Apostle announces relationship with Cramer Rosenthal McGlynn

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle is pleased to announce a new relationship with Cramer Rosenthal McGlynn L.L.C. (CRM).

Apostle announces the launch of Convertible Bond Manager, Camden Asset Management L.P.

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +1100

Apostle Asset Management has formalised a distribution partnership with specialist convertible bond manager, Camden Asset Management (Camden) to offer fixed income and alternatives expertise to Australian investors.Camden Asset Management is an employee-owned firm based in Los Angeles, California, that specialises in investing in convertible securities primarily for institutional investors. Karyn West, Managing Director, Apostle Asset Management said Apostle is seeking products for our market that may offer lower volatility, liquidity and good excess returns.    “Convertible bonds are often overlooked and can be an orphan in portfolio management.  Because of a scarcity of specialist management in this space, it creates an opportunity to generate alpha,” she said.   “The hedged convertible portfolio generally removes the equity exposure from the portfolio creating a pure credit play that can generally perform even when equity markets fall.  A levered version offers an alternatives portfolio liquidity and good outperformance potential.” “There is also an argument for using long only convertibles in equity portfolios with equity-like returns but with lower beta to equity markets.” John Wagner, Managing Partner of Camden said, “We are excited to be working with Apostle.  Apostle has a tremendous track record of crafting and offering investment solutions for Australian investors’ needs.  We believe our investment strategies offer significant benefits that Australian investors will find attractive.” Ms West said: “Convertibles offer a good investment opportunity in the current environment and can play an important role in portfolios.  They are a permanent piece in the capital structure for Corporates and are considered neither bonds nor equity but hybrid securities with features of both. This is a market that shows pricing inefficiency relative to the underlying stock and may be a source of cheap volatility to exploit. This approach will assist Apostle in delivering innovative solutions to its clients.”

Apostle announces the launch of Windham Capital Management in the Australian market

Mon, 26 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle Asset Management has formalised a distribution partnership with leading US risk management specialist Windham Capital Management LLC (Windham) to offer Windham’s expertise in retirement income portfolios to Australian investors.Karyn West, Managing Director, Apostle Asset Management said Apostle is seeking new ways to help investors relieve the market pressures caused by Australia’s aging population and associated longevity risk.“With many superfunds looking for an effective retirement solution for their members, Apostle and Windham can offer institutional investors credible strategies for a retirement market that is now highly focused on risk management, liquidity, fee controls and regular income distribution,” said Karyn West, managing director, Apostle Asset Management.“Members approaching retirement and those in retirement have specific needs, such as income, low volatility, down side protection and inflation protection. The Windham approach, in particular their Windham Investment Risk Cycle™, works effectively to deliver on these primary investor goals, while generating capital appreciation when markets are calm,” she said.The Windham Retirement Income Portfolio uses proprietary measures to protect against downside risk and invests primarily in ETFs to access the global markets in a highly liquid and efficient manner. Comprised of income-producing assets that adapt to changing market conditions, this portfolio has the dual objectives of producing high current income and, over medium to longer periods, also keeping pace with inflation.Mark Kritzman, Windham’s Chief Investment Officer, who is a founding partner of State Street Associates, said; “markets have shown again and again that moves triggered by macro issues can swamp investor returns, yet a very large proportion of effort in portfolio management is focused on micro factors. Our proprietary measures of market turbulence and systemic risk allow us to estimate risk in the markets and to take action to reduce the impact of market moves triggered by macro factors.”Stan Shelton, Managing Partner, Windham Capital, said; “Our ability to meet retirement investor needs for accumulation and income generation through a single product that is first and foremost risk-centric and, secondarily, has upside potential, is very timely for the Australian market,” he said. “With Australia’s renewed focus on risk management through top-down, active asset allocation, Windham’s approach will support Apostle in delivering innovative solutions to its clients.”

Apostle announces the launch of Polar Capital in the Australian market

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Apostle Asset Management has formalised a distribution partnership with leading UK-based manager Polar Capital LLP (Polar Capital) to offer Polar Capital’s expertise in Emerging Markets and sector-specialty equity funds to Australian investors. Karyn West, Managing Director, Apostle Asset Management said Apostle is constantly on the lookout for high quality managers with specialist offerings otherwise difficult for Australian investors to access. “Polar Capital is an extremely impressive organisation with a number of equity strategies which we are confident will appeal to the Australian market. Our initial efforts will be around their Emerging Markets capabilities, as we believe there is a shortage of quality managers in this space with the capacity to fulfil the needs of local clients”. “William Calvert and his team, whilst relatively new to the Polar Capital business, have an outstanding long term performance track record in managing Emerging Markets equities. We are excited at the opportunity to introduce William’s expertise to Australia” she said. The Polar Capital Emerging Markets strategy uses a fundamental, research-driven approach to exploit growth opportunities and inefficiencies in Emerging Markets across all stages of a market cycle, by placing an emphasis on companies with exposure to domestic growth.William Calvert, head of the Emerging Markets investment team and with 20 years’ experience managing Emerging Markets equities, believes that recent market turmoil, particularly in equity markets, makes it an ideal time for investors to consider investing in or adding to the asset class. He said “Emerging Market valuations are now approaching levels last seen at the height of the Global Financial Crisis and indicators such as fund flows are suggesting that sentiment has turned against the asset class. We believe that low leverage amongst emerging market governments, corporates, consumers and banks is the key differentiator which will enable them to continue to enjoy relatively robust growth even against a difficult global backdrop.”

