MONTREAL, Feb. 7, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - As the manager of FÉRIQUE Funds, Gestion FÉRIQUE today announced the appointment of Baker Gilmore & Associates Inc. ("Baker Gilmore") as portfolio adviser to FÉRIQUE BOND Fund. This appointment will take effect on or about March 1, 2013.
The management of FÉRIQUE BOND Fund will be, as a result, split between Baker Gilmore (35%) and the Fund's two current portfolio advisers, Addenda Capital Inc. (35%) and State Street Global Advisors, Ltd. (30%). With approximately $565 million under management (as at January 31, 2013), FÉRIQUE BOND Fund is the largest Fund among the FÉRIQUE product lineup.
"Given the scope of FÉRIQUE BOND Fund, we can allocate its management to three leading firms with complementary styles," explained Fabienne Lacoste, CFA, President and CEO of Gestion FÉRIQUE. "Each has specific Canadian fixed income market expertise, which allows us to diversify both the Fund's level of risk and its sources of added value."
Baker Gilmore was selected after a rigorous research process. "Our selection criteria included finding, first and foremost, a company with proven fixed income credit analysis expertise," said Louis Lizotte, Director of Investments at Gestion FÉRIQUE. "Since its inception, the Fund has taken an index-plus approach to investment management. We incorporated an "active management" component in 2011, which has been enhanced today with the appointment of Baker Gilmore. For this reason, we believe that the Fund will be well positioned to tackle any market scenario, regardless of the direction in interest rates."
Baker Gilmore, founded in 1988 in Montreal, manages more than $4.5 billion in assets. The firm's investment approach combines fundamentally-driven, subjective forecasting of the key factors that drive bond market returns with a rigorous approach to portfolio construction to meet each client's specific return and risk objectives. Baker Gilmore is a member of the Connor, Clark & Lunn Financial Group, which has over $45 billion in combined assets under management.
Launched in 1974, FÉRIQUE BOND Fund is one of 157 funds with more than a 25-year history in a universe of 6,786 Canadian funds. The Fund's management expense ratio is currently 0.75%, ranking in the lowest quartile of the industry (the lowest 25% bracket).
About Gestion FÉRIQUE
Founded on January 1, 2000, Gestion FÉRIQUE (www.ferique.com) is the manager of FÉRIQUE Funds, launched in 1974 by the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec. 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. The firm offers 10 mutual funds diversified across all asset classes. Management of the Funds is entrusted to renowned investment firms, handpicked by Gestion FÉRIQUE based on their asset class expertise. FÉRIQUE Funds have nearly $1.6 billion in assets under management and close to 22,000 clients.
SOURCE: Gestion FÉRIQUE
Manon Duhamel, Gestion FÉRIQUE, 514-840-9206 (Ext. 450), [email protected]
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