we can offer sophisticated, actively managed
solutions to all our clients regardless of portfolio size
As a licensed Portfolio Manager across Canada for over 25 years, we manage investment risk and enhance returns through active, discretionary management. This allows us to respond quickly as market conditions change and take advantage of opportunities as they present themselves.
BENEFITS TO INVESTORS
In-house and third-party money managers offering a variety of investment solutions designed to meet different risk tolerances and objectives.
Working directly with a trusted advisor with access to financial, tax, estate and insurance planning services with a focus on Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Preservation and Tax Minimization.
Separately managed accounts offering customized investment solutions with active and passive portfolio styles.
Regular updates on market outlook, expectations and actions as well as direct, online access to performance reports and account statements.
A long and well-documented track-record with a diversified blend of investment styles.
Straightforward and competitive fee structure.
what makes us different
Discretionary Portfolio Management
Stock markets go through cycles that have different psychological and emotional effects on investors. Unlike many advisors, Croft Financial Group Portfolio Managers are licensed to use a discretionary trading approach backed by a combination of qualifications and experience.
Discretionary trading authority allows a Portfolio Manager to buy and sell investments in a client account without obtaining their specific consent, bound by their duty to act in the best interest of each client. By not having to get client authorization prior to every trade the Portfolio Manager can manage risk and take advantage of opportunities for all clients without delay.
Why This Matters To You
Our Portfolio Managers can manage risk and take advantage of opportunities swiftly to outperform during market declines. All clients are treated fairly by receiving the same execution price regardless of account size (bulk trading) as trading decisions are made to manage risk or take advantage of an opportunity within each investment model.
Advisors who do not have the ability to act with discretion have an inherent conflict of interest. If a non-discretionary advisor wants to sell a specific investment, they are required to contact each client prior to making the trade. This means that each client may receive significantly different trade execution prices. The conflict arises when the advisor makes the decision as to which clients are contacted first. If the investment is declining in value, those clients contacted first will receive a better price than those contacted later.
Investment Fund Manager (IFM)
As a licensed Investment Fund Manager, Croft works with discretionary Portfolio Managers to design and actively manage custom investment funds. Each fund has specific objectives and can be used in combination with one another, as with our two- or three-pool client Mandates, or independently as a holding in a diversified portfolio of third party funds or as part of a separately managed account.
These different funds enable our Portfolio Managers to manage more actively and tactically, as well as implement option strategies more efficiently.
Investment Review Committee (IRC)
The Investment Review Committee (IRC) is responsible for all investment decisions. While one Portfolio Manager is responsible for the research, each strategy overlay and security that is added or deleted from a portfolio must be vetted by the IRC.
The result – all key investment decisions at Croft benefit from review and input by a team of well-qualified professionals.
We are accredited
across Canada:
step 5
IMPLEMENT
We put the plan into action, setting up the appropriate investment accounts, investing assets in the agreed upon portfolios, setting up contribution and withdrawal requirements and making sure your insurance policies are in place as needed.
step 6
MONITOR
We monitor your investments, fine tuning your holdings as market conditions change. We communicate regularly to ensure your plan remains up to date as you reach certain milestones and as life circumstances change, leading back to DISCOVER.
STEP 1
DISCOVER
We meet with you to identify and understand your unique goals and objectives.
step 2
GATHER DATA
We gather the relevant financial documents and information needed to create a complete picture of your financial universe.
step 3
REVIEW & DISCUSS
We meet with you to discuss the plan and review the proposed investment strategy to make sure it’s right for you and your family.
step 4
ANALYZE & PLAN
We review your total financial picture, assess your needs and bring in specialists as required to build an actionable plan.
our methodology
We take the time to understand your needs
We start with learning about your needs, lifestyle, family, goals and objectives as well as your current financial circumstances by working closely with your advisor. We then build a portfolio that is designed to meet your objectives within your risk tolerance.
We put the plan into action.
Helping you achieve your goals requires vigilance and flexibility. We manage investment portfolios actively, working closely with the you and your advisor to adjust as your life and priorities evolve and the markets change.
STEP 1
DISCOVER
We meet with you to identify and understand your unique goals and objectives.
STEP 2
GATHER DATA
We gather the relevant financial documents and information needed to create a complete picture of your financial universe.
