Toronto-based PIMCO Canada Corp. is changing the risk rating on one of its funds after applying the Investment Funds Institute of Canada’s (IFIC) risk rating methodology.
The firm said Friday it is changing the risk rating of PIMCO Monthly Income Fund (Canada) from the category of “low to medium” to the category of “low”, after utilizing the methodology recommended by IFIC’s Fund Risk Classification Task Force.
The change will be reflected in the fund’s simplified prospectus, it says; but, the fund’s investment objectives and strategies will not change as a result.
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) is currently considering possibly imposing a standardized risk classification methodology on mutual funds for use in Fund Facts documents. The proposal is designed to enhance the consistency and transparency of disclosure that funds provide, and to improve the comparability of funds.
The CSA proposed a standardized methodology late last year, largely in response to complaints from investor advocates about the lack of consistency and comparability in existing risk ratings. The comment period on that proposal closed earlier this week. (See Investment Executive, CSA seeks input on risk methodology for funds, December 12, 2013.)
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Correction: An earlier version of this story mistakenly reported that the fund’s risk rating went from the category of “low” to the category of “medium.”