Apostle signs deal with Highclere

Tue, 13 May 2008 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle Asset Management Ltd (“Apostle”) has entered into a distribution deal with long-only international small cap investment boutique Highclere International Investors Ltd (“Highclere”).

Apostle to tour global growth expert

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle to tour global growth expert.

Australian Global Bond Fund

Wed, 07 Feb 2007 00:00:00 +1100

Introducing the New Bond - IXIS Loomis Sayles Global Bond Fund.

Bond market & opportunities, where do we go from here. An overview by Loomis Sayles.

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +1100

Teri Mason, Associate of Credit Research, gives an overview as the credit crisis eases.

David Rolley on the Global Bond Fund

Fri, 07 May 2010 00:00:00 +1000

David gives a Quarter 1 update on Global Bond Fund<a href="external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/Internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=DavidRolley_5-7-10" target="_blank" title="Watch the video here">Watch the video here</a>

David Rolley talks of the "green shoots"

Thu, 21 May 2009 00:00:00 +1000

David Rolley talks about better that expected US retails sales and factory orders. <a href="http://www.apostleam.com.au/external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=DavidRolley_4-20-09" target="_blank" title="Watch the video here">Watch the video here</a>          <img class="left" src="assets/Uploads/_resampled/ResizedImage170241-Photo-David-Rolley.jpg" title="null" hspace="null" vspace="null" width="170" height="241" align="null" />

David Rolley: European Debt Crisis & Portfolio Positioning

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +1000

David Rolley discusses the European Debt Crisis and Portfolio Positioning.<a href="external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=DavidRolley_4-20-09" target="_blank" title="Watch the video here"></a><a href="http://www.loomissayles.com/Internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=Dave_Rolley_8-19&Duration=391&Trans=No&Q=&Topic=European%20Debt%20Crisis%20&%20Portfolio%20Positioning%20with%20David%20Rolley&Fund=Global%20Bond%20Fund&Pros=http://www.loomissayles.com/Internet/InternetData.nsf/ID/8AKHFB/$FILE/GB_IR_SummaryProspectus.pdf&displayPros=Yes&displayPerf=Yes&unid=CCE193BE122E627B852578F00048F555&" target="_blank">Watch the video here.</a><img class="left" src="assets/Uploads/_resampled/ResizedImage198300-Photo-David-RolleyFOR-WEB.jpg" title="null" hspace="null" vspace="null" width="198" height="300" align="null" />

Tom Fahey: Global Market Review and Outlook Webcast

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +1100

Tom Fahey, Vice President & Senior Global Macro Strategist, shares Loomis’ views on:·         The European Crisis - where to from here·         US economic growth expectations·         The outlook for asset prices and credit <a href="http://www.loomissayles.com/Internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=12-20-11_Tom_Fahey_v2&Duration=388&Trans=No&Q=&Topic=Global%20Market%20Review%20and%20Outlook%20with%20Tom%20Fahey,%20as%20of%20December%2022,%202011&Fund=&Pros=&displayPros=No&displayPerf=No&unid=BC9BCE4A204B4DDD8525796F00588016&" target="_blank" title="LS Global Bond Review & Outlook">Watch the video here.</a>An accompanying White Paper can be downloaded <a href="assets/Uploads/120117-Loomis-Sayles-Bond-Market-Review-Outlook-Jan-2012.pdf" target="_blank" title="LS Bond Market Review White Paper">here</a>.

David Rolley webcast on Global Bond Fund

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +1000

See a webcast of David Rolley answering questions about the Global Bond Fund <a href="http://www.apostleam.com.au/external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&amp;MediaFile=DavidRolley_6-26-09" title="Watch the video here">Watch the webcast here</a><img class="left" src="assets/Uploads/_resampled/ResizedImage170241-Photo-David-Rolley.jpg" title="null" hspace="null" vspace="null" width="170" height="241" align="null" />

Deborah Alliston joins IXIS

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:00:00 +1100

IXIS Asset Management Australia Limited (IXIS Australia) is pleased to announce the appointment of Deborah Alliston as Investment Director.

