Richard Jenkins, the lead manager of the award-winning $465-million CI Black Creek International Equity, analyzes every investment on the basis of a 10-year time horizon.
"We try to consider long-term fundamentals and that really does change the way you view any sort of crisis or bull or bear market," says Jenkins. "That provides you with enormous opportunities, whether it's 2008 where we had relatively defensive portfolios, or 2011 when we invested heavily in Europe when everyone was scared."
Jenkins, the chairman and managing director of Black Creek Investment Management Inc., has led the fund since its inception in September 2008. Co-managed by Evelyn Huang, director, global equities, the fund won the Best International Equity award at the 2013 Morningstar Awards gala held in November. Jenkins's responsibilities also include managing CI Black Creek Global Balanced, along with Huang.
Under Jenkins' tenure, the Morningstar 5-star rated CI Black Creek International Equity has an annualized five-year return of 16.2%, nearly double the median return of 8.4% in the International Equity category, as of Dec. 31. Among the fund investors who have profited is Jenkins himself, since Black Creek managers are required to invest personal assets in funds that they manage.
Jenkins holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of Alberta. After graduating in 1986, he joined Colliers International as an investment analyst. While there, he took part in a joint venture with Price Waterhouse in forensic accounting, assessing the value of failed financial institutions. In the late 1980s, he worked for Alberta's Heritage Fund in the housing division.
Pursuing his desire for a global investment career, Jenkins graduated in 1991 with an MBA from INSEAD in France. He then joined TD Asset Management Inc., where he worked on looking for investment opportunities beyond North America.
Two years later, Jenkins was recruited by Robert Krembil, then head of Trimark Investment Management Inc. Jenkins subsequently co-managed Trimark Select Growth (now Trimark Global Fundamental Equity 
, and was appointed lead manager in May 2004. He also co-managed the global balanced mandate.
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Jenkins joined Black Creek in July 2008. The Toronto-based private firm founded by Bill Kanko employs six investment managers including Jenkins, and manages almost $2.5 billion.
Jenkins holds a concentrated portfolio of 25 names, drawn from a universe of more than 5,000 companies. Although he can get data on each company in the global universe, he's not a believer in choosing stocks on the basis of quantitative screens.
"So we try to flip the process upside down," he says, "rather than say starting with 5,000 names, whittling them down to 1,000, looking for the ones that have P/Es and this and whatever."
Instead, he looks for businesses that are leaders in their fields and are spending on research and development to maintain their lead. "Those companies tend to earn returns that are high enough to provide cash back to me, the owner."
Based on bottom-up opportunities, geographically the fund is currently weighted about 50% in Europe and about 15% in Asia. One recent purchase is Christian Dior SA, a well-known name in luxury goods.
In part because of Sephora, its new and rapidly growing cosmetic retailer, Christian Dior has enjoyed accelerating revenue growth. "Analysts have missed that," says Jenkins, "and we see the big potential. In the long run, we think it will grow way above average and it's trading at a below-average price."
The Black Creek managers spend 90% of their time analyzing companies from a bottom-up perspective. But, says Jenkins, they always do so in the context of a global view. Otherwise, he adds, "you're going to get steamrollered." Individual stock weights typically range from 2% to 6%, but Jenkins can go higher if he considers a stock to be dramatically undervalued.
Jenkins prides himself on his hands-on research, which involves extensive overseas travel. "Maybe Richard is not all over the planet the way I used to be 15, 20 years ago, I'm getting old," says the 48-year-old Jenkins of himself, laughing. "But I went around the planet twice this year."
