North Square Select Small Cap I Stock Price, News & Analysis

ADVGX is the ticker symbol for the Class I shares of the North Square Select Small Cap Fund, a U.S. mutual fund in the Morningstar Small Blend category. According to information from North Square Investments, the fund pursues an investment objective of long-term capital appreciation by investing in small-cap companies. It is advised by North Square Investments and subadvised by Advisory Research Investment Management.

The fund was previously known as the North Square Advisory Research Small Cap Value Fund. Its name was changed to North Square Select Small Cap Fund to highlight the subadvisor Advisory Research and its investment approach. The fund’s Class I shares are identified by the symbol ADVGX.

Investment approach and focus

North Square states that the Select Small Cap Fund’s subadvisor, Advisory Research, applies a fundamental, research-intensive methodology that generally results in a high conviction portfolio of select small cap stocks. The subadvisor describes its process as a private equity approach to the public markets, with a strong focus on downside risk management and on company-specific actions to unlock shareholder value.

Advisory Research emphasizes identifying undervalued businesses in the small-cap segment, which it characterizes as often overlooked and subject to market inefficiencies. These inefficiencies are described as arising in part from investors gaining exposure through broad market exchange-traded funds (ETFs) rather than focusing on individual businesses. Within this context, the subadvisor looks for businesses with competitive moats, potential for high-quality reinvestment opportunities, and management teams whose incentives are aligned with long-term objectives.

Role of Advisory Research and North Square

Advisory Research Investment Management is described as a Chicago-based asset manager offering actively managed U.S. and global equity strategies to institutional and intermediary investors through separate account management and private funds. For the North Square Select Small Cap Fund, Advisory Research serves as the subadvisor responsible for portfolio management.

North Square Investments, founded in 2018 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, is described as an independent, multi-boutique investment firm. It acts as the investment adviser to the North Square Select Small Cap Fund. North Square notes that it focuses on delivering differentiated active investment strategies and that it has ownership interests in other distinctly branded firms, CS McKee and Oak Ridge Investments. The information provided by North Square also notes that it is an independent investment adviser registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, with the clarification that registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training.

Morningstar category and rating context

The North Square Select Small Cap Fund Class I shares (ADVGX) are classified by Morningstar in the Small Blend category. North Square reports that the Class I shares received a Morningstar Overall Rating of five stars among funds in this category based on risk-adjusted performance as of a stated date. North Square also notes that the fund has a three-year rating but has not been in existence long enough to receive five- or ten-year ratings. Morningstar’s methodology for ratings and rankings, as described in the source information, is based on risk-adjusted returns and percentile rankings relative to other funds in the same category.

North Square emphasizes that past performance is not a guarantee of future results and that investment return and principal value will fluctuate. The information provided stresses that short-term performance is not a good indication of future performance and that investors should not make investment decisions based solely on returns.

Risk considerations

According to North Square, investing in the North Square Select Small Cap Fund involves a range of principal risks. These include Equity Risk, Sector Focus Risk, Market Risk, Small-Cap Company Risk, Preferred Securities Risk, Convertible Securities Risk, Currency Risk, Value-Oriented Investment Strategies Risk, Foreign Investment Risk, and Management and Strategy Risk, among others. North Square notes that summary descriptions of these and other principal risks are set forth in the fund’s prospectus and that there can be no assurance the fund will achieve its investment objective.

The information also states that an investment in the fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Prospective investors are directed in the source material to review the fund’s prospectus for details on investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing.

Use of ADVGX information for investors

For investors researching ADVGX, the available information highlights the fund’s focus on small-cap equities, its fundamental research-driven approach, and its emphasis on risk management and company-specific value creation. The association with Advisory Research as subadvisor and North Square as adviser provides additional context on the investment organizations involved. The Morningstar category and rating details, as described by North Square, offer a framework for understanding how the fund has been evaluated relative to peers, while the stated risk factors outline key considerations for potential investors.