STEP 3
ANALYZE AND PLAN
We review your total financial picture, assess your needs and bring in specialists as required to build an actionable plan.
STEP 4
REVIEW AND DISCUSS
We meet with you to discuss the plan and review the proposed investment strategy to make sure it’s right for you and your family.
STEP 5
IMPLEMENT
We put the plan into action, setting up the appropriate investment accounts, investing assets in the agreed upon portfolios, setting up contribution and withdrawl requirements and making sure your insurance policies are in place as needed.
STEP 6
MONITOR
We monitor your investments, tuning your holdings as conditions change. We communicate regularly to ensure yoru plan remains up to date as you reach certain milestones and as life circumstances change, leading back to DISCOVERY.
A good portfolio is diversified by security, industry and/or asset class. All investment opportunities are vetted by the Investment Review Committee.
We do our research
The IRC reviews primary source information such as annual reports and financial statements to help understand a company’s business model and its position in the industry. Fundamentally we look for growing revenues, sustainable cash flows, increasing margins as well as competitive and unique products, superior brands and dominant market share. With respect to capital allocation, we favour companies with low debt, share buy-back programs and a history of dividend growth and acquisitions.
Using our proprietary screening methods, we seek out companies with characteristics that have been associated with alpha (market outperformance) in the past. As active managers we also take ideas from pure factor plays such as momentum, value, quality, low volatility and yield. Since the factors that may contribute to alpha change over time along with the macroeconomic environment, we also monitor the financial markets and where we are at in the business cycle for different conditions that may enhance or detract from our current screens.
Having selected one or more good candidates for investment, we review reports and key data to determine what the market’s consensus is on a stock. The timing and tactics of the IRC’s investment decision then depends on relative valuations to ensure we are paying a good price, technical analysis to assess relative volatility and the timing of trade execution, and the probability of a good target return of a type and period suited to the individual fund(s) or portfolio(s) selected.
We tactically manage risk
We believe clients prefer lower volatility portfolios, therefore we:
• Actively manage our portfolios
• Employ alternative strategies to harvest capital gains and reduce risk
The strategies that Croft implements for all clients are typically only available to high-net-worth investors:
• We consider cash as a position
• We implement hedging strategies using options
• We implement defensive and income generating strategies using options
• We implement defensive security selection techniques
We react quickly to changing market conditions and seize opportunities when presented using strategies few other mainstream portfolio managers have the expertise or experience to use.
We are disciplined and our investment process is designed to evolve with the market. Our Investment Review Committee meets several times per week and takes multiple perspectives into consideration. This team approach ensures management decisions are well thought out and vetted through an ongoing, consistent process.
We tactically manage risk
We tactically manage risk
We believe clients prefer lower volatility portfolios, therefore we:
• Actively manage our portfolios
• Employ alternative strategies to harvest capital gains and reduce risk
The strategies that Croft implements for all clients are typically only available to high-net-worth investors:
• We consider cash as a position
• We implement hedging strategies using options
• We implement defensive and income generating strategies using options
• We implement defensive security selection techniques
We react quickly to changing market conditions and seize opportunities when presented using strategies few other mainstream portfolio managers have the expertise or experience to use.
We are disciplined and our investment process is designed to evolve with the market. Our Investment Review Committee meets several times per week and takes multiple perspectives into consideration. This team approach ensures management decisions are well thought out and vetted through an ongoing, consistent process.
We invest with a market cycle mindset
We believe that knowing where we are within the current market cycle is one of the greatest predictors, or influencers of what the market is likely to do in the future. At Croft, we look for market extremes, as this knowledge can help us increase or decrease our aggressiveness or defensiveness in a timely fashion.
What’s your Risk Tolerance?
At Croft, we build portfolios based on three typical investor profiles, each with its own unique character. No matter what profile suits you best, we design a plan to meet your personalized objectives, against which we compare how well your particular asset mix is performing.
investor profiles
CONSERVATIVE INVESTORS
CONSERVATIVE INVESTORS want a low-risk income-producing portfolio. They lean toward investments that provide regular returns, even if these returns are low. While others dream of wealth when they invest, conservative investors are motivated by the dread of poverty. Protection of principal is paramount.