IXIS Australia awarded $450m CFS mandate

Wed, 02 May 2007 00:00:00 +1000

IXIS Australia awarded $450 million Colonial First State mandate.

Increased Demand for Growth Stocks

Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 +1000

Tight Credit Environments Supports Increased Demand for Growth Stocks.

Kenneth Buntrock on the Global Bond Fund

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +1000

<a href="external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/Internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=KennethBuntrock_7-15-10" target="_blank" title="Watch the video here">Watch the video here</a>

Loomis Sayles Global Bond Fund Update May 2009

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +1000

Read the latest market Commentary from Loomis Sayles.

Loomis Sayles Global Bond Update October 2008

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +1100

In 2007, defaults on mortgage loans rose significantly, particularly for subprime borrowers.

Management Team buys IXIS Australia launches Apostle

Mon, 08 Oct 2007 00:00:00 +1000

A management-led team has bought IXIS Asset Management Australia Ltd from global parent Natixis Global Associates, Inc. (formerly IXIS), renaming it Apostle Asset Management Ltd (Apostle).

Mark Baribeau on the Growth Fund

Fri, 23 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +1000

Mark gives an update on the Growth Fund<a href="external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=MarkBaribeau_4-15-10" target="_blank" title="Watch the video here">Watch the video here</a><img class="left" src="assets/Uploads/_resampled/ResizedImage170111-Mark-Baribeau.jpg" title="null" hspace="null" vspace="null" width="170" height="111" align="null" />

Mark Baribeau talks about Growth and where we go in 2009

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:00:00 +1100

Mark spends some time talking about the current economic climate. <a href="http://www.apostleam.com.au/external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=MarkBaribeau_1-21-09" title="Watch the video here">Watch the video here</a>.

Apostle Asset Management announces growth of local team

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 00:00:00 +1100

Best-of-breed investment managers Apostle Asset Management Limited today announced the expansion of its Australian team with the appointment of Richard Borysiewicz and Nicole Krebs to senior leadership roles.

North American Small Cap Specialist to Tour

Tue, 06 May 2008 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle will host Chris Wallis, senior portfolio manager at Vaughan Nelson on an Australia wide roadshow May 12-16.

Perspectives on Inflation - Research from Loomis Sayles

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +1000

The Loomis Sayles Global Bond Team takes a look at inflation trends globally and the policies governments might use to address it.  The research proposes that a multi-strategy and active management approach is required to help maintain a portfolio’s purchasing power and also highlights a number of investment strategies that could be employed within the fixed interest asset class including allocations to high yield and bank loans to provide appropriate diversification.

Vaughan Nelson partners with Apostle

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 00:00:00 +1100

Vaughan Nelson partners with Apostle, launches US small-mid cap value equities fund Apostle Asset Management expands team and focuses on retail channel.

Watch Kenneth Buntrock's webcast on third quarter performance of the Global Bond Fund

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +1100

Watch Ken Buntrock talk through the performance of the Global Bond Fund for the third quarter 2009.  <a href="http://www.apostleam.com.au/external.php?aplocation=www.loomissayles.com/internet/Internet.nsf/MediaPopup?OpenForm&MediaFile=KennethBuntrock_10-20-09">Watch the Webcast here</a>.

Watch Bruno Crastes: Sovereign Debt - Opportunity or Risk?

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +1000

<h2>Sovereign Debt - Opportunity or Risk?</h2> The implications of the European debt crisis and the case for active sovereign management.<a href="http://www.apostleam.com.au/videos/Bruno_Crastes.wmv" title="Bruno Crastes">Watch Video Here.</a>  Please note that this video requires Microsoft Windows Media Player Version 11 or higher, you can update your version for free by <a href="http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/downloads/windows-media-player" target="_blank" title="MS Media Player">clicking here</a>.  A synopsis of the key messages from the day, focusing on the European Sovereign Crisis can be <a href="assets/Uploads/AApostle-H2OBruno-Crastes-BriefingSovereign-DebtOpportunity-or-Risk19-Jul-2011.pdf" target="_blank">read here</a>.

H2O Asset Management sets sights on Australian Insto Market via Apostle Asset Management

Mon, 31 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Apostle Asset Management Limited has announced the cementing of its distribution partnership with London-based boutique, H2O Asset Management L.L.P. (H2O AM). H2O AM was launched in July 2010 by Bruno Crastes (CEO) and Vincent Chailley (CIO) (formerly with Amundi Asset Management) in partnership with Natixis Asset Management. With approximately 40 years of combined experience, the firm offers expertise in global fixed income, emerging bond & currency management and global macro alternative management. Apostle will actively market these capabilities to Australian institutional investors.

