US Equity Value Currency Hedged Corporate Class

Transcription

1 This annual management report of fund performance contains financial highlights but does not contain the complete annual financial statements of the investment fund. You can get a copy of the annual financial statements at your request, and at no cost, by calling , by writing to us at United Financial, 2 Queen Street East, Twentieth Floor, Toronto, ON, M5C 3G7 or by visiting our website at or SEDAR at Securityholders may also contact us using one of these methods to request a copy of the investment fund s proxy voting policies and procedures, proxy voting disclosure record, or quarterly portfolio disclosure. INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE AND STRATEGIES The primary investment objective of the US Equity Value Currency Hedged Corporate Class (the Fund ) is to provide maximum long-term capital appreciation primarily through investment in a diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities of U.S. issuers while hedging against changes to the exchange rate between the Canadian and U.S. dollar. Equity-related securities include convertible preferred shares, convertible debt obligations and warrants. The Fund also may invest in other mutual funds. The portfolio advisor uses a large-cap, disciplined value style to meet the objectives of the Fund. The portfolio advisor uses a long-term investment strategy and utilizes a fundamental, bottom-up approach, focusing on companies with low price/earnings multiples and low price-to-book ratios and companies that demonstrate solid earnings growth. The Fund may use derivatives, but only as permitted by securities regulations. In order to earn additional income, it may also enter into securities-lending transactions, repurchase transactions and reverse repurchase transactions, to the extent permitted by securities regulations. The Fund currently achieves its investment objectives by investing all of its assets in US Equity Value Pool (the underlying fund ). RISK The risks associated with investing in this Fund remain as discussed in the prospectus. The Fund is suitable for investors who want a medium-risk investment focused on generating capital growth while hedging against the exchange rate between the Canadian and U.S. dollar and who are investing for the medium and/or long term. RESULTS OF OPERATIONS The net asset value of the Fund decreased by $2.2 million to $43.3 million from March 31, 2017 to March 31, The Fund had net redemptions of $4.6 million during the year. The portfolio s performance increased assets by $4.0 million. The Fund paid distributions totalling $1.6 million. Class E shares returned 7.7% after fees and expenses for the one-year period ended March 31, Over the same time period, the Fund s benchmark returned 14.0%. The benchmark is the S&P 500 Total Return Index. to earnings upgrades based on strong economic activity combined with tax cuts enacted in December 2017, but fell sharply in February 2018 along with a spike in bond yields and the largest increase in volatility since August Stocks tumbled further in March, with the White House announcing tariffs and ratcheting up trade rhetoric, while revelations about Facebook s handling of user data resulted in calls for increased regulation of technology companies and the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) hiked interest rates. The best-performing sectors were information technology and financials. Growth indexes, with their large information technology components, fared better than value indexes. Defensive sectors, including telecommunication services and utilities, had the largest losses. The energy sector also declined more than the broader market. While bond yields rose across the yield curve, the U.S. dollar weakened against most other major currencies on trade concerns and worsening fiscal imbalances. The portfolio posted strong absolute returns but lagged the benchmark. Stock selection was the most significant relative detractor, particularly in the consumer discretionary and information technology sectors. Currency hedging detracted from performance as the Canadian dollar depreciated against the U.S. dollar. Relative underweight positions in the energy and consumer staples sectors, a lack of exposure to the real estate and telecommunication services sectors, and stock selection within the energy sector helped to offset some of the portfolio underperformance. Among the most significant individual relative detractors was Universal Display Corp. After serving as a top performer last year, shares of Universal Display declined despite strong results due to fears about slowing adoption of OLED phones driven by lower-than-anticipated sales of the iphone X. We expect OLED adoption to continue to increase over time, driving strong free cash flow growth. Among the top contributors to relative results was Boeing Company. Boeing s shares moved higher after the company reported fourth quarter revenue and profits that exceeded expectations. The company also provided an upbeat forecast for Investments in PTC Inc., Marvell Technology Group Ltd., Centene Corp., Costco Wholesale Corp., Pfizer Inc., DowDuPont Inc., Bank of The Ozarks, MetLife Inc., Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Eastman Chemical Co. were made during the year. The performance of the Fund s other classes is substantially similar to that of Class E shares, except for differences in fees and expenses structure. For the returns of the Fund s other classes, please refer to the Past performance section. The following commentary pertains to the results of operations of the underlying fund. Stocks rose sharply through the end of 2017 as markets were aided by favourable tax legislation, a synchronized global recovery, and strong corporate results that generally topped Wall Street expectations. Markets got off to a strong start in January 2018 thanks PTC Inc. develops software used in global manufacturing and support. PTC s software is used in computer-aided design (CAD), product lifecycle management (PLM), service lifecycle management (SLM), and the internet of things (IoT). While PTC s core CAD business is mature, it has high renewal rates and should continue to grow at or above global GDP levels. PTC is the leader in IoT development software, a market which is growing rapidly. PTC is beginning to offer subscriptions as an alternative to traditional license sales. While only a portion of customers will move to subscriptions, we expect this to generate higher customer value over time. Marvell Technology Group is a fabless semiconductor provider of high-performance application-specific standard products. CIG

