October 26, 2005 Source: St. Mary's University:
http://www.smu.ca/newsreleases/2005/10-26-2005.html Feel the IMPACT This past weekend the IMPACT Program of the Sobey School of Business held its first annual Portfolio Management Workshop "kick-off" weekend at Saint Mary’s University. The weekend allowed the student participants in the IMPACT Program the opportunity to listen to a series of talks on various aspects of money management delivered by practicing investment professionals from both Halifax and Toronto. A Friday evening reception also allowed the students the chance to meet the speakers and other mentors from the Halifax investment community in a more informal setting. Overall, the weekend provided students with a rare opportunity to have close contact with, and learn from, a group of high level investment professionals. The primary purpose of the IMPACT Program is to provide an elite group of students from the Sobey School of Business at Saint Mary’s University with practical, real world experience in money management. In particular, student participants in the Program make all investment decisions for the IMPACT Fund with significant input and advice from both Sobey Faculty and mentors from the investment community. The activities of the program are regulated by the IMPACT Charter, as well as by the student-developed Investment Policy Statement. In all duties, students are held to high professional standards of conduct. The fund has performed exceptionally since its operational inception of March 28, 2005 and as of the end of September it was out-performing its benchmark by over 140 basis points, and had earned a return of over 12.75% during the previous six-month period. The weekend events went exceedingly well and it surpassed expectations. Friday’s sessions were hosted by four highly regarded investment professionals from the local business community. Craig Prall, CFA, of RBC Investments discussed the portfolio management process as well as the Chartered Financial Analyst program. Geoff Appleby, CFA, of Seamark Asset Management delivered a talk centered on issues in performance measurement. After a short break, a session led by Jonathan Norwood, CFA, of Rudderham Norwood Ellison Investment Counsel (a Saint Mary's Alumnus - Bcomm '96), covered stock selection strategies used by his firm. To end the first day, Ross Hallett, CFA, of BMO Nesbitt Burns (a Saint Mary's alumnus - MBA 1977) discussed the importance of ethics in the capital markets, covering both the corporate and investment advisor perspectives. Saturday’s sessions were hosted by four portfolio managers currently working in Toronto including: David Sykes, CFA, of TD Asset Management Inc. (a Saint Mary’s Alumnus - BA and Bcomm '94), Paul Kapsos, CFA, of AMI Partners Inc. Investment Counsel, Matthew Baillie, CFA, of Sceptre Investment Counsel Ltd., and Alfred Samson, CFA, of AIM Trimark Investments. Sykes and Kapsos both discussed practical, real world examples of stock analysis and valuation, while Baillie and Samson discussed income trusts and the fixed income market, respectively. All of the speakers did an exceptional job and the students found the sessions to be very useful and informative, commenting on the high quality of the presentations. In return, as a group, the speakers were very impressed with the students and made numerous comments throughout the weekend about the students’ knowledge, professionalism and dedication. Additional information and updates regarding the IMPACT program can be obtained by contacting the program co-directors Greg MacKinnon or Sean Cleary, CFA, at: greg.mackinnon@smu.ca or sean.cleary@smu.ca, or by visiting the IMPACT website, which is located at: http://www.smu.ca/academic/sobey/Impact/ Saint Mary's University is known for its community outreach projects, both in Canada and around the world. Saint Mary's, founded in 1802, is home to one of Canada's leading business schools, a Science Faculty widely known for its cutting-edge research, a comprehensive and innovative Arts Faculty and a new Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. -30- For More Information: Paul Fitzgerald
Public Affairs Officer
Saint Mary's University, Public Affairs
(902) 420.5514
E-mail: paul.fitzgerald@smu.ca
www.smu.ca
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