Katie Nixon: Say What You Mean, and Mean What You Say

Advisors spend about 25 hours a week on investment functions, cutting into time for finding new clients and building holistic financial plans for current clients. Not to mention time for today’s increasingly complex fiduciary responsibilities. Here’s how multi-asset strategies can help.

Current macroeconomic circumstances combined with exceptional asset performance over the past decade are lowering return expectations going forward. This context will make it challenging for pension funds, insurance companies and other liabilities managers to achieve their returns objectives with a traditional core/satellite approach.

Join our webinar where Michael Hunstad, PhD, Head of Quantitative Strategies and Jordan Dekhayser, CFA, Head of Quantitative Equity Research and Strategy will explore the following three topics that take another look at portfolio construction:

- Factors at the Core
Efficiently designed factor-based strategies are ideal for the core of a portfolio because they may provide higher returns than a pure passive portfolio for a modest amount of active risk, resulting in a considerably higher information ratio.

- The Tracking Error Challenge
Calibrating tracking error is crucial to target higher returns while mitigating the probability of underperformance. Staying disciplined during inevitable cyclical drawdowns is harder than it sounds but well worth it in the long run.

- Multi-Factor Portfolios
Because style factors are prone to sustained periods of underperformance, combining different factors that are unique drivers of return can help smooth down the cycles. We will look at the most efficient multi-factor strategies and how they help meet investors’ specific objectives.

Presented by:
- Michael Hunstad, PhD, Head of Quantitative Strategies, Northern Trust Asset Management
- Jordan Dekhayser, CFA, Head of Quantitative Equity Research and Strategy, Northern Trust Asset Management

Moderated by:
- Brendan Maton, IPE

There have been more than 48 large volatility shocks since 2007*, and this pattern is unlikely to change. Institutions around the globe are finding themselves in a unique market environment as a result of seismic shifts in market fundamentals, central banks lowering interest rates and questionable quantitative easing programs. Government agencies continue to use these levers in a manner that is unsustainable – making volatility more prevalent and unpredictable than ever before.

Join Michael Hunstad, Ph.D., Head of Quantitative Strategies and Jordan Dekhayser, CFA, Head of Quantitative Equity Research and Strategy, as they discuss key approaches to help capitalize on the new age of portfolio risks:

• Uncover the common pitfalls in traditional portfolio de-risking methods
• What to look for in low volatility investment strategies (spoiler alert, it’s not just lower beta exposures)
• Potential changes to your passive core portfolio that will strengthen your active satellite

*Volatilty shocks greater than 5 points. Volatility increases are represented by any increase in the VIX daily, as of December 31, 2018.

Note: By registering for this webinar, you agree to share your contact information with, and be contacted by, Northern Trust Asset Management.

All eyes are on the U.S. Federal Reserve this week. While most investors expect an interest rate cut, recent Fed communication has reflected some lack of consensus on the magnitude. Katie Nixon takes a closer look.

Most active managers underperformed their benchmarks in the first half of 2019. The media has chalked this underperformance up to shoddy sources of alpha and overbought investment strategies. We feel this view is short sighted. Head of Quantitative Strategies Michael Hunstad explains.

We think strong signals from the credit markets should offset the concerns about the slope of the yield curve. Chief Investment Strategist Jim McDonald explains.

As we sit at market highs, and at the beginning of earnings season, Katie Nixon takes a look at what may drive markets higher going forward.

Central banks across the world have either started easing monetary policy or signaled they will do so soon. We believe this is the advent of a global easing cycle. Chief Investment Strategist EMEA & APAC Wouter Sturkenboom explains.

Short-term rates were unchanged last week by the Federal Open Market Committee. We think this was a missed opportunity for the Fed to get in front of the market. Peter Yi, director of short duration fixed income, explains.

Global growth obstacles are rising as trade tensions build, but we expect lower U.S. interest rates to help soften the blow. Chief Investment Strategist Jim McDonald explains.

Global bond markets are screaming right now, driving interest rates down with the hopes of capturing the attention of central bankers. Katie Nixon explains.

We are seeing a strong negative return skew for the first time since October 2018. Investors should come to expect the negative skew and prepare accordingly. Head of Quantitative Strategies Michael Hunstad explains

Value stock returns have been lagging growth stocks for a number of years, leading to mixed performance for investors. Our experts discuss the need for valuation models to evolve to deal with secular trends in the economy and industry sectors to effectively capture the Value factor.

As sustainable investing becomes increasingly important to investors, we will also dive deeper into the performance drivers of ESG strategies.


Key topics:

-Capturing the Value Premium in the "New" Economy
-Breaking down ESG Performance
-Factor Valuations and Forecasts

The historical outperformance of select factors has piqued the interest of advisors. But as with anything new, sometimes it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. We set the record straight, in 60 seconds.

Over the long-term, select factors have demonstrated outperformance versus the broad equity market. But, as with any investing, factors go through cycles. Based on our research, we quantify the cycles and offer tips on dealing with them, in 60 seconds.

This time we will be examining in-detail how the world’s largest asset owners are using multi-factor portfolio construction to overcome the twin challenges of slow economic growth and market volatility.



Some key points we will address during the webcast:



- Identifying key portfolio risks: sector concentrations, interest rate sensitivity and hidden risks you may not be aware of


- Examining real world portfolios: completion strategies and multi-factor construction techniques
- Positioning your portfolio for success: factor performance across various market environments



Note: By registering for this webcast, you agree to have your contact information shared with Northern Trust Asset Management.

Despite concerns about U.S.-China trade frictions and mixed economic data, global growth resilience continues to drive U.S. high-yield bonds, U.S. equities and global REITs forward.

U.S.-China trade negotiations took a turn for the worse over the last week, as the U.S. further increased tariffs and the Chinese retaliated. Chief Investment Strategist Jim McDonald explains what this means for investors.

Global growth is showing signs of revival, allowing for the prospect of a growth surprise to the upside, especially in Europe and Asia. Chief Investment Strategist EMEA & APAC Wouter Sturkenboom explains: