Beyond the Benchmark: The Long-Term Edge of Fiera Capital’s US SMID Cap Strategy

​​​​​​With more than 30 years of experience navigating US equity markets, Sunil Reddy, Head of Fiera Apex and Lead Portfolio Manager of Fiera Capital’s US Small-Mid Cap Growth strategy, has witnessed multiple market cycles and shifting investment paradigms. Throughout he has remained committed to a disciplined, fundamentals driven approach, one that prioritises high-quality businesses with strong growth potential over short-term market trends.

“There is a momentum factor which has been dominant in the markets [due to historically high market concentration], and it remains to be seen if this will crack. If it does crack, we believe a lot of managers will struggle to adapt to a new regime.”

This dynamic has placed increasing pressure on asset managers to meet or beat their benchmarks – sometimes at the expense of their core investment principles. Sunil spoke to Portfolio Adviser for its February cover story exploring the evolving role of indices for the investment industry and whether the system is fit for purpose. He highlighted the pressure on managers to meet or beat the index, which has led some to stray from their investment discipline to follow the herd at the cost of a well-diversified portfolio, as well as the benefits of having a transparent category average as a meaningful benchmark. With a track record of more than 24 years, Sunil’s strategy has remained steadfast in its disciplined investment approach, resisting the temptation to chase momentum-driven trends.

Portfolio Adviser’s February edition also highlighted the US Small-Mid Cap Growth strategy as one of three ‘newcomers to watch’, pointing to the strategy’s 24+ year track record of strong performance, well-resourced team, and carefully curated portfolio blending stable and emerging growth companies set to benefit from long-term secular tailwinds.

While not a newcomer for many of our clients in North America, the Fiera US Small-Mid Cap Growth strategy became available in the UK following its European launch in June 2024 in response to strong demand for US equities. The strategy focuses on high-quality small and mid-cap growth companies that exhibit strong fundamentals, competitive advantages and attractive long-term growth prospects. With an emphasis on bottom-up stock selection, Sunil and his team seek to identify companies with durable growth characteristics that can thrive across different market environments. The portfolio construction reflects a dynamic combination of stable and emerging growth companies balancing innovation driven opportunities with resilient business to help mitigate volatility.

The full stories are available in the magazine available via Portfolio Adviser and you can learn more about the Fiera US Small-Mid Cap Growth strategy here.