Investment Philosophy

HighMark believes that successful investing is measured in years rather than months. The bedrock of our investment philosophy is the belief that a disciplined, unwavering investment process leads to consistent performance over the long-term. While we are cognizant of the short term “noise” that is so pervasive to today’s investors, we do not incorporate it into individual investment decisions. Rather, we encourage our distinct and specialized investment teams to utilize their extensive industry knowledge, independent research skills, internal modeling expertise and global market insight to determine the most compelling investment ideas.

Our bottom-up security selection process is complimented by a top-down economic viewpoint. This macroeconomic view incorporates a variety of global economic factors and perspectives. Our focus is on selecting securities in which the underlying company or issuer exhibits sustainable competitive advantages versus its industry peer group with minimal downside risk.

Consistent risk monitoring and control are also central to our investment discipline. Our goal is to provide insightful guidance and superior service, striving to exceed client expectations and deliver value at every level of the investment relationship.

HighMark’s macroeconomic view is developed by the Asset Allocation Committee (AAC) which is comprised of senior members from various investment teams. The AAC provides macroeconomic estimates and targets which are then used to establish the firm’s strategic and tactical asset class weights. Individual investment teams, with their own unique and specialized perspective, look for ideas where a particular bottom-up thesis intersects with a top-down view.

The Investment Policy Committee (IPC), chaired by the CIO and comprised of the firm’s senior executive leadership, oversees risk management policies for each investment strategy.