The founder and big boss of Fiera Capital, Jean-Guy Desjardins, has just acquired additional shares of the Montreal asset manager.
Already the shareholder with the most control over the company’s securities, he purchased $5 million worth of shares last Friday.
The transaction involving some 872,000 securities was carried out over the counter with employees and ex-employees, therefore off-market, at a unit price of $5.66.
Jean-Guy Desjardins exercised his right to purchase securities pursuant to an agreement governing a limited partnership owning Fiera securities. According to the limited partnership agreement, Jean-Guy Desjardins has the right to purchase securities that unitholders of the limited partnership wish to sell according to a predetermined formula used to set the price of the transactions when the time comes.
Jean-Guy Desjardins says he finds the opportunity to buy shares at the current stock price “particularly interesting”.
Fiera Capital’s stock is down about 35% this year and down more than 60% since its peak six years ago. The stock market decline means that the dividend yield now exceeds the 15% mark.
Jean-Guy Desjardins became CEO again at the start of the year at the age of 78, taking over from Jean-Philippe Lemay.
To explain the change in leadership, it was notably said that the board of directors anticipated turbulence on the macroeconomic level and that, in this context, it was preferable to have a person with a lot of experience at the helm and who understands in depth the economic environment, monetary policies as well as all of Fiera Capital’s investment strategies and operations.
Jean-Guy Desjardins previously served as CEO from 2010 to 2022.
From 188 to 164 billion
Assets under management at Fiera Capital stood at $164 billion at the start of July. It was 188 billion at the start of last year. Assets under management had recorded strong growth before the pandemic, notably thanks to acquisitions made in North America, Europe and Asia. A big blow was marked in 2012 with the purchase of Natcan, a subsidiary of the National Bank which brought 25 billion in assets in one go.
Organic growth is now affected, among other things, by a flight of assets under management since the departure of star portfolio manager Nadim Rizk. The latter left two years ago to start his own business.
Jean-Guy Desjardins founded Fiera Capital in 2003. He now controls a little more than 20% of the company’s shares.
Fiera Capital shares gained 2% on Monday to close the first session of the week at $5.56 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The current stock price gives Fiera Capital a market capitalization of approximately half a billion dollars.
According to information collected by the financial data firm Refinitiv, only one of the eight analysts who officially follow the activities of Fiera Capital recommends buying the stock.