Q4 2025 Market and Performance Update

In WealthCo’s Year-End 2025 market and performance review, Claude Spencer, Manager, Investment Advisory & Planning Services, and Dave Makarchuk, Chief Investment Officer, reflect on a complex year shaped by geopolitical uncertainty, shifting monetary policy, and sharp market swings. They revisit what differentiates WealthCo’s approach, including its Integrated Advisory model and a long-standing focus on downside protection and investor peace of mind.

Dave outlines four distinct phases in 2025, starting with early optimism that quickly reversed following trade and tariff announcements, leading to a roughly 16% equity drawdown. Markets then rallied strongly from late April through early November, before finishing the year on a softer note as diverging interest rate expectations strengthened the Canadian dollar and weighed on U.S.-dollar assets. Throughout the year, WealthCo’s portfolios remained defensively positioned, prioritizing capital preservation over chasing short-term market rallies.

Despite currency headwinds and soft alternative performance, all four WealthCo funds delivered positive returns in 2025. Core equities returned approximately 6.2%, fixed income performed largely in line with yields, and alternatives continued to provide lower volatility and diversification benefits. Dave acknowledges disappointment with core equity performance and outlines the portfolio adjustments made during the year, including reductions to small-cap exposure and a continued emphasis on high-quality, cash-flow-generating companies.

Looking ahead to 2026, Dave shares cautious optimism, highlighting opportunities in alternative growth, steady relative income potential from alternatives, and the stabilizing role of fixed income. He reinforces that WealthCo’s balanced strategy, anchored by a 50% allocation to alternatives remains central to navigating uncertainty and supporting long-term financial plans.