Canadian Investment Awards winners are:

Morningstar Domestic Equity Fund Manager of the Year
Winner: Martin Ferguson, director and portfolio manager, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

“In the long term, Martin Ferguson has done a fantastic job,” says David O’Leary, director of fund analysis for Morningstar Canada. “His main mandate is Mawer New Canada, a Canadian small/mid cap fund. It is a relatively large fund by standards of a Canadian small cap fund, managing about $1.2 billion in assets, and that comes into play because some of the stocks in that space are fairly illiquid. Martin’s been with Mawer since December 1996, running the same fund for a decade, so we have a long track record to evaluate and it’s been outstanding relative performance.”

Morningstar Foreign Equity Fund Manager of the Year
Winner: Paul Musson, Mackenzie Financial Corp.

“Paul Musson leads the Ivy team at Mackenzie and took over the full reins when Jerry Javasky retired in 2008,” O’Leary says. “Under Musson’s leadership, the Ivy group really operates as a team, essentially looking for quality companies with clean balance sheets. Investors who stuck with Mackenzie Ivy Foreign Equity were rewarded during the market downturn. Year to date, the fund is only up about 2.5%, but it’s been a really rocky period, especially for foreign equities, so it really is an outstanding performance for that period.”

Morningstar Fixed Income Fund Manager of the Year
Winner: TD Asset Management Fixed Income Team, TD Asset Management Inc.

“The huge team includes a risk management team alone of 26 people so that’s why we didn’t just pick one individual team member for the award,” O’Leary says. “The strong, long-term performance reflects the rigorous, extensive research process of this deep and experienced team.”

Analysts’ Choice Investment Fund Company of the Year
Winner: Dynamic Funds
Silver: CI Investments Inc.
Bronze: Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

This award is chosen by the Investment Fund Analyst Committee, which includes Morningstar analysts as well as other analysts from across the industry. The criteria include performance, risk management, breadth of offerings, investor and advisor education, fund governance, and investor communication.

Advisors’ Choice Investment Fund Company of the Year
Winner: Fidelity Investments Canada
Silver: Dynamic Funds
Bronze: CI Investments Inc.

This award is voted on by a committee of jurors that spans Canadian advisors, mutual fund, hedge fund, and other investment fund companies. Advisors consider quality and range of products, performance, fees, service, education, community investment, and management criteria.

Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) Investor Education Award
Winner: My Retirement Café, Sun Life Financial
Silver: Solut!ons, Manulife Investments

Sun Life was recognized for its user-friendly and interactive website www.myretirementcafe.ca, which is aimed at Canadians over 55 who are about to retire or have just retired and are interested in learning how to be better prepared both emotionally and financially.

Career Achievement Award
Winner: Jim Hunter

Hunter is a creator of tax-efficient fund products, a former Mackenzie Financial president and CEO, and founder of the fund company NexGen Financial. He has served on the board of the Investment Funds Institute of Canada, the Richard Ivey School of Business, the Trillium Foundation and Basketball Canada, and has been active in supporting charitable organizations.

Best Asian Equity Fund
Winner: Fidelity Far East, Fidelity Investments Canada
Silver: Dynamic Far East Value, Dynamic Funds
Bronze: BMO Guardian Asian Growth & Income, BMO Investments Inc.

Best Canadian Balanced Fund
Winner: Fidelity Canadian Balanced, Fidelity Investments Canada
Silver: Fidelity Monthly Income, Fidelity Investments Canada
Bronze: Steadyhand Income, Steadyhand Investment Funds Inc.

Best Canadian Dividend & Income Equity Fund
Winner: RBC Canadian Equity Income, RBC Global Asset Management Inc.
Silver: Dynamic Equity Income, Dynamic Funds
Bronze: Fidelity Dividend Plus, Fidelity Investments Canada

Best Canadian Equity Fund
Winner: Mawer Canadian Equity, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Bissett Canadian Equity, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.
Bronze: Mackenzie Cundill Canadian Security, Mackenzie Financial Corp.

Best Canadian Fixed Income Fund
Winner: PH&N Bond, Phillips, Hager & North Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: TD Canadian Bond, TD Asset Management Inc.
Bronze: Beutel Goodman Income, Beutel Goodman & Company Ltd.

Best Canadian Small/Mid Cap Equity Fund
Winner: Beutel Goodman Small Cap, Beutel Goodman & Company Ltd.
Silver: Mawer New Canada, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Bronze: Mackenzie Saxon Microcap, Mackenzie Financial Corp.

Best Emerging Markets Equity Fund
Winner: AGF Emerging Markets, AGF Management Ltd.
Silver: Brandes Emerging Markets Equity, Brandes Investment Partners & Co.
Bronze: Desjardins Emerging Markets, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec

Best European Equity Fund
Winner: Mackenzie Ivy European Class, Mackenzie Financial Corporation
Silver: Trimark Europlus, Invesco Canada Ltd.
Bronze: CIBC European Equity, CIBC Asset Management Inc.

Best Global Balanced Fund
Winner: CI Signature High Income, CI Investments Inc.
Silver: Dynamic Global Asset Allocation, Dynamic Funds
Bronze: Mawer Canadian Diversified Investment, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Best Global Equity Fund
Winner: Dynamic Power Global Growth, Dynamic Funds
Silver: Mackenzie Ivy Foreign Equity, Mackenzie Financial Corp.
Bronze: Castlerock Global Leaders, Castlerock Investments, a division of CI Investments

Best Global Fixed Income Fund
Winner: Templeton Global Bond, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.
Silver: RBC Global Corporate Bond, RBC Global Asset Management Inc.
Bronze: Manulife Canadian Bond Plus, Manulife Mutual Funds

Best Global Small/Mid Cap Equity Fund
Winner: Mawer Global Small Cap, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Trimark Global Endeavour, Invesco Canada Ltd.
Bronze: CI Global Small Companies, CI Investments Inc.