2 Its core strength of expertise is the development of complex System-on-a-Chip (SoC) devices, leveraging its technology portfolio of intellectual property in the areas of analog, mixed-signal, digital signal processing, and embedded and standalone integrated circuits. Centene Corp. offers health care plans to corporations and U.S. government sponsored health care programs. The company primarily focuses on uninsured individuals and helps them access care facilities and social services through government subsidized programs. Centene generates a higher return on equity than its peers through efficient program management and greater business line diversification (Medicare, Medicaid, commercial), yet the shares trade at a discount to peers providing an attractive buying opportunity. The portfolio sold out of investments in CME Group Inc. Class A, PepsiCo Inc., General Electric Co., Procter & Gamble Co., Fidelity National Information Services Inc., McKesson Corp., Oracle Corp., Seagate Technology PLC, F5 Networks Inc., and E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. during the year. After serving as a top contributor earlier this year, shares of Seagate declined after the company reported fiscal third-quarter revenue that was slightly lower than expectations. We opted to sell the portfolio s position in F5 Networks in order to reinvest the proceeds into Marvell Technology, which possesses a stronger risk/reward profile in the near term. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS Growth in the U.S. is especially robust: the labour market is tight, solid domestic demand has helped the production side of the economy pick up, and the recent corporate tax cuts will add an additional boost in the short-term. Europe is experiencing its best growth in a decade and even Japan is growing above trend. Increasing rhetoric and action around U.S. trade policy is a risk to the positive growth backdrop, but it remains to be seen if it will be enough to derail the global economy. Valuation multiples are unlikely to expand much further now that central banks in North America and Europe are moving from quantitative easing to quantitative tightening. Equity returns will instead rely on cash flow growth and dividends. We also expect more frequent bouts of volatility will accompany incrementally higher interest rates and waning liquidity. Volatility could be exacerbated by the shift from active to passive managers and the increased use of systematic strategies that sell on auto pilot. We believe our investment approach is well suited to this environment, where investment returns are more closely linked to company fundamentals. As always, we seek companies that can generate a growing stream of free cash flow and can allocate that cash effectively for the benefit of shareholders. Effective April 3, 2018, Karen Fisher became a member of the CI Board of Governors ( BOG ) and the Independent Review Committee ( IRC ) of the Fund. Meanwhile, Christopher Hopper resigned from the role as a member of the BOG and IRC. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS Manager, Portfolio Advisor and Registrar CI Investments Inc. is the Manager, Portfolio Advisor and Registrar of the Fund. CI Investments Inc. is a subsidiary of CI Financial Corp. The Manager, in consideration for management fees, provided management services required in the day-to-day operations of the Fund. The Manager bears all of the operating expenses of the Fund (other than taxes, borrowing costs and new governmental fees) in return for a fixed administration fee. Management fee and fixed administration fee rates as at March 31, 2018, for each of the classes are shown below: Annual management fee rate (%) Annual fixed administration fee rate (%) E Shares E3 Shares E4 Shares E5 Shares ET8 Shares E3T8 Shares E4T8 Shares E5T8 Shares F Shares F3 Shares F4 Shares F5 Shares FT8 Shares F3T8 Shares F4T8 Shares F5T8 Shares I Shares Paid directly by investor - IT8 Shares Paid directly by investor - The Manager received $0.5 million in management fees and $0.1 million in fixed administration fees for the year. Management Fees Approximately 24% of total management fees were used to pay for sales and trailing commissions and other services required. The remaining 76% of management fees were used to pay for investment management and other general administration. Principal Distributor The Manager has the exclusive right to arrange for the distribution of shares of the Fund. Pursuant to a series of agreements, the right to distribute such shares has been granted, on a collective basis, to the following dealers, each of which is an affiliate of the Manager. Assante Capital Management Ltd. Assante Financial Management Ltd. Independent Review Committee The Fund received standing instructions from the Fund s Independent Review Committee with respect to the following related party transactions: a) trades in securities of CI Financial Corp.;

