What are we looking for?
Small- and mid-cap U.S. equity funds that have performed well.
The screen
With the uncertainty of the U.S. election behind us, Canadian investors can refocus their attention on their financial goals. Today, we turn our efforts to small- and mid-cap stocks in the U.S. markets. The space is a difficult one to manage as an individual investor, given that the volatility of earnings often materializes in fluctuations in stock price (more so than with large caps.) This effect can be offset through diversification, however managing even a concentrated portfolio of small companies requires a good degree of attention. For many, it might make sense to outsource this portion of your portfolio to a fund manager. This said, small- and mid-cap stocks aren’t for everyone.
To find some reasonable ideas within the small- and mid-cap U.S. equity space, I used Morningstar Direct to screen across this category of Canadian-domiciled funds, which consists of roughly 60 options available in Canada.
I screened this universe on two factors: (1) the Morningstar Rating for Funds (or “star” rating), which is an objective look-back of risk-adjusted returns after fees, relative to the other funds in the category, and (2) the Morningstar Medalist Rating, which is our analysts’ assessment of the funds’ people (the tenure, experience and track record of the portfolio managers on the fund); process (the robustness and consistency of the investment process, risk-mitigation strategies and resources available); and parent (the stewardship qualities of the firm providing the fund). Funds that receive a medalist rating of gold, silver or bronze are those that Morningstar predicts will product positive alpha after fees relative to peers.
Only funds that have a star rating of four stars or better and a medalist rating of gold, silver or bronze, were considered in today’s screen.
What we found
The funds that met the above requirements are listed in the accompanying table, along with their MERs, ratings, inception dates, performance and degree of concentration (expressed in the number of holdings in the most recently available portfolio). I’ve also included whether each fund follows an index (denoted by “passive”), is managed by a portfolio manager who has discretion over the portfolio (“active”) or uses a rules-based/systematic investment strategy which grants active exposure to an investment factor (such as dividends, value/growth etc.), but is driven passively (“strategic beta”).
Though the results look quite spectacular over the recent past, it is important to note again the volatility of these types of investments. Investors are urged to consider their ability to take on risk. As an example, those who are at or close to retirement might consider steering clear or allocating a very small portion of their portfolio to volatile investments, while a younger investor who is starting the journey might be able to afford to take on a larger allocation to risky investment.
This article does not constitute financial advice, it is always recommended to conduct one’s own independent research before buying or selling any of the funds mentioned in this article.
Ian Tam, CFA, is director of investment research for Morningstar Canada.
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