Research

Research Philosophy, Process & Access

Our approach to manager research is methodical and thorough; our evaluation goes well beyond performance and into the investment process. This rigorous and exacting process allows our analysts to uncover high-quality managers with the potential to provide excess returns over a client’s long-term investment horizon.

We use the following six-tenet framework to evaluate money managers:

• Conviction: Does the manager truly believe their philosophy? Is their money management process effective?
• Consistency: Has the manager’s investment philosophy and process been consistent over the long run? What changes have occurred with the firm’s personnel, philosophy, process, and portfolio construction?
• Pragmatism: What are the manager’s distinguishing characteristics? What is their competitive edge and does the manager harness that edge?
• Investment Culture: What is the firm’s cultural tone and does it support successful investing? Is there continuity in their words, actions, and results?
• Risk Control: Is there investment manager risk conscious and are there appropriate risk controls in place? Are those controls comprehensive enough to address business, strategy, operational, and liquidity risks?
• Active Return: What is the managers performance compared to expectations, including peer groups and other investment opportunities?

This qualitative and quantitative framework provides an objective assessment that can be uniformly repeated. We believe that if a manager’s first five tenets are strong, the sixth—active return—will follow.

The process concludes with the recommendation, including the "devil’s advocate" critique, being fully vetted by the FEG Investment Policy Committee.

Our research professionals also provide clients actionable insights via capital markets research, asset allocation guidance, due diligence across asset classes, and custom research services. To access our latest market and asset class commentary, click here.

Asset classes include:

• Global Equity (stocks, private equity, long/short hedge funds)
• Global Fixed Income and Credit (bonds, bank loans, credit hedge funds)
• Real Assets (real estate, natural resources, commodities)
• Diversifying Strategies (absolute return hedge funds, trading strategies)
  
  

Outsourced Research Services

We offer Outsourced Research Services for those clients who would like access to our Research team without having to engage in a consulting or OCIO relationship.

Solutions range from traditional offerings, such as capital markets research, asset allocation, and manager research, to more specialized solutions, such as hedge fund and private capital due diligence.

Sounding Board
Interact directly with FEG’s Research team and gain easy access to research reports and position papers through your custom portal.

Implementation
We offer a range of implementation solutions, including:

• Private capital funds
• Hedge funds
• FEG Managed Portfolios