RBC Global Asset Management conducts ongoing research into global trends and developments that may influence our clients’ investment experience. Below are a few of our recent thought leadership publications.

Investment Strategy Considerations for Inflation - Sensitive Investors

The United States, along with many developed economies, has enjoyed relatively stable inflation during much of the past two decades. However, the unprecedented fiscal and monetary response by governments globally (to combat the recent credit crisis) increases the potential for a return to an era of higher inflation.
Read More (View in PDF)

Capital Structure Engineering – The Use of Leverage to Enhance Shareholder Returns

In this article, RBC Global Asset Management U.S. questions the assumption that that a share repurchase program is an essential tool in providing value to shareholders. We analyze 1) the extent to which share repurchase programs have added to or detracted from enterprise value, and 2) the impact that use of leverage had on value creation or destruction. Our hypothesis was that balance sheet engineering through a share repurchase program destroyed value for the corporation. The importance of capital structure has been the subject of an extensive amount of research, so we begin with a brief review of the literature.
Read More (View in PDF)

Economically Targeted Investing – Capitalizing on Opportunities in Emerging Domestic Markets

This article written for RBC GAM’s U.S. audience and provides an overview of what it means to invest in economically underserved areas of that economy.

Read More (View in PDF)

Foreign Content in Institutional Portfolios

Historical evidence shows that Canadian investors can expect to achieve higher returns and/or less risk by increasing their holdings of foreign securities; yet since the elimination of the Foreign Property Rule in 2005, there has been no mad rush by institutional investors to increase foreign content in tax-preferred funds. In this article, PH&N considers optimal foreign content allocations (equities and bonds) in Canadian institutional portfolios with defined future cash flows (e.g., pension plans and endowments); and further explores whether any or all of the foreign content allocation should be hedged back into Canadian dollars. The article concludes with a checklist to assist trustees and other fiduciaries looking at these issues in relation to their own situation.
Read More (View in PDF)

Private Equity – An Overview

This paper considers private equity from the vantage point of a Canadian institutional investor, including a look at the unique aspects of this asset class, its return and risk characteristics, issues that fiduciaries should consider and, lastly, some interesting recent developments in the broader private equity realm. Although primarily intended for the Trustees of pension plans or endowments, the paper also provides background information for other types of investors.
Read More (View in PDF)