We often find retired investors in this category. Either they are building a portfolio for estate planning purposes or they are drawing an income to supplement their living standard. The generally accepted asset mix for a conservative income investor is 20% cash, 50% fixed income, and 30% equity.
BALANCED INVESTORS
BALANCED INVESTORS pay attention to the income side of their portfolio, although generally it is not considered a critical supplement to their standard of living. Often, the balanced investor will simply reinvest the portfolio’s income stream, effectively dollar-cost averaging their investment program.
Balanced investors understand that financial security depends on some growth being attained within the portfolio. To that end, they will spend a great deal of time understanding how much return is required to meet their long-range objectives. They often set more reasonable goals that for the most part can be attained with their investment style. The generally accepted asset mix for a balanced investor is 10% cash, 40% fixed income, and 50% equity.
GROWTH INVESTORS
GROWTH INVESTORS are not at all concerned about income. Usually, they have a long time horizon and often a sizable net worth. The objective is to maximize the potential growth within the portfolio, taking reasonable risks.
Growth investors have an appreciation for the trade-off between risk and return, and are willing to assume higher levels of risk if it results in better performance. The generally accepted asset mix for growth investors is 10% cash, 20% fixed income, and 70% equity.
We believe that each investor deserves a personalized asset mix that can be accommodated by fine tuning the weightings within our three profiles. Our Real World Indexes provide you with a reasonable benchmark against which compare how well your particular asset mix is performing.
PORTFOLIOS DESIGNED TO MEET ALL CLIENT NEEDS
At Croft Financial Group we harness the expertise and experience of in-house and third-party money managers to deliver a variety of investment solutions designed to meet different client risk tolerances and objectives on one platform.
Increase your business efficiencies and limit your administrative and compliance burdens without limiting your clients access to a variety of investment solutions.
All Star Managers Global Select Portfolio Series
Multi Manager Approach using third-party funds vetted by the Croft Financial Group Investment Committee (IRC) and optimized to meet specific risk and return objectives.
The objective of our All-Star Managers Global Select Portfolio Series is to gain global equity and income exposure using a multi- manager approach by strategically selecting mutual funds that meet specific criteria. The IRC places emphasis on long-term equity capital gains, a long-term track record of outperformance, diversity between managers in exploiting a variety of market inefficiencies and opportunities across asset classes and sectors worldwide using active management. This structure can potentially mitigate against the risk of investing in one manager who may underperform in any given year
Four investment mandates available designed to meet client specific risk tolerances and objectives:
- Conservative
- Balanced Income
- Balanced Growth
- Growth
Canadian Focused Global Select Portfolio Series
Multi Manager Approach using third-party funds vetted by the Croft Financial Group Investment Committee (IRC) and optimized to meet specific risk and return objectives.
The Canadian Focused Global Select Portfolios are a series of diversified model portfolios that may utilize both Active and Passive funds and/or ETFs tied to the individual risk tolerances and return needs of investors. The portfolios employ a multi-manager approach, providing access to a wide variety of investment styles and methodologies, and thereby reducing the risk of investing with one manager who may underperform in any given year. R N Croft Financial Group (CFG) is the investment manager responsible for the selection of the underlying funds and managers, and the optimization of the individual fund weightings within each portfolio.
The objective of the Canadian Focused Global Select Mandates are to provide Canadian investors with a globally diversified Canadian dollar portfolio that meets their risk tolerances and investment goals.
Four investment mandates available designed to meet client specific risk tolerances and objectives:
- Conservative
- Balanced Income
- Balanced Growth
- Growth
GAInS FPX ETF Portfolio Series
Passive ETF Portfolios optimized to track the *Financial Post FPX benchmarks.
The objective of the GAInS FPX Portfolio Series Mandate is to provide Canadian investors with a simple, low-cost, investable ETF portfolio that effectively tracks the performance of its Financial Post FPX benchmark*, which is a broad, globally-balanced Canadian dollar portfolio that has shown consistent capital gains biased investment appreciation since its 1997 inception. As such, the GAInS FPX Portfolio Series combines selected global equity and income producing assets to enhance overall gains, and is best suited to risk-tolerant investors who are focused on building their investment assets and have a long time horizon before they may need to withdraw any funds. To achieve this objective, the GAInS FPX ETF Portfolios hold broadly traded, low-cost ETFs in fixed, strategic proportions, which are rebalanced up to monthly when cash is invested or divested, or at least annually on or before March 31st.
