Scientific Beta

Morningstar: "To date, the Desjardins line up stands out as the most innovative and complete in the Canadian industry. (...) Another distinctive trait is the multifactor approach that four ETFs adopt. Designed with the help of French firm Scientific Beta, the factors put forward are value, momentum, size, low volatility, earnings, and small investment (companies that invest less show a tendency to outperform)."

Morningstar 28/01/2019

"(...) To date, the Desjardins line up stands out as the most innovative and complete in the Canadian industry. (...) Seven of the funds target companies that have a low carbon footprint, whilst the eighth one shies away from any exposure to fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal). Apart from the ESG theme, the eight funds canvas all markets: Canada, U.S., developed markets and emerging markets. (...) Another distinctive trait is the multifactor approach that four ETFs adopt. Designed with the help of French firm Scientific Beta, the factors put forward are value, momentum, size, low volatility, earnings, and small investment (companies that invest less show a tendency to outperform). “These factors are those for which historical outperformance has been the most documented,” explains Guy Lamontagne, vice-president, investment strategies, at DGAM. Assembling the ETFs happens by applying algorithmic filters in five steps, Lamontagne says. First, companies excluded from the United Nations’ global registers are eliminated. These include weapons manufacturers and companies that utilize child labour. Next, only companies with the highest ESG ratings are retained; companies are eliminated if, while subscribing to ESG principles, they still deviate significantly from one of its themes. A fourth filter isolates companies whose carbon intensity is 25% lower than those contained in the large stock market indices. Finally, in the case of four ETFs, the six-factor filter is applied and, in the case of two others, a filter that weighs stocks according to their market capitalisation. (...)"