H2O Asset Management sets sights on Australian Insto Market via Apostle Asset Management

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Loomis Sayles Research Paper - Duration: Not the Whole Story

Tue, 08 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +1100

US Credit Rating Downgrade

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Loomis Sayles. Loomis Sayles believe the downgrade is a very public recognition of the challenges the US faces. It reinforces concerns most investors have about the outlook, and as such, may cause additional volatility for risk assets near term but is unlikely to lead to more lasting damage to markets. We hope the article provides further clarity on this recent event and it’s broader impact on financial markets.

US Treasury Downgrade

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Loomis Sayles. Loomis Sayles’ Chief Economist, Brian Horrigan, outlines his opinions on the recent Standard & Poor’s downgrade of US Treasurys. He also shares his views on the likelihood of downgrades by other rating agencies or of another downgrade by Standard & Poor’s within the next two years.

June Bugs...in the Employment Report

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Loomis Sayles. The June 2011 Employment Report in the US was awful. But what are investors to make of it? Was it a fluke? Brian Horrigan, Chief Economist at Loomis Sayles, drills down into the details to try to make sense of it.

European Debt Crisis

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Loomis Sayles. Tom Fahey, Senior Global Macro Strategist and Ed Thaute, Senior Global Credit Analyst share their views on Italy, the latest entrant into the Sovereign debt crisis, the response of the ECB and key challenges facing European banks.

US Financial Sector in an Environment of Turbulence

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by the equity and credit research teams at Loomis Sayles. US financial companies have spent the past three years trying to meaningfully improve their balance sheets, however, these improvements were not enough to insulate the financial sector from the maelstrom of economic and political news that buffeted the capital markets in August and incited investors to challenge stock and bond valuations. Loomis believe that, until some degree of calm returns to the global capital markets, credit spreads and stock prices could remain volatile and are likely to be driven more by rumors and news headlines than by fundamental realities.

Bruno Crastes: What the Fed will do next

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +1100

QE policy is no longer about supporting the economy - its main purpose is to avert a massive sell-off in bond markets, says renowned fixed income manager Bruno Crastes. Speaking at Citywire's Paris forum, former Amundi fixed income CIOCrastes said that QE has become a 'communications strategy', and if the Fed gets it wrong the outcome would be worse than the bond rout of 1994. 'I think that Ben Bernanke and the Fed are just trying to find good reasons to carry on QE and I have my own interpretation of that,' he said. However, he also gave a full explanation of his outlook in his address to delegates. 'There is a big issue in bond markets right now that we have never experienced,' he said. 'It’s the fact that there has been so much supply in the market especially in the five to 10 year area in US Treasuries, that many banks are very long this part of the curve.' 'This is for good reasons, as this is what the Fed gave them in order to recapitalise them. The big problem is that when you start hiking rates, the part of the curve that is hurt most is the five to 10 year. This is where you have all the banks. So, as soon as the Fed gives a signal to the market that they will start hiking rates, the banks will start selling.' 'If the sell-off comes, it could be worse than '94. And if banks don’t sell, hedge funds will sell their equity.' 'So there’s a big turnaround for the Fed - how do they get out of that? The best way to me, speaking as a market guy, is to create an investor who will remain long: the Fed. So my interpretation is that the Fed is doing QE not because they need to support the economy or transmit monetary policy better, it's because they want to start buying treasuries in order to make the transition easier. And they buy them from banks. Banks are giving back to the Fed the bonds they bought.' This is the way in which Bernanke and his colleagues aim to alleviate the risk of a '94-style crisis in the bond market, Crastes said. He warned: 'You cannot rule out a QE3 – not because they believe the economy is not doing well, but to prevent the market from plummeting in the face of signal about hiking rates.'   Crastes, who left Amundi in 2010 to create his own boutique firm, takes the view the US is further along the route to recovery than many investors realise. 'The first thing that makes me very positive on the US economy is something I have been following for the last 20 years - and it always works. This is the yield curve.' 'We said one year ago, to the bearish guys, you cannot see a double-dip with such a steep yield curve. It never happens.'   'This is the best indicator for future growth,' he said. 'As long as the curve remains steep, in spite of QE, in spite of the pension funds, in spite of the demography; it’s the best indicator, the one you have to rely on when it comes to defining your strategy about future growth. The curve is very steep, especially in the US, it is steeper than after the Enron crisis. So this is a strong indicator for strong growth going forward.'

