Sprott Tactical Balanced Fund

Investment Team


  • Scott Colbourne
    Co-Chief Investment Officer; Senior Portfolio Manager

  • Michael Craig
    Portfolio Manager

  • Peter Imhof
    Investment Strategist

Fund Details

Fund Status Open
Distributions Income and Capital Gains Distributed Annually (if any) & Reinvested Automatically. Monthly Cash Distributions (T)
Fund Code

SPR 017 - (A)
SPR 417 - (T)
SPR 117 - (F)
SPR 617 - (FT)
SPR 214 - (A-LL)
SPR 517 - (T-LL)

Inception Date 11/2/2009
Nature of Securities Mutual Fund Trust Units
Type of Fund Tactical Allocation
Valuations Daily
Redemptions Daily
Minimum Initial Investment $1,000 CDN
Minimum Subsequent Investment $100 CDN
Minimum Investment Term 60 days (2% penalty)
Management Fee 2.25% annual - (A) 2.25% annual - (T) 1.25% annual - (F)
Performance Fee 10% of excess over specified benchmark (at the underlying fund level). None applied to direct tactical investments.
Eligible for Registered Plans Yes
Investor Risk Tolerance Medium

Fund Objective

The objective of the Fund is to seek to provide a total return over the long term by investing primarily in a portfolio of mutual funds that are managed by the Manager, its associates or its affiliates. The Fund may also invest in gold bullion, exchange traded funds and equity and/or fixed income securities.

Unit Price (NAV - Series A)

Fund Performance as at April 30, 2013

MTD* YTD* 1 YR 3 YR 5 YR 10 YR Inception
0.2 -0.4 -0.8 2.6 - - 5.2
*MTD & YTD as at most recent NAV

Detailed Fund Allocation

Current Weights (Mar 28) %Nav
Sprott Diversified Yield Fund 44.3%
Sprott Enhanced Equity Class 13.2% 
Sprott Canadian Equity Fund 9.9%
Sprott Small Cap Equity Fund 9.9%
Sprott Energy Fund 7.3%
Common Equities 6.3%
Sprott Short-Term Bond Fund 4.5%
Exchange Traded Funds 2.8%
Convertible Bonds 1.1%
Cash and Cash Equivalents 0.7%
Sector Allocations - Equities (Mar 28) %Nav 
Energy 10.8% 
Materials 6.7%
Consumer Discretionary 5.6%
Information Technology 4.8% 
Industrials 2.7% 
Financials 2.3%
Consumer Staples 1.1%
Telecommunication Services 0.5%
Health Care 0.4%
Utilities 0.0%
Top 10 Holdings (Mar 28) %Nav 
Canada Government 2.75% 01-Jun-2022 4.8% 
Sprott Strategic Fixed Income Fund 3.4% 
Canada Government 1.0% 01-feb-2015 3.3% 
Silver Bars 3.0% 
Mexico Government 6.5% 09-jun-2022 1.9% 
Sea Trucks Group 13.0% 31-jan-2015 1.8% 
Boyd Group Income Fund 1.3% 
Home Capital Group Inc. 1.3% 
The United States Government 2.0% 15-feb-2023 1.3%
 Wi-Lan Inc. 1.1% 
Asset Mix (Mar 28) %Nav 
Common Equities 34.9%
High Yield Bonds 25.6%
Government Bonds 13.1%
Corporate Bonds  7.4%
Exchange Traded Funds 3.5%
Convertible Bonds 3.1%
Commodities 3.0%
Other 0.9% 
Cash and Other Net Assets 8.5%
Geographical Allocations (Mar 28) %Nav 
Canada  49.8% 
United States   24.0% 
Other 11.9% 
Cash and Cash Equivalents 8.7% 
United Kingdom 3.0% 
Luxembourg 2.5% 

Notes 

  • All data is based on % of Net Assets 
  • Geographical Allocations exclude cash and bullion 
  • All data is net of short positions 
  • All data with the exception of Current Weights, will be based on quarter end data with 1-month lag
  • 1 Government Debt includes Government issued short-term investments 

Q1 Commentary

The Sprott Tactical Balanced Fund Series A (the “Fund”) gained 1.0% during the first quarter as weakness in precious metals was offset by a strong performance within its fixed-income allocation.

The Sprott Diversified Yield Fund Series I, which earned 2.3%, represented approximately 45% of the Fund at the end of the quarter. This allocation provides the Fund with a 4-6% yield, which provides considerable downside protection. In addition, this allocation has provided return similar to that of high-yield bond funds yet with considerably less volatility.

The Sprott Enhanced Equity Class Series I represented just over 13% of the Fund. This position provides access to an allocation to North American large-cap stocks which are diversified across core industries.

Sprott Canadian Equity Fund Series I, which represented 10.0% of the Fund, declined 9.8% during the quarter, as investors sold precious metals stocks in favour of higher-yielding equities. Gold and silver bullion experienced price weakness throughout February and March, as inflationary fears subsided in light of reports that the US would not have further money printing programs. The drop in bullion prices had a more pronounced effect on smaller-cap resource stocks. This position was maintained to provide the Fund with a non-correlated position which tends to perform in the opposite direction of core equities.

Sprott Energy Fund Series I declined 4.3% as investors globally continued to shun Canadian oil stocks due to concerns revolving around lack of pipeline takeaway capacity and the longer-term trend of US oil production growth. The Sprott Small Cap Equity Fund Series I edged down 0.7% during the period as its 42% allocation to energy and materials stocks weighed on its performance. During an economic recovery, small caps tend to outperform large caps and the Fund maintained a 10.0% to this position.

Sprott Short-Term Bond Fund Series I, which accounted for just under than 5% of the Fund gained 0.9% and is maintained to make tactical adjustments to the Fund.

The Fund’s remaining allocation was spread across select convertible bonds and what are considered to be the best ideas from our equity managers.

The indicated rates of return for series A/class A securities of the Funds are based on the historical annual compounded total returns including changes in unit/share value and reinvestment of all distributions or dividends and does not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any security holder that would have reduced returns. Investment funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation to purchase securities of the Funds.