3 b) purchases or sales of securities of an issuer from or to another investment fund managed by the Manager; c) purchases or sales of other investment funds managed by the Manager or their affiliates; and d) mergers involving the Fund and another fund managed by the Manager that is subject to National Instrument Investment Funds. The applicable standing instructions require that related party transactions be conducted in accordance with the Manager s policies and procedures and that the Manager advise the IRC of any material breach of a condition of the standing instructions. The standing instructions require, among other things, that investment decisions in respect of related party transactions (a) are free from any influence by an entity related to the Manager and without taking into account any consideration relevant to an entity related to the Manager; (b) represent the business judgment of the Manager uninfluenced by considerations other than the best interests of the Fund; (c) are made in compliance with the Manager s policies and procedures; and (d) achieve a fair and reasonable result for the Fund. Transactions made by the Manager under the standing instructions are subsequently reviewed by the IRC on a quarterly basis to monitor compliance. The Fund relied on the IRC s standing instructions regarding related party transactions during this reporting year. 3

4 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS The following tables show selected key financial information about the Fund and are intended to help you understand the Fund s financial performance for the past five years, as applicable. Net Assets per Share ($) (1) (2) (4) * Increase (decrease) from operations: Dividends: Total Realized Unrealized Total increase From net investment Net assets Net assets at the beginning of year (2) Total revenue expenses (excluding distributions) gains (losses) for the year gains (losses) for the year (decrease) from operations (2) income (excluding dividends) From dividends From capital gains Return of capital Total (2, 3) dividends at the end of the year shown (2) $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ E Shares Commencement of operations September 30, 2008 Mar. 31, (0.46) 2.13 (0.38) (0.11) (0.54) - (0.65) Mar. 31, (0.40) (0.09) (0.79) - (0.88) Mar. 31, (0.38) 1.45 (2.33) (1.06) - (0.08) (0.68) - (0.76) Mar. 31, (0.39) (0.08) (0.50) - (0.58) Mar. 31, (0.34) (0.20) - - (0.20) E3 Shares Mar. 31, (0.25) 1.40 (0.70) (0.06) (0.32) - (0.38) E4 Shares Mar. 31, (0.24) 1.42 (0.55) (0.06) (0.33) - (0.39) E5 Shares Mar. 31, (0.24) 1.41 (1.25) (0.06) (0.33) - (0.39) ET8 Shares Commencement of operations June 20, 2011 Mar. 31, (0.24) 1.20 (0.25) (0.06) (0.28) (0.76) (1.10) 8.87 Mar. 31, (0.23) (0.05) (0.44) (0.80) (1.29) 9.26 Mar. 31, (0.24) 0.85 (1.51) (0.77) - (0.05) (0.41) (0.92) (1.38) 9.28 Mar. 31, (0.27) (0.05) (0.33) (0.93) (1.31) Mar. 31, (0.26) (0.14) - (0.79) (0.93) E3T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.25) 1.32 (0.52) (0.06) (0.30) (0.74) (1.10) *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Net Assets per Share section of the Financial Highlights.

5 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) Net Assets per Share ($) (1) (2) (4) * Increase (decrease) from operations: Dividends: Total Realized Unrealized Total increase From net investment Net assets Net assets at the beginning of year (2) Total revenue expenses (excluding distributions) gains (losses) for the year gains (losses) for the year (decrease) from operations (2) income (excluding dividends) From dividends From capital gains Return of capital Total (2, 3) dividends at the end of the year shown (2) $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ E4T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.24) 1.32 (0.52) (0.06) (0.30) (0.74) (1.10) E5T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.22) 1.32 (0.52) (0.06) (0.30) (0.74) (1.10) F Shares Mar. 31, (0.15) 1.61 (1.06) (0.07) (0.33) - (0.40) F3 Shares Mar. 31, (0.16) 1.43 (0.81) (0.07) (0.33) - (0.40) F4 Shares Mar. 31, (0.14) 1.43 (0.54) (0.07) (0.33) - (0.40) F5 Shares Mar. 31, (0.13) 1.37 (0.55) (0.07) (0.33) - (0.40) *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Net Assets per Share section of the Financial Highlights.

