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Active Corporate Fixed Income Strategy

The strategy seeks to outperform the Bloomberg US Credit Index through a relative value orientation, which considers fundamental credit analysis, including sector, quality, and yield curve placement.

  • 10+ year track record that was born from the firm’s core competency—credit analysis 
  • Explicit measures of risk and determinants of value utilized in both the investment and risk management processes
  • Top-down management of spreads coupled with fundamental analysis 
  • Supported by a team of industry sector specialists averaging 21 years of experience
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Investment Grade Corporate Credit

STYLE

Bloomberg US Credit

BENCHMARK

January 1, 2005

INCEPTION

$2.9 Billion

ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT

As of 9/30/2024

US Corporate Fixed Income

EVESTMENT UNIVERSE

Separate Account

INVESTMENT VEHICLE

Philosophy

The team believes that in order to generate consistent alpha, a fundamental analysis must be combined with:

  • Top-down management of spread risk using explicit measures of valuation and risk
  • Relative value framework with a focus on downside risk
  • Return profile assessment at the individual security level

Portfolio Construction

  • Invests primarily in investment grade bonds
  • Focus on sectors with strong commitment to investment grade ratings
  • Seek opportunities in rising star credits
  • Well diversified, average position size 1% to 1.5%

Management Team

Paul Tomich

Paul A. Tomich, CFA

Vice President, Senior Portfolio Manager

Career Summary
Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.

Education 
BSBA - Xavier University

Meet Paul Tomich
Jon Westerman

Jonathan P. Westerman, CFA, CPA

Vice President, Portfolio Manager, & Head of Investment Grade Research

Career Summary
Western & Southern Financial Group
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Education 
BS - University of Kentucky
MBA - Xavier University

Meet Jonathan Westerman
Jay Devine

Jay M. Devine

Vice President, Senior Trader, & Senior Portfolio Manager

Career Summary
Western & Southern Financial Group
Merrill Lynch

Education 
BBA - Ohio University
MBA - Northern Kentucky University

Meet Jay Devine

Connect with Fort Washington

Contact Us

Related Insights

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A comprehensive risk management framework is at the heart of our investment philosophy. This article explores the principles and the values that drive Fort Washington’s belief that the measurement of risk and return, not forecasting, should drive investment decisions.

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An Innovative Approach to Measuring Spread Risk
Index Equivalent Spread Duration adjusts for two effects not addressed by spread duration—the tendency of riskier bonds to experience larger spread moves and the tendency of short maturity bonds to demonstrate more spread volatility than long maturity bonds. This piece explores how Fort Washington captures these effects by applying a spread and maturity beta to a bond’s spread duration.

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