Global dividend and SRI global small-cap mandates will provide Canadian investors with enhanced access to international markets
IA Clarington Investments has unveiled two new funds to help Canadians diversify their portfolios beyond the domestic equity market.
The IA Clarington Global Dividend Fund is managed by iA Investment Management Inc. (iAIM). Meanwhile, the IA Clarington Inhance Global Small Cap SRI Fund is managed by Vancity Investment Management Ltd. (VCIM).
"These new mandates reflect our ongoing commitment to providing Canadian investors with enhanced access to global markets for added portfolio diversification and attractive return potential," said Kos Lazaridis, senior vice-president, chief product officer & head of Strategy, iA Clarington.
Dan Rohinton, vice-president & portfolio manager, Global Dividend, iAIM, oversees the IA Clarington Global Dividend Fund, which provides high-conviction exposure to quality dividend-paying equities with a focus on businesses having the ability to increase their dividends over time.
The concentrated portfolio of 30–40 stocks in IA Clarington Global Dividend Fund reflects the manager's top suggestions. It offers enhanced total return potential for investors looking for both capital growth and a steady income stream, and employs a bottom-up, research-driven methodology with a distinct emphasis on value chain analysis during the conceptualization and security selection processes.
"Our number one priority is to attract and retain top investment talent from all over North America," said Alain Bergeron, executive vice-president & chief investment officer, iA Financial Group.
Marc Sheard, portfolio manager, Equities, VCIM, oversees the IA Clarington Inhance Global Small Cap SRI Fund, which offers better diversification and potential excess return to investors who care about social and environmental issues.
IA Clarington Inhance Global Small Cap SRI Fund gives investors access to a wider range of international small-cap equities, which historically have more alpha potential than large caps under favourable market and economic conditions. It combines a strict environmental, social, and governance (ESG) screening with bottom-up basic analysis. It also engages in a strong shareholder involvement program intended to hold firms held by the fund adhere to their elevated ESG commitments.
"We believe that employing a quality-focused approach with integrated ESG analysis is a strong recipe for harnessing the market-beating, long-term return potential of the global small-cap universe with lower relative risk,” Sheard said.
“The small-cap universe contains many quality companies with exposure to sustainability and socially responsible-linked secular themes. And as SRI-focused investors, we also seek to benefit as smaller companies around the globe continue to improve their ESG credentials.”