Three investment mandates available designed to meet client specific risk tolerances and objectives:
- FPX Income
- FPX Balanced
- FPX Growth
GAInS ESG ETF Portfolio Series
Passive ETF Portfolios optimized to track the *Financial Post FPX benchmarks using only ETF investments highly ranked against recognized Environmental, Social & Governance criteria.
The GAInS ESG ETF Portfolio Series is designed to provide Canadian investors with a simple, diversified and low-cost ETF portfolio that optimizes performance using only ETF investments highly ranked against recognized Environmental, Social & Governance criteria. Portfolio performance is tracked against the Financial Post FPX benchmarks*, which is a broad, globally balanced Canadian dollar model portfolio that has shown enhanced capital protection and reliable returns since its 1997 inception. The GAInS ESG Portfolios hold ETFs that use ESG screening in their index construction methodology or have a four or five globe Sustainalytics ranking. The fixed income asset class will contain ESG screened ETFs or government bond ETFs. The equity asset class will contain ESG screened ETFs or ETFs with a four or five globe Sustainalytics ranking.
Three investment mandates available deigned to meet client specific risk tolerances and objectives:
- ESG Conservative
- ESG Balanced
- ESG Growth
Shariah Global Select Portfolio Series
Multi Manager Approach using third-party funds vetted by the Croft Financial Group Investment Committee (IRC) and optimized to meet specific risk and return objectives.
The Shariah Global Select Portfolios are a series of diversified model portfolios that may utilize both Active and Passive mutual funds and/or ETFs tied to the individual risk tolerances and return needs of Shariah-compliant investors.
The objective of the Shariah Global Select Mandates is to provide Canadian investors with a globally diversified Canadian dollar portfolio that only uses Shariah-compliant investment products that have passed several screens for permissible asset classes and business activities and have been deemed Shariah compliant by an applicable Shariah advisory committee.
Islamic religious law, commonly known as Shariah, encourages people to invest in a socially responsible way and has certain restrictions regarding finance and commercial activities permitted by Muslims. These restrictions, including prohibited industries and those against charging or paying interest, reduce the size of the overall universe in which the Portfolio may invest and may limit investment opportunities, especially in comparison to a more diversified portfolio.
These portfolios are designed not only for investors who might be looking for halal exposure, but for any investor who is seeking a value-focused portfolio as well as those who are seeking to avoid over-leveraged companies.
Two investment mandates available designed to meet client specific risk tolerance and objectives:
- Growth
- Balanced Growth
Enhanced CFG Mandates
Actively managed, options overlay, long term track record.
The objective of an Enhanced CFG Mandate is to achieve better risk adjusted returns than a passive, low-cost, diversified portfolio benchmark (The FPX Real-World Index). These Mandates aim to achieve this objective by holding in client accounts a combination of tactically managed CFG CPC Share Classes (Pools) weighted to meet the specific objectives of the Mandate. Croft Financial Group will rebalance back to target at least annually. In addition, rebalancing takes place within each Share Class (Pool) and may take place within the Mandate on a more frequent basis to manage market risk, take advantage of market opportunity, and manage cash positions.
This diversified approach is designed to provide access to a wide variety of investment styles and methodologies, thereby reducing the risk of investing with one manager/style which may underperform in any given year. R N Croft Financial Group (CFG) is the investment manager responsible for the selection of the underlying Share Classes, and the optimization of the individual Share Class weightings within each portfolio.
Four investment mandates available designed to meet client specific risk tolerances and objectives:
- Enhanced Conservative
- Enhanced Balanced – Income
- Enhanced Balanced Growth
- Enhanced Growth
Croft Separately Managed Account (SMA) Solution ($1MN plus)
For relationships with $1 Million or more of investable assets, SMA portfolios hold a combination of high conviction securities and specialized pools, designed for tax efficiency.
Croft SMA solutions offer a tailored approach to investing that considers the unique needs of each investor. With an SMA, individual investors directly hold a high-conviction selection of stocks, bonds and option strategies along with our specialized pools in their Investment accounts.
The Croft SMA solution provides access to a comprehensive range of options, where the investors can pursue a diversified investment strategy – while benefiting from the ability to manage tax implications and liquidity.
