All Insights

Highlights Large positive moves came from some deeply discounted bonds including Esperion’s 2025 notes, Lucid Group’s 2026 convertible bonds, and 2028 bonds of Emergent BioSolutions. Convertible bonds in Equinox Gold (2029) and OPKO Health (2029) provided further gains. The wide valuation divergence between certain pockets in the credit markets and the tight spreads in the […]

Dear Unitholders, The Pender Alternative Arbitrage Fund was up 0.9%[1] in February 2024. The Fund’s benchmark, the HFRI ED: Merger Arbitrage Index (USD) returned -0.2% during the same period. M&A Market Update Through mid-March Global M&A Activity totaled $630 billion, a 42% increase from last year as M&A activity continues to recover.[2] North America is […]

Highlights Cash and T-bill holdings have been reduced by about 20% of net asset value to improve portfolio yield. Additions to loan holdings, with current yields from mid-7% to mid-8%, include high quality businesses like Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HLT) and Transdigm Group Inc. (NYSE: TDG). The Pender Alternative Absolute Return Fund finished February […]

Highlights: Positive contributors included convertible notes from Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. and Bandwidth Inc., and from our position in Lucid Group. A few weak spots included our position in the credit of SSR Mining Inc due to operational challenges at that company's Copler mine in Turkey. However, we believe the credit coverage of the 2039 notes […]

Highlights After a positive end to 2023 which saw several key deals held by the Fund close, January had muted activity due to seasonality. The Fund initiated positions in 15 new merger deals. Six deals held within the Fund closed. There are signs of renewed interest in smaller cap companies. Dear Unitholders, The Pender Alternative […]

Pender Growth Fund Inc. (the “Company”) announces that it has provided the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") with its Notice of Intention to make a Normal Course Issuer Bid (the "NCIB") through the facilities of the TSXV, subject to TSXV acceptance. The Company is proposing to put a new NCIB in place upon the expiry […]

Highlights A major theme in January was the reopening of the primary market in North American liquid credit, following limited issuance in late 2023. The Pender Alternative Absolute Return Fund selectively participated in new issues in both investment grade and high yield markets. We focused on high-yield bonds with all-in yields of 7% or more, […]

Highlights: Through December and January, the Fund initiated a position in the bonds of Sibanye Stillwater Ltd. which is the largest worldwide pure-play company in the mining and refining of platinum group metals. January saw a selloff in Canadian investment grade bonds and limited gains in high yield indices. Esperion Therapeutics Inc. was the Fund’s […]

As seen in the Globe & Mail on February 2, 2024 (for subscribers only) David Barr talk to Brenda Bouw at The Globe and Mail's Globe Advisor on seeking out growth stocks in a volatile market; his style, the impact of higher interest rates, what he's buying and what he's selling. "One of the key reasons we focus on the small-cap […]