Abdulai Mohamed: Over the past three years, global stocks have been volatile. And though 2023 started off strong, the market remains unpredictable. In this environment, strategies that claim they can adapt to market conditions are appealing, and one fund that has a history of effectively navigating market conditions is the AGF Global Select Fund (AGF808).
The fund's portfolio manager, Tony Genua, focuses on industry leaders that gain market share from their rivals but also tries to rotate toward those profiting from market trends. Market rotation is challenging, and though AGF Global Select stumbled in 2022's fourth quarter, it has a long and impressive track record of shifting its portfolio according to market conditions. Its returns ranked first in its Global Equity Morningstar category over 3, 5 and 10 years through January 31, 2023.
AGF Global Select's success highlights three crucial lessons.
- First, a dynamic investment strategy does not necessarily require high turnover or trading. The fund's 57% annual turnover rate is in the highest third of the Canadian Global Equity Morningstar category but implies a nearly two-year holding period.
- Second, it's hard to be flexible and successful without thorough research, a disciplined approach and focus on high-quality investments.
- Third, experience matters when you're picking and choosing stocks. Genua and his 27-member strong team have decades of combined experience, and the team has suffered no departures in five years.
Overall, this strategy has demonstrated its ability to be nimble and capitalize on market trends. This is a rare fit in any environment. The fund is not for neophytes, but it's worth considering.
For Morningstar, I'm Abdulai Mohamed.