US growth revival will shift focus away from China

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +1100

As the US recovery gathers pace, global liquidity will be less abundant and new opportunities will arise away from China-related themes, H2O Asset Management's Bruno Crastes says. While the global financial crisis is probably behind us, volatility is still very present in market participants' mind. Any source of risk - such as the United States double-dip concern in the second half of 2010 - is still regarded as potentially systemic. Ironically, the prospect of US growth has clearly improved since QE II (the second round of quantitative easing in the US) in November last year, leading to a structural downward shift in global uncertainty. What happens to look more and more like a strengthening recovery in the US is actually reducing global risk, leaving only country/region-specific issues on the table. More precisely, better growth in the US is likely to make the uncertainty regarding policy normalisation by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) more immediate. The second generation of quantitative easing by the Fed was implemented by buying treasuries, particularly in the three to seven-year sector, thus contributing to a historically steep yield curve. Such a curve has always been conducive to growth eventually. Indeed, the horizon of economic and financial decisions is extended by better long-term return and cheaper short-term financing. Hence the risk of a double-dip is remote in such an environment. The sequence of events goes from a steep curve to growth, and then to the Fed moving away from its loose and heterodox stance. This concentrates the market risk on the five-year segment of the treasury curve. On top of the usual shift in Fed fund rate expectations, the accumulated buying of treasuries associated with QE II will eventually have to be unwound. Moreover, in the absence of lending opportunities, commercial banks have piled up treasuries also in the five-year area. Some revival in private lending, as current surveys point to, would lead banks to sell their holdings in treasuries. As soon as the Fed signals to the market that it is finally pleased with the recovery and ready to move away from its current heterodox policy, banks will start selling their five-year bonds, resulting in a massive write-down in value and subsequent bond market correction. Unexpected losses and broad risk aversion on the back of the perception that excess liquidity is being hastily reduced is thus a material risk for 2011. What does all this mean for Australian markets? A change in stance by the Fed would have dramatic consequences for assets such as the Australian currency, which has been the ideal instrument for a China-pulled world recovery with ample US-induced world liquidity. As the US recovery gathers pace, global liquidity will be less abundant and new opportunities will arise away from China-related themes. All this bodes rather poorly for the celebrated Australian dollar.

Colonial First State appoints H2O Asset Management via Apostle Asset Management to manage A$270m

Mon, 23 May 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle Asset Management has announced the successful funding of a A$270m Global Fixed Income & Currency mandate by Colonial First State as an allocation within Colonial First State’s FirstChoice multi-manager funds. Colonial First State is Australia’s leading wealth creation business while FirstChoice is Australia’s largest investment platform. The mandate is to be managed by H2O Asset Management, a London based firm and the newest affiliate for Apostle Asset Management.Apostle Director of Sales, Richard Borysiewicz, said H2O’s fixed interest capabilities were finding strong resonance in International and the Australian markets. “H2O is off to a great start and has had several mandates funded from around the world in their first year of operation. We have been representing H2O for less than six months and are very pleased to have secured this first mandate in Australia for them. We anticipate announcing further allocations in the coming months.”H2O AM was launched in July 2010 by Bruno Crastes (CEO) and Vincent Chailley (CIO) (formerly with Amundi Asset Management) in partnership with Natixis Asset Management. With approximately 40 years of combined experience, the firm offers expertise in global fixed income, emerging bond & currency management and global macro alternative management. Apostle actively markets these capabilities to Australian institutional investors.

