Josh Flade of Orion - Diversifying Asset Classes: What Are They and Why Do You Want Them?

Orion's The Weighing Machine

This week, Rusty is joined by Josh Flade from Orion to discuss diversifying asset classes. Joshua is the Deputy Chief Investment Officer of Orion OCIO where he chairs the investment committee and oversees the firm’s four investment verticals: Public Equities, Fixed Income, ETF/Mutual Fund Models, and Private Investments. Previously, Joshua specialized in Fixed Income with 12+ years of experience and co-managed TownSquare Capital’s Fixed Income strategies as well as served as the vice-chair of the firm’s Investment Committee. Prior to TownSquare Capital, Joshua was a Senior Analyst/Associate PM within the Fixed Income Team at Ensign Peak Advisors with global coverage of Financial Institutions, REITs, and Healthcare industries. Prior to working at Ensign Peak Advisors, Joshua was an Associate within the Credit Research Group at Goldman Sachs with coverage of Central Counterparties (CCPs), Financial Institutions, and Oil and Gas industries in Central Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Joshua currently volunteers as the Chair of Programming for the CFA Society Salt Lake and previously served as the President of the CFA Society Salt Lake and President of the Salt Lake Chapter of the BYU Management Society. Joshua is a CFA charterholder and graduated from Brigham Young University with a double major in Finance and Russian. He is also licensed in series 65.

Key Takeaways

• [02:40] - Joshua’s professional background and what his current roles at Orion are.
• [05:10] - Who does Orion Fixed Income serve and why do they end up going with Orion over the alternatives?
• [06:44] - More about Joshua’s fantastic team at Orion.
• [07:54] - When it comes to Fixed Income, a lot of people like to use Mutual Funds or ETFs but some people prefer separate accounts – what are the pros and cons of each?
• [10:54] - Are exits on SMA strategies more challenging than those utilizing ETFs or Mutual Funds?
• [11:39] - What is Joshua’s current assessment of the Fixed Income markets?
• [13:37] - How do you explain what the yield curve is, why is it important to follow it and how does it impact Joshua’s decision making?
• [17:41] - What are the differences between liquid alts and illiquid alts and who might use each?
• [19:28] - What alternative investments are particularly attractive to Josh at this moment?
• [21:07] - How does Joshua define global credit and what are some of his favorite ideas in that space right now?
• [23:57] - How to size your position in diversifying assets within your portfolio.
• [25:30] - Joshua’s favorite overall investment idea in the current market environment.

Quotes

[15:54] - “Historically speaking, in this part of the interest rate cycle, what has performed well has been moving up in credit quality and adding some duration.” ~ Josh Flade

[24:06] - "It’s…not just the destination that matters, it’s also [about] the journey and the experience for the investor. By using diversified asset classes, you are helping smooth out the journey instead of being so focused on the destination. So, if you can get a similar expected return, in the end, but have a much smoother experience for your investors, your investors are going to be more likely to stay invested. ” ~ Josh Flade

Links

• “Thrift Shop” by Macklemore (Explicit)

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Disclosure(s) ~ OCIO services offered through TownSquare Capital, LLC, an Orion Company, a Registered Investment Advisor. TownSquare Capital, LLC, is an affiliated company of Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC through their parent company, Orion Advisor Solutions, Inc.

Compliance Code: 0723-OPS-3/25/2024