Our research team is made up of 24 experienced portfolio managers, most of whom have earned the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Each manager is in contact with the senior management of every Canadian company we hold through scheduled meetings, conference calls and group meetings. While we strive to do the same for foreign equity holdings, most contacts are directly through investment dealer securities analysts.

We regard external research as a source of data (earnings estimates, P/E ratios, etc.) rather than an indicator of whether a stock is a buy, hold or sell. We rely on our internal research team for stock ratings and selections. Our research tools include Computerized Portfolio Management Services (CPMS) for historical and projected earnings targets and momentum, proprietary models and BLOOMBERG, Reuters, and First Call for earnings and news releases.

Fixed income research on credit quality is dependent upon opinions by rating agencies, but coupled with in-house determinations on appropriate risk premium within yields. Valuation of securities in the marketplace is accomplished through the use of computer-driven analysis.