Best Healthcare Equity Fund
Winner: TD Health Sciences, TD Asset Management Inc.
Silver: CI Global Health Sciences, CI Investments Inc.
Bronze: Renaissance Global Health Care, CIBC Asset Management Inc.

Best High Yield Fixed Income Fund
Winner: PH&N High Yield Bond, Phillips, Hager & North Investment Management
Silver: Dynamic High Yield Bond, Dynamic Funds
Bronze: Manulife Strategic Income, Manulife Mutual Funds

Best International Equity Fund
Winner: Mawer World Investment, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Invesco International Growth, Invesco Canada Ltd.
Bronze: CI International Value, CI Investments Inc.

Best Natural Resources Equity Fund
Winner: RBC Global Resources, RBC Global Asset Management Inc.
Silver: Bissett Energy, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.
Bronze: Front Street Special Opportunities Canadian, Front Street Capital

Best Precious Metals Equity Fund
Winner: RBC Global Precious Metals, RBC Global Asset Management Inc.
Silver: Sentry Precious Metals Growth, Sentry Investments Inc.
Bronze: Mackenzie Universal World Precious Metals, Mackenzie Financial Corp.

Best US Equity Fund
Winner: Dynamic Power American Growth, Dynamic Funds
Silver: Dynamic American Value, Dynamic Funds
Bronze: RBC O’Shaughnessy U.S. Value, RBC Global Asset Management Inc.

Best US Small/Mid Cap Equity Fund
Winner: Trimark U.S. Small Companies, Invesco Canada Ltd.
Silver: TD U.S. Small-Cap Equity, TD Asset Management Inc.
Bronze: Mackenzie Universal American Growth, Mackenzie Financial Corp.

Best Canadian Balanced Pooled Fund
Winner: QV Canadian Balanced, QV Investors Inc.
Silver: Beutel Goodman Balanced, Beutel Goodman & Company Ltd.
Bronze: Bissett Dividend Income, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.

Best Canadian Equity Pooled Fund
Winner: Mawer Canadian Equity Pooled, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Burgundy Focus Canadian Equity, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.
Bronze/Tie: BlackRock Active Canadian Equity, BlackRock Asset Management Canada Ltd. & Hexavest Canadian Equity, Hexavest Asset Management

Best Canadian Income Pooled Fund
Winner: Beutel Goodman Income, Beutel Goodman & Company Ltd.
Silver: Baker Gilmore Bond, Connor, Clark & Lunn Financial Group
Bronze: SSgA Active Canadian Universe Bond, State Street Global Advisors

Best Canadian Small/Mid Cap Equity Pooled Fund
Winner: Mawer New Canada, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Beutel Goodman Small Cap, Beutel Goodman & Company Ltd.
Bronze: Burgundy Canadian Small Cap, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.

Best Fund of Funds
Winner: Portfolio Series, CI Investment Inc.
Silver: Managed Portfolios, Fidelity Investments Canada
Bronze: Meritage Portfolios, National Bank Securities Inc.

Best Global Balanced Pooled Fund
Winner: Mawer Canadian Balanced Pooled, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Burgundy Pension Trust, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.
Bronze: Goodman Value Balanced, Goodman & Company Investment Counsel Ltd.

Best Global Equity Pooled Fund
Winner: Burgundy Partners Global, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.
Silver: MFS Global Equity (Canada), MFS Investment Management
Bronze: Mawer Global Small Cap, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Best International Equity Pooled Fund
Winner: Mawer World Investment, Mawer Investment Management Ltd.
Silver: Burgundy EAFE, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.
Bronze: Sprucegrove International Equity, Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.

Best US Equity Pooled Fund
Winner: Goodman U.S. Equity Growth, Goodman & Company Investment Counsel Ltd.
Silver: CI American Value, CI Investments Inc.
Bronze: Hexavest US, Hexavest Asset Management

Best Multi-Strategy or Fund of Hedge Funds
Winner: Spartan Multi-Strategy Fund, Spartan Fund Management Inc.
Silver: Amethyst Arbitrage Fund, Crystalline Management Inc.
Bronze: Garrison Hill Macro Opportunities Fund, Garrison Hill Capital Management Inc.

Best Opportunistic Hedge Fund
Winner: Friedberg Global Macro Hedge Fund Ltd., Friedberg Mercantile Group Ltd.
Silver: Auspice Diversified Trust, Auspice Capital Advisors Ltd.
Bronze: Vision Opportunity Fund LP, Vision Capital Corp.

Best Relative Value Hedge Fund
Winner: Altairis Long/Short Class, Polar Securities Inc.
Silver: Picton Mahoney Market Neutral Equity Fund, Picton Mahoney Asset Management
Bronze: CC&L Canadian Q Market Neutral Onshore, Connor, Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Best Marketing Campaign
Winner: 2011 Brand Advertising Campaign, Manulife Mutual Funds
Silver: The Sentry Difference, Sentry Investments Inc.
Bronze: Capitalizing on a Changing World, Franklin Templeton

Best Discount Brokerage
Winner: Qtrade Investor
Silver: Credential Direct
Bronze: TD Waterhouse

Morningstar Best ETF Initiative
Winner: Commission-Free ETF Trading Program, Scotia iTRADE/Claymore ETFs
Silver: Call for regulatory reform and need for more transparency, iShares ETFs, BlackRock Asset Management Canada
Bronze: Commission Free ETF Program, Qtrade

Morningstar Best Stewardship Initiative
Winner: How is My Portfolio Doing … And What Should I Do About It? A Framework for Assessing Investment Performance, Steadyhand Investment Funds Inc.