Westwood High Yield Bond
Westwood has engaged AXA Investment Managers as a sub-advisor to the Westwood High Yield Bond strategy. AXA was formed in September 2001 as a dedicated provider of institutional US fixed income products. The firm’s philosophy and process have been thoroughly tested in a wide array of market and economic environments, generating positive returns.
The portfolio’s underlying mandate, AXA’s Core High Yield strategy, is a total return investing strategy with a goal of generating high total returns by investing in the full maturity spectrum of non-investment grade debt of U.S. companies.
Buy discipline
AXA’s buy process entails seeking companies in improving industries, companies with stable business models, and companies with improving credit quality – specifically, positive year-over-year cash flow and excess cash flow that is used to improve creditworthiness. These securities have a high probability of outperformance due to their price stability or total return potential.
Sell discipline
All positions are reviewed on a daily basis, and the proprietary financial analysis models are updated on a continuous basis. Any change in either the assessment of a security’s potential or in the credit research outlook will prompt a reassessment of the position. The three primary reasons to trigger a potential sale are:
- Company results disappoint versus AXA’s projections
- Valuation less attractive versus other securities
- Sector rotation in response to cyclical trends
More information
Please contact us to learn more about this and other Westwood portfolios or to set up a meeting with a member of our team.