Builders Fund

June 30, 2023

Fund Overview

  • The Builders Fund is a fund-of-funds that invests mainly in Steadyhand’s four stand-alone equity funds — Steadyhand Equity Fund, Steadyhand Global Equity Fund, Steadyhand Small-Cap Equity Fund, and Steadyhand Global Small-Cap Equity Fund. Its an all-stock portfolio designed for growth-oriented investors.
  • The underlying fund mix is managed by Chief Investment Officer Salman Ahmed, with Chair and co-founder Tom Bradley as co-manager.

Portfolio Specifics

  • The fund has gained 7.8% so far in 2023. Its performance is ahead of the Canadian market but behind the broad global index.
  • Investments are allocated roughly 1/3 towards companies based in Canada and 2/3 towards foreign businesses. The bias to foreign companies reflects a broader opportunity set outside of Canada, particularly in important industries like healthcare, technology, and consumer products and services.
  • The largest area of investment, industrial goods & services (33% of the portfolio), includes a diverse mix of companies such as railways CN Rail and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Rentokil (pest control), Saab (aerospace, defence, and radar specialist) and Savaria (home elevators and mobility products). Many holdings in the sector have performed well in 2023 after a challenging 2022.
  • Financial services companies make up 17% of the fund. Large holdings are Visa, TD Bank, and S&P Global. We also own a group of leading insurance companies, including RenaissanceRe, AIA Group, and Steadfast. CME Group (derivatives marketplace), Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (global financial services), FirstCash Holdings (pawn stores), and St. James’s Place (asset management) provide additional diversification.
  • The technology sector is another important area of investment, comprising 11%. Our focus is on established industry leaders. Microsoft is our largest holding and is owned in both the Equity and Global Equity Funds. Other investments include Samsung Electronics (diversified technology), Qualcomm (chips for smartphones and high-tech devices), Synaptics (human interface hardware and software), and Adobe (software).
  • The portfolio has some exposure to commodity stocks (7%), including Franco-Nevada (gold), Interfor (lumber), Cameco (uranium), Hudbay Minerals (copper and zinc), and TotalEnergies (oil & gas), but resource companies represent a smaller component of the fund due to their inherent cyclicality.

Positioning

  • Refer to the underlying funds for details on their positioning.

Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund investments. Important information about the Steadyhand funds is contained in our Simplified Prospectus. Please read the prospectus before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently, and past performance may not be repeated.