6 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) Net Assets per Share ($) (1) (2) (4) * Increase (decrease) from operations: Dividends: Total Realized Unrealized Total increase From net investment Net assets Net assets at the beginning of year (2) Total revenue expenses (excluding distributions) gains (losses) for the year gains (losses) for the year (decrease) from operations (2) income (excluding dividends) From dividends From capital gains Return of capital Total (2, 3) dividends at the end of the year shown (2) $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ FT8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.15) 1.33 (0.53) (0.06) (0.31) (0.74) (1.11) F3T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.15) 1.33 (0.53) (0.06) (0.31) (0.74) (1.11) F4T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.13) 1.33 (0.53) (0.06) (0.31) (0.74) (1.11) F5T8 Shares Mar. 31, (0.12) 1.33 (0.53) (0.06) (0.31) (0.74) (1.11) I Shares Commencement of operations October 10, 2008 Mar. 31, (0.08) 3.39 (0.96) (0.16) (0.83) - (0.99) Mar. 31, (0.04) (0.13) (1.18) - (1.31) Mar. 31, (3.37) (0.97) - (0.11) (0.98) - (1.09) Mar. 31, (0.11) (0.72) - (0.83) Mar. 31, (0.27) - - (0.27) IT8 Shares Commencement of operations December 22, 2011 Mar. 31, (0.03) 1.42 (0.36) (0.07) (0.33) (0.88) (1.28) Mar. 31, (0.02) (0.06) (0.51) (0.90) (1.47) Mar. 31, (1.72) (0.45) - (0.05) (0.47) (1.02) (1.54) Mar. 31, (0.05) (0.37) (1.01) (1.43) Mar. 31, (0.15) - (0.83) (0.98) *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Net Assets per Share section of the Financial Highlights.

7 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) (1) This information is derived from the Fund s audited annual financial statements. (2) Net assets per share and dividends per share are based on the actual number of shares outstanding for the relevant class at the relevant time. The increase (decrease) in net assets from operations per share is based on the weighted average number of shares outstanding for the relevant class over the fiscal year. (3) Dividends are automatically reinvested in additional shares of the Fund. (4) This information is provided for the years ended March 31.

8 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) Ratios and Supplemental Data (1) (5) * Total net assets (5) Number of shares outstanding (5) Management expense ratio before taxes (2) Management expense ratio after taxes (2) Effective HST rate for the year (2) Harmonized Trading Portfolio sales tax (2) expense ratio (3) turnover rate (4) $000 s 000 s % % % % % % E Shares Commencement of operations September 30, 2008 Mar. 31, , Mar. 31, ,147 1, Mar. 31, ,934 2, Mar. 31, ,720 2, Mar. 31, ,128 2, E3 Shares Mar. 31, , E4 Shares Mar. 31, , E5 Shares Mar. 31, ET8 Shares Commencement of operations June 20, 2011 Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, E3T8 Shares Mar. 31, *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Financial Highlights section.

9 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) Ratios and Supplemental Data (1) (5) * Total net assets (5) Number of shares outstanding (5) Management expense ratio before taxes (2) Harmonized sales tax (2) Management expense ratio after taxes (2) Effective HST rate for the year (2) Trading expense ratio (3) Portfolio turnover rate (4) $000 s 000 s % % % % % % E4T8 Shares Mar. 31, E5T8 Shares Mar. 31, F Shares Mar. 31, F3 Shares Mar. 31, F4 Shares Mar. 31, F5 Shares Mar. 31, *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Financial Highlights section.

10 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) Ratios and Supplemental Data (1) (5) * Total net assets (5) Number of shares outstanding (5) Management expense ratio before taxes (2) Harmonized sales tax (2) Management expense ratio after taxes (2) Effective HST rate for the year (2) Trading expense ratio (3) Portfolio turnover rate (4) $000 s 000 s % % % % % % FT8 Shares Mar. 31, F3T8 Shares Mar. 31, F4T8 Shares Mar. 31, F5T8 Shares Mar. 31, I Shares Commencement of operations October 10, 2008 Mar. 31, , Mar. 31, , Mar. 31, , Mar. 31, , Mar. 31, , IT8 Shares Commencement of operations December 22, 2011 Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, Mar. 31, *Footnotes for the tables are found at the end of the Financial Highlights section.

11 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (cont d) (1) This information is derived from the Fund s audited annual financial statements. (2) Management expense ratio is calculated based on expenses charged to the Fund (excluding commissions and other portfolio transaction costs) and is expressed as an annualized percentage of daily average net assets for the year, including the Fund s proportionate share of any underlying fund(s) expenses, if applicable. The Effective HST tax rate is calculated using the attribution percentage for each province based on shareholder residency and can be different from 13%. (3) The trading expense ratio represents total commissions and other portfolio transaction costs expressed as an annualized percentage of daily average net assets during the year, including the Fund s proportionate share of such expenses of any underlying fund(s), if applicable. (4) The Fund s portfolio turnover rate indicates how actively the Fund s portfolio advisor manages its portfolio investments. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% is equivalent to the Fund buying and selling all of the securities in its portfolio once in the course of the fiscal year. The higher a Fund s portfolio turnover rate in a year, the greater the trading costs payable by the Fund in the year, and the greater the chance of an investor receiving taxable capital gains in the year. There is not necessarily a relationship between a higher turnover rate and the performance of a Fund. Portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of the cost of purchases and the proceeds of sales of portfolio securities for the year, and excluding cash and short-term investments maturing in less than one year, and before assets acquired from a merger, if applicable, by the average of the monthly fair value of investments during the year. (5) This information is provided for the years ended March 31.

