About Us

Natcan Investment Management provides asset management services to institutional clients, in addition to mutual funds and private wealth portfolio management. With close to $25 billion in assets under management and more than 45 investment professionals in its Montreal and Toronto offices, Natcan is considered an important portfolio management firm in Canada. Natcan offers a diversified and comprehensive range of products across all global markets and multiple investment styles. Our highly disciplined and rigorous risk-management approach focuses on fundamental analyses, an approach all of our investment managers implements with utter conviction and unrivaled integrity.

Mission

Since its inception, Natcan's success has been rooted in quality investment product offerings, under the watchful eye of highly qualified and motivated investment professionals. We attend to our clients’ assets across multiple asset classes and investment styles in order to best meet the specific needs of both institutional and retail investors. Supported by impeccable client service and reliable operations management utilizing cutting-edge technologies, we are determined to stay the course of this business strategy, and ensure our future growth by broadening the array of asset classes and investment styles we bring to the marketplace. A strong commitment to the highest standards of ethics permeates all activities of the firm as we strive to maintain an organizational structure where the best interests of our clients, employees, and shareholders are in equilibrium.

Background

Natcan’s beginnings coincide with National Bank of Canada’s (the “Bank”) acquisition of Lévesque Beaubien Geoffrion, a securities broker, in 1990, which led to the restructuring of its portfolio management activities and a desire to provide portfolio management services to external institutional clients. As such, a new distinct affiliate was created: Natcan Investment Management. In 1993, when the Bank acquired General Trust, it merged that company’s portfolio management division, Gentrust Investment Counsellors, with Natcan.

With its comprehensive and innovative range of investment products contributing to a rapid increase in client assets, Natcan has grown steadily over the years to become one of Canada’s leading investment managers.

Legal and Organizational Structure

Natcan is a subsidiary of the National Bank of Canada subsidiary and a distinct legal entity, 14% of which held by its senior management team. Natcan Investment Management Inc. is legally incorporated under Part 1-A of the Quebec Companies Act, and registered with the securities commissions of all Canadian jurisdictions where the Company exercises its activities.

The Company employs over one hundred employees, including more than 40 investment professionals. Our managers and analysts focus on portfolio management while administrative, compliance, and risk management responsabilities are carried out by teams assisting managers in their daily portfolio management tasks.

The operations sector is responsible for daily reconciliations and monitoring transactions with the trustees, and the validation of monthly performance calculations for all accounts. The distribution sector is made up of investment professionals who ensure immaculate client servicing, business development, and communications.

Management Philosophy

We look at capital markets from a  global perspective. Our management style is based on fundamental analyses and capital preservation. We are patient investors; we trust that quality companies trading at attractive prices will yield better results over time. We believe it is as important to avoid disaster as it is to hold winning securities, and we seek to diversify our sources of value added by seizing opportunities across all sectors, even the most mature of securities.

Our managers are well-known for their discipline and ability to manage risk. Our contrarian approach highlights the strength of our management team’s unified convictions.

Compliance

Natcan has an implemented compliance program to ensure the Company meets all compliance challenges of the investment management industry, to promote and enforce an ethical culture and professional standards, and to ensure its compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.

The Firm complies with the rigorous standards of one of Canada’s most important public corporations, the National Bank of Canada, and is duly registered with securities commissions of all Canadian jurisdictions where it exercises its activities. Natcan also complies with the CFA Institute's Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct as well as with the National Bank of Canada’s Code of Professional Conduct and Rules of Conduct for Dealers, Traders, Portfolio Managers and Registered Representatives.

Furthermore, Natcan has deemed appropriate to adopt its own Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct in light of the firm’s professional and legal responsibility in connection with its investment management activities.

In July 2003, Natcan made a strategic investment decision to purchase the license for LatentZero’s Sentinel software, the world's leading compliance management system. With this system, Natcan can monitor all of its clients’ investment policies, constraints, and regulatory obligations daily.

Risk Management

Our approach to active risk management emphasizes sector and stock diversification. Our managers strongly believe capital preservation and low absolute volatility are the hallmarks of a sound risk-management approach. As such, our investment philosophy tends to favour Value sectors and stocks and sound financial structures rather than momentum and overpriced situations.

Natcan relies on the expertise of its dedicated risk management group whose responsibilities include the assessment and analysis of risk metrics for each mandate granted to Natcan. With the help of BarraOne, a leading cross-asset class risk and performance management platform, Natcan can measure and analyze its exposure to risk according to different perspectives (sector, country, asset class, etc.) so as to ensure optimal risk budget allocation, in line with client needs, and minimize unintentional risk exposures. This flexible, web-based analysis tool utilizes Barra risk models to disclose reliable information to portfolio managers.

Customer Service

We rely on the superior quality of the services we offer, and on our simple and personal approach to successfully accomplish our management mandates. Each week, we hold a meeting bringing together our investment professionals in order for them to share information regarding the global economic environment and the different actions taken as a result. This meeting allows account managers to remain up to date with the strategies used for their clients’ portfolios.

Each month, our clients receive a management report accompanied by a market commentary. In 2004, Natcan made a major technological investment following the acquisition of the system Eagle PACE™, offered by Eagle Investment Systems Corp. This system allows us to provide critical information in a timely fashion. Monthly reports are uploaded directly onto our Internet Portal, which clients can access securely with a user ID and password. The report provides a performance review, a holdings statement, and a transactions statement, in addition to other reports available.

At the core of this solution is Eagle’s data hub, which has allowed us to offer additional benefits such as improved data analyses, and enhanced performance measurement and reporting capabilities. This investment reinforces our commitment to be at the cutting edge of innovative industry trends to further benefit our clients.

To consult the list of our customer service managers, please visit the Biographies section of the site. You may also obtain the contact information of our distribution group