Systemic risk measurement an early warning for investors

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +1100

“Our calculation is just a residual of the math without the politics,” Mark Kritzman. Systemic risk could be the silver bullet everyone is looking for in portfolio management, with high systemic risk in markets proven to be a precursor to heightened tail risk. The measure of systemic risk is useful for separating a fragile from a resilient market and, while it doesn’t tell you about an individual tail-risk event, it gives an indication of when it may be approaching so portfolios can be positioned to cushion the blow. Similarly if the systemic risk measures shows markets are resilient, portfolios can be positioned to take advantage of that. Chief investment officer of Windham Capital Management, professor of finance at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-founder of State Street Associates, Mark Kritzman says implied systemic risk, or the absorption ratio, is a measure of how tightly coupled or unified the markets are. When they are tightly coupled, or there is a high absorption ratio, then markets are more fragile in the sense that negative shocks propagate more quickly and broadly than when markets are loosely linked. “We have done a lot of work to show the degree of systemic risk is very important to managing a portfolio; it’s very informative. Returns on average are lower when systemic risk is high,” Kritzman says. Backed up by research Principal Components as a Measure of Systemic Risk – research by Kritzman, Yanzhen Li, Sebastien Page and Roberto Rigobon – shows that the absorption ratio captures market fragility. Specifically the paper shows that most significant US stock market drawdowns have been preceded by spikes in the absorption ratio; that stock prices, on average, have depreciated significantly following spikes in the absorption ratio and on average appreciated significantly in the wake of sharp declines in the absorption ratio. It also showed that the absorption ratio was a leading indicator of US housing market bubble; the absorption ratio systemically rose in advance of market turbulence; and that important milestones throughout the global financial crisis coincided with shifts in the absorption ratio. “In short, the absorption ratio appears to serve as an extremely effective measure of systemic risk in financial markets,” the paper states. Kritzman has done some work with the US government on the predictive power of the absorption ratio. “We have demonstrated that the absorption ratio of the US housing market provided early signs of the emergence of a national housing bubble, long before the Fed recognised that fact.” According to Kritzman, a company’s vulnerability to failure is partly due to its connectivity to other entities and how risky those other entities are, which policymakers have shown interest in. “Our calculation is just a residual of the math without the politics,” he says. “The Financial Stability Board came up with a list of 29 companies in two years, we have the same list in a few days.” At the moment he thinks the most important sectors are financials, energy, and technology. Within the financial sector, Fritzman says the most systemically important individual financial institutions are Bank of America and Citibank. “Lehman on average was not systemically important but it was at the time of the collapse.” Windham looks at the world according to a proprietary Investment Risk Cycle, which describes how systemic risk and financial turbulence interact with each other and how that interaction impacts asset values. The manager identifies six states of the world, each with “high” or “low” ratings for systemic risk and turbulence. In building portfolios, investors need to be cognisant that assets behave differently to each other within those different states. According to Kritzman, in the first part of 2012, systemic risk has come back down. “The first part of 2011, systemic risk judged the markets to be resilient. Then it became relatively fragile, moving up to about a five out of six, but news was positive so market didn’t sell off. Now systemic risk has come back down, and markets are relatively resilient,” he says. To put this into perspective, the global financial crisis was off the scale with a measure more like an eight. Straddling the academic and professional worlds, Kritzman has won prestigious awards, sits on several advisory and editorial boards, and teaches a graduate course in financial engineering at MIT. Original Source: <a href="http://www.top1000funds.com/analysis/2012/03/14/condition-the-condition-you%E2%80%99re-in/">http://www.top1000funds.com/</a> ;

Bruno Crastes launches four new funds

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +1000

The H2O Asset Management firm led by respected French manager Bruno Crastes has announced the launch of four new funds to complete its global macro fund range. The firm has added two new global macro funds to its range, H2O Allegro and H2O Vivace, as well as a global equity fund H2O MultiEquities and a volatility fund named H2O Tempo. Crastes unveiled his first four funds back in March.The H20 Allegro fund will be exposed to global bond and currency markets. It will aim to offer investors a volatility of 5% and an excess return above cash of 4% and will carry a minimum investment period of three years. The H2O Vivace is a slightly different product as it will also invest in the global equity market as well as being exposed to bond and currency markets. It also incurs a higher volatility of 10%, aims for an excess return above cash of 8% and has a minimum investment period of four years. Speaking to Citywire following the announcement, client portfolio manager Marc Maudhuit said current market conditions would work in the group's favour. ‘In my view, looking at what has gone on in April and May, we have seen a reversal in terms of risk aversion. There is now a lot of value to be tapped into from the global markets and you have to adopt a long term stance.’ ‘Today the financial markets offer enough value and diversification for the funds to perform well in the next 12 months.’ The H2O MultiEquities fund, meanwhile, invests in the global equity market but can also diversify into currency. It has an investment horizon of four to five years. Maudhuit said that following the newsflow of the last three months - including the tsunami in Japan and the Middle East uprisings - it was a ‘good time to position ourselves in relation to these events’. The final fund, H2O Tempo, is a volatility fund which seeks to benefit from the volatility of the equity, currency and capital markets. ‘It is rather a pure insurance fund,’ said Maudhuit. ‘This should be added in a global macro allocation and it gives additional downside protection. Every time volatility goes up in bonds and equity markets, this fund will do extremely well.’

Apostle extends reach into Australian institutional bond market

Mon, 15 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Apostle Asset Management has announced a further mandate for London-based global bond manager, H2O Asset Management. Mercer Investments has awarded H2O  A$100m via a Global Sovereign & Currency mandate.H2O was selected following a manager review and will exist within the same investment objective and portfolio architecture as the previous manager.This mandate from Mercer Investments follows a $270m allocation from Colonial First State’s First Choice multi-manager funds in May.Apostle Director of Sales, Richard Borysiewicz said the H2O investment approach was well regarded by Australian Institutional investors and a good fit with their investment objectives in the current environment.“This is the third H2O mandate we have secured in Australia this year. This is an extremely important development for us and one that we believe establishes the firm’s position in the local market.”Mr Borysiewicz said H2O is also attracting interest in offshore markets.“The AUM at H2O has reached A$ 3.1 billion in just 12 months with eight open-ended funds and ten mandates (three of these mandates are from Australia). We look forward to announcing further investments in the coming months.”H2O AM was launched in July 2010 by Bruno Crastes (CEO) and Vincent Chailley (CIO) (formerly with Amundi Asset Management) in partnership with Natixis Asset Management. With approximately 40 years of combined experience, the firm offers expertise in global fixed income, emerging bond & currency management and global macro alternative management.

Bruno Crastes unveils four new funds

Wed, 16 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Bruno Crastes'boutique, H2O Asset Management, has launched four new global macro funds, and has four more on their way. The four funds which will launch initially are H2O Multibonds, which will be the firm's flagship global bond fund, H2O Patrimoine, H2O Adagio and H2O Moderato. The Multibonds fund will focus on multi-currency global bond management and aim to outperform the broad JPM Government Bond index by 2% a year. H2O Patrimoine, run by CIO and Crastes' former Amundi colleague Vincent Chailley, will focus on flexible diversified management and look to perform a benchmark made up 30% of equities and 70% bonds. The Adagio and Moderato funds, meanwhile, will have no benchmark and look to outperform Eonia while maintaining the lowest possible correlation with markets. The firm is called H2O as Crastes thinks liquidity and transparency are the most important features of successful fund managerment. He says his funds are combining the best features of traditional funds with the best features of hedge funds. 'There are strengths and weaknesses in both the traditional and hedge world, we have tried to combine the strengths of both,' he said on Tuesday morning. 'We have the Ucits compliant style of a traditional fund, with the high watermark of a hedge fund. There are very few macro managers in London who can perform in a Ucits environment.' As well as the four initial fund launches, four more funds are also in the pipeline including a global equity vehicle. Crastes wants to make his new firm the benchmark for global macro investment management, as he explained to Citywire in the video below. Crastes says he will focus on generating 'stable risk adjusted alpha'.  He says those managers who try to create alpha through market calls alone are generating 'very unstable performance and low quality alpha', whereas he thinks other aspects are crucial. 'What makes stable performance is the quality of diversification and the quality of portfolio construction. Diversification is a massive engine of performance. It is as important as searching for value, but also more stable and its success ratio is higher.' He thinks the importance of diversification has been shown up by the market turbulence caused by the Japan disaster. 'No-one could have predicted the earthquake and the tsunami, but the good fund managers will stay steady, and will have diversified their portfolios enough. The only thing that can save your performance in this environment is the quality of your diversification.' He says he is still positive on risk assets, despite events in Japan, and is seeing opportunities in several areas as a result of the turbulence. 'This is the beauty of being diversified, you can make the most of the shock because we have not been hurt too much. Those with all their eggs in the same basket will be washed out.' 'I don't think the world recovery will be derailed by the Japan earthquake,' he said.

Event Driven Strategy

Mon, 09 May 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for the latest white paper by Aurora. It’s a primer on their ‘Event-Driven’ strategy, to which the Aurora Offshore Fund Ltd II held a 13% allocation as at 1 April 2011. To date in 2011, Aurora have observed a significant increase in merger and acquisition activity. Given current valuations and where we are in the economic cycle,  Aurora anticipate event driven opportunities will be a strong driver for returns in 2011.

White Paper: The Global High Yield Opportunity

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link for a White Paper authored by the Loomis Sayles High Yield Portfolio Management team – Matt Eagan, Kathleen Gaffney and Elaine Stokes. The paper looks into: · The evolution of how companies and governments in both developed and developing economies are issuing debt and seeking capital from less traditional sources. · How stricter lending regulations, the on-going sovereign debt crisis in Europe and greater acceptance of global high yield as an asset class have contributed to a disintermediation of the banks by the capital markets. · The growth of increasingly compelling investment opportunities in global high yield markets.

Japan: An Update

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the attached link for a White Paper discussing Loomis Sayles' views on the fallout from the catastrophic events in Japan, offering implications for Japan, the yen, bonds and the global economy.

An Updated Perspective On Japan

Wed, 18 May 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Loomis Sayles providing an update on Japan’s nuclear crisis and looks at the resultant critical variables for the country’s humanitarian effort and industrial recovery.

Not All Bonds Are Created Equal

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by the Loomis Sayles Full Discretion and Multisector Team - Dan Fuss, Kathleen Gaffney, Matthew Eagan & Elaine Stokes – the article asks ‘ If interest rates are heading higher, shouldn’t investors bail out of bonds altogether?’

Five Policy Prescriptions for Europe

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link for a White Paper authored by Tom Fahey, Senior Global Macro Strategist of Loomis Sayles. Entitled ‘Five Policy Prescriptions for Europe’, the paper looks into the viability of the various policy responses to the European debt crisis:·         Fiscal austerity·         Expansion of the ECB’s balance sheet·         Fiscal union·         Restructure or default on sovereign debt·         Exit from Eurozone.

H1:2011 Economy may have been stronger than we thought

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +1000

Click on the attached link for a White Paper authored by Brian Horrigan, PhD, CFA, Chief Economist of Loomis Sayles. The paper looks into the strength/weakness of the US economy during the first half of 2011.