12 PAST PERFORMANCE This section describes how the Fund has performed in the past. Remember, past returns do not indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. The information shown assumes that dividends made by the Fund in the years shown were reinvested in additional shares of the relevant classes of the Fund. In addition, the information does not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or other optional charges that would have reduced returns or performance. Year-by-Year Returns The following charts show the Fund s annual performance for each of the years shown and illustrate how the Fund s performance has changed from year to year. In percentage terms, the charts show how much an investment made on the first day of each financial year would have grown or decreased by the last day of each financial year, except where noted. E Shares ET8 Shares I Shares IT8 Shares Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar Mar return is for the period from September 30, 2008 to March 31, return is for the period from June 20, 2011 to March 31, return is for the period from October 10, 2008 to March 31, return is for the period from December 22, 2011 to March 31, 2012.

13 Annual Compound Returns The following table shows the Fund s annual compound returns for each year indicated, compared to the S&P 500 Total Return Index (USD). The S&P 500 Total Return Index is an index composed of 500 stocks weighted by capitalization and representing all major U.S. industries. The Index is a broad measure of the stock performance of the largest U.S. companies with market capitalization in excess of US$5.3 billion. A discussion of the performance of the Fund as compared to the benchmark is found in the Results of Operations section of this report. One Year (%) Three Years (%) Five Years (%) Ten Years (%) Since Inception (%) E Shares n/a 8.1 S&P 500 Total Return Index (USD) n/a 11.1 ET8 Shares n/a 9.3 S&P 500 Total Return Index (USD) n/a 12.4 I Shares n/a 12.8 S&P 500 Total Return Index (USD) n/a 13.4 IT8 Shares n/a 11.5 S&P 500 Total Return Index (USD) n/a

14 SUMMARY OF INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO as at March 31, 2018 Category % of Net Assets Category % of Net Assets Top 25 Holdings* % of Net Assets Country allocation* Long Positions U.S.A Ireland Cash & Equivalents Bermuda Singapore Options Contracts Switzerland U.K Other Net Assets (Liabilities) Foreign Currency Forward Contracts... (1.2) Total Long Positions Short Positions Options Contracts... (0.5) Total Short Positions... (0.5) Sector allocation* Long Positions Information Technology Financials Health Care Consumer Discretionary Industrials Materials Consumer Staples Energy Cash & Equivalents Utilities Options Contracts Other Net Assets (Liabilities) Foreign Currency Forward Contracts... (1.2) Total Long Positions Short Positions Options Contracts... (0.5) Total Short Positions... (0.5) Microsoft Corp Apple Inc Alphabet Inc., Class C Visa Inc., Class A UnitedHealth Group Inc Bank of America Corp Applied Materials Inc Cash & Equivalents Morgan Stanley Boeing Co PTC Inc Marvell Technology Group Ltd Home Depot Inc Danaher Corp Centene Corp Johnson Controls International PLC Allergan PLC Costco Wholesale Corp Occidental Petroleum Corp Pfizer Inc DowDuPont Inc Bank of the Ozarks Inc Dollar General Corp Ingersoll-Rand PLC MetLife Inc Total Net Assets (in $000 s) $43,288 *These are holdings and the breakdown of the underlying fund. The summary of investment portfolio may change due to ongoing portfolio transactions of the Fund and updates will be available on a quarterly basis. A NOTE ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This report may contain forward-looking statements about the Fund, its future performance, strategies or prospects, and possible future Fund action. The words may, could, should, would, suspect, outlook, believe, plan, anticipate, estimate, expect, intend, forecast, objective, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both about the Fund and general economic factors, so it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved. We caution you not to place undue reliance on these statements as a number of important factors could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statement made by the Fund. These factors include, but are not limited to, general economic, political and market factors in Canada, the United States and internationally, interest and foreign exchanges rates, global equity and capital markets, business competition, technological changes, changes in laws and regulations, judicial or regulatory judgments, legal proceedings and catastrophic events. The above list of important factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. Before making any investment decisions, we encourage you to consider these and other factors carefully. All opinions contained in forward-looking statements are subject to change without notice and are provided in good faith but without legal responsibility. 14