Briefly: “DundeeWealth shuffles senior management” and more news

DundeeWealth has moved around a couple of its top executives into new positions within the company.

David Whyte has been announced as the company’s vice-chair and chief operating officer.

Whyte, a 30-year veteran of the mutual fund industry, has been with DundeeWealth since 2005 and was most recently the vice-chairman of distribution and investments of DundeeWealth. In this new role, Whyte will continue to oversee DundeeWealth’s domestic and international distribution, but he will also add support services such as product marketing and development, information technology and industry research to his responsibilities.

David Goodman, president and CEO of DundeeWealth, also announced the appointment of Joanne Ferstman as vice-chair, DundeeWealth, and head of Dundee Capital Markets.

Ferstman has held a variety of positions within the Dundee group of companies, most recently that of chief financial officer. In her new role, Ferstman will assume leadership of Dundee Capital Markets, which includes all investment banking activities for the company.

Ferstman will continue to hold the position of CFO of DundeeWealth until a replacement is announced.

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Western Financial Group buys Vancouver Island broker

Western Financial Group has closed on the acquisition of Bakes-Jarvie Insurance Brokers Ltd., based in Nanaimo, B.C.

Bakes-Jarvie currently employs 16 staff members in its two locations, where it has been successful in building a strong commercial clientele, as well as in growing its personal lines and licensing business.

Western Financial Group views the acquisition as an inroad into the Vancouver Island market. The firm points out that Nanaimo is the centre of a large and growing market area in south central Vancouver Island. All indicators lead to continuing growth and prosperity in the region, which is the centre for manufacturing and finance for the tourism, forestry and construction industries on the island.

“We have been looking to acquire a strong and solid broker on Vancouver Island on which we can build our presence there, and we are very pleased Bakes-Jarvie is joining our Agency Network,” says Scott Tannas, president and CEO of Western Financial Group.

Lana Wood, president of Western Financial Group’s Agency Network, says Bakes-Jarvie’s book of business has traditionally shown low loss ratios.

“Bakes-Jarvie is a great addition to our group and the start of our presence on the island,” she says.

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Russell 2000 shrinks, creates opportunity: Ernst & Young

According to a new Ernst & Young LLP year-end analysis of companies in the Russell 2000 Index, the smallest market cap and the median market cap both continued to decrease since the index’s reconstitution in 2008.

“If this trend continues, it’s likely that far smaller companies could qualify to fill new spots upon reconstitution in June of 2009, which would have a massive impact on these companies’ operations and prospects,” says Maria Pinelli, Americas director, strategic growth markets, at Ernst & Young. “The lower Russell 2000 threshold could bring an unprecedented exposure opportunity that they otherwise might not have had.”

Pinelli points out that companies nearing the market cap should explore growth strategies that would allow them to take advantage of the increased liquidity and exposure they would gain from the institutional investor universe.

“Growth companies have an opportunity to perform very well if they can claim strong operations and market innovation — or perform poorly if they are not ready,” she says.

The study also found that an index comparison of performance shows strength in growth stocks.

The trade price of the Russell 2000 Index started at $765.90 for this fiscal year and ended 2008 at $499.50. The overall performance of the Russell 2000 for 2008 was down 33.8%. However, 309 of the Russell 2000 member companies had positive gains by the end of 2008, compared to only two companies on the Dow Jones Industrial Average and 25 companies on the S&P 500 Index.

(03/03/09)