Five Minutes with Lucas Turton, Chief Investment Strategist of Windham Capital Management

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link for a short Q&A Paper titled Five Minutes with Lucas Turton, Chief Investment Strategist of Windham Capital Management. Lucas provides a brief introduction to Windham Capital’s risk management strategies and their success in the current environment amidst the global economic challenges and sustained financial market volatility.

White Paper: Where are we in the Boom/Bust Liquidity Cycle?

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link for a White Paper authored by Thomas Fahey, Associate Director of Macro Strategies at Loomis Sayles. The paper discusses how investors should look around the world and determine which banking systems appear healthy enough to provide elasticity of credit. In many developed markets, there are still major headwinds to a traditional borrowing- and spending-driven recovery. The consumer and public sectors appear less willing or able to leverage their balance sheets to provide that extra boost to growth. Emerging markets, on the other hand, should still have ample room to grow.

Middle East Politics: The Influences on Global Interest Rates, Credit Spreads & Stock Prices

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link below for a White Paper giving Loomis Sayles' views on the current situation in the Middle East.

Duration: Not the Whole Story

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +1100

Click on the link below for a White Paper authored by David Waldman, Vice President, Director of Quantitative Research at Loomis Sayles. This paper is an update on Loomis’ views on the performance of fixed income portfolios, particularly multi-sector global bond portfolios, in a rising interest rate environment. It highlights the importance of understanding not only a portfolio’s duration but how it will react to higher US Treasury yields.

Cogent Study of Institutional Managers Ranks Leaders in Brand Loyalty

Wed, 09 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +1100

According to a newly issued report from Cogent Research, two institutional asset managers, PIMC and Loomis Sayles, lead the field in garnering brand loyalty from their current clients.  The two firms, occupying opposite ends of the AUM spectrum, topped a field of 23 institutional managers measured on brand loyalty in Cogent’s inaugural study, Institutional Investor Brandscape™. The report is based on a representative sampling of nearly 600 senior-level institutional investment professionals at pensions, endowments and foundations. Across 10 individual aspects of client experience, PIMCO and Loomis wrestle for top billing on most attributes, including those critical to garnering loyalty: investment performance, investment philosophy and investment team.  Vanguard handily outperforms all other managers on fees, while State Street Global Advisors takes the lead in satisfying its customers in the area of relationship management. Christy White, Principal at Cogent, observed, "As we come off a period where fixed income captured a proportionally larger share of institutional assets, PIMCO and Loomis Sayles stood out as best in class in capturing the loyalty of their clients.  They're very different firms but both were apparently successful in satisfying their clients' needs." Placing third overall in the asset manager loyalty is Vanguard, which appears to be rapidly building its reputation among institutional clients. The rise of Vanguard in the institutional market is consistent with findings in another research study released by Cogent in the 401(k) market where Vanguard also ranked near the top in terms of provider brand loyalty among DC plan sponsors (Cogent Planscape Study 2010™). White further notes that Vanguard is emerging as a top-tier institutional player. “Vanguard’s success in moving its brand upstream into the institutional market is yet another sign of changing times where a high quality but low-cost value proposition can generate strong brand momentum.” The survey was conducted among a representative sampling of 590 institutional investors with more than $20 million in investable assets. The survey segments data by Pension investors (including Public, Private and Taft-Hartley DB plans) and Non-Profit investors (including Endowments, Foundations and Tax-Exempt Organizations). Institutional Asset Manager Loyalty Rankings Cogent Research Institutional Investor Brandscape™ PIMCO    1 Loomis, Sayles & Company       2 Vanguard       3 Dodge & Cox       4 State Street Global Advisors       5 Wellington Management Company       6 T. Rowe Price       7 Morgan Stanley Investment Management    8 Lord Abbett       9 Western Asset Management Company 10 Northern Trust Investments     11 BlackRock     12 Franklin Templeton Investments     13 UBS Global Asset Management    14 Wells Capital Management     15 Janus Capital     16 Neuberger Berman     17 J.P. Morgan Asset Management     18 MFS Investment Management     19 BNY Mellon Cash Investment Strategies    20 Goldman Sachs Asset Management     21 Capital Guardian Trust Company     22 AllianceBernstein     23 About Cogent Research:Cogent Research helps clients gain clarity, obtain perspective, and formulate direction on critical business issues. Founded in 1996, Cogent provides custom research, syndicated research products, and evidence-based consulting to leading organizations in the financial services, life sciences, and consumer goods industries. Through quality research, advanced analytics, and deep industry knowledge, Cogent Research delivers data-driven solutions and strategies that enable clients to better understand customers, define products, and shape market opportunities in order to increase revenues and grow the value of their products and brands.