Steve K. Mergler

Loomis Sayles bases their overall investment approach on the premise that their disciplined, research-based investment strategies can identify market inefficiencies that can lead to consistent outperformance of benchmarks. The firm's fixed-income research team seeks to identify attractive securities and assign ratings to various issues. Their equity investment approach is based on their belief that equity markets are inefficient. Loomis Sayles employs an intensive bottom-up investment analysis with the goal of delivering superior risk adjusted performance.

Northstar Capital Management specializes in investments in US large-cap growth companies. The firm employs four investment strategies: Quality Growth Equity, Core Equity, Core Fixed-Income and Municipal Bonds. Though not limited by sector, Northstar tends to invest in the stocks of companies in the technology services, health technology, electronic technology and consumer non-durables sectors. The firm maintains a medium turnover rate. Northstar's Quality Growth Equity strategy uses bottom-up quantitative and qualitative research to identify US companies with high earnings growth. Their quantitative research begins with a screen of 900 US exchange-traded companies with market values greater than $5 billion. They look for companies with stable, above market earnings growth, above market return on equity and attractive relative valuations. Their five specific quantitative criteria include: past earnings per share growth, future projected earnings per share growth, p/e to projected earnings per share growth, return on equity and trailing 4 quarters earnings per share. Companies meeting Northstar's quantitative criteria are then subjected to qualitative evaluation that includes superiority in management, products, distribution, access to markets and business plan implementation. Equity accounts typically hold 25 to 35 positions. A position may be sold if fundamentals are disappointing, there is a new or better opportunity, there is a loss of competitive advantage or for portfolio reallocation. The firm's Large Cap Core Equity strategy employs a bottom-up process that combines multi-factor quantitative stock screening process and fundamental research. The quantitative process identifies a reduced universe of companies with market-cap greater than $1 billion, strong earnings momentum and reasonable valuations. They then perform fundamental research to identify companies with strong financials and positive growth characteristics. Portfolios typically hold more than 35 stocks. A position will be sold if there is a loss of earnings momentum, there is concern over a company's fundamentals, stock price performance deteriorates and if there is excessive valuation. Northstar's Core Taxable Fixed-Income strategy invests across the yield curve and places emphasis on protecting client principal, constructing portfolios with attractive yields and generating a competitive total return. To manage risk, the firm monitors credit risk, duration risk, interest rate risk, economic downgrade risk and default risk. They build portfolios with an emphasis on structure, composition and relative yield and avoid timing interest rates. Northstar's credit selection process begins with a universe of ideas having a market-cap of $5 billion or more and earnings growth ranking in the top 25% of companies. This universe is screened to identify companies with a favorable revenue, debt-to-capital, cash flow from operations (cfo)-to-debt and interest coverage profile. They then look for companies with transparent and strong business models, management with debt friendly track records and a competitive market/product position. Northstar typically invests in agency, asset-backed, corporate, mortgage and US Treasury bonds/notes. Northstar's Municipal Bond strategy invests across the yield curve with emphasis on protecting client principal and maximizing income flow. They build portfolios with an emphasis on structure and relative yield. Portfolio structures include ladders, bullets and barbells. Northstar favors a laddered approach to portfolio structure. They consider sector yields, volatility and the economic environment, as well as the investment's risk, liquidity and quality. Their tax-exempt strategy focuses on high and predictable cash flow and it attempts to be duration neutral at plus or minus 10% of the client's stated benchmark. Portfolios are structured to overweight liquid, high quality bonds rated AA or better.

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