The Bartlett Profile
David P. Francis
Senior Fixed Income Strategist
Troy R. Snider, CFA
Senior Portfolio Manager
The long-running collaboration between David Francis and Troy Snider is compelling evidence of the power of teamwork in devising and implementing effective investment strategies. For almost 20 years, David and Troy have been working as a team in Bartlett’s Fixed Income Group where they utilize their individual and collective expertise to bring clients’ investment goals to fruition.
"We have worked together through several cycles in the economy and we have all the research and knowledge resulting from that experience at our disposal," says Troy, a Senior Portfolio Manager. "At Bartlett, we can customize a portfolio to fit a client’s risk tolerance and long-term goals far better than a typical shop could do. We have a lot of tools we can utilize to add value to portfolios in terms of the different kinds of securities we can get into and the research we do to analyze credit and yield curve opportunities."
"We use historical data to customize a scenario analysis for clients so we can model possible futures and give them confidence they can achieve their goals," says David, a Senior Fixed Income Strategist. "We can run up to 5,000 paths in a scenario, so it’s much more robust than a typical projection that says if you get an X percent return for 20 years you’ll have X amount when you start taking it out."
Similar Background, Different Paths
Troy and David believe that part of a reason they work well together is their similar backgrounds and interests. "The biggest thing is we just click personally. We have similar backgrounds, we both grew up in Indiana and we have a lot of common hobbies and like a lot of the same sports teams." says Troy.
Even with the similarities, the two Fixed Income experts took different paths to get where they are today. David grew up just north of Indianapolis in Alexandria and attended nearby Ball State University where he earned a B.S. in Finance. He joined Bartlett’s Investment Advisory Group on Reds’ Opening Day in 1989. "I thought, what a great way to start a job in a new city; we should have a parade like this every day," he says of the fanfare that surrounds Cincinnati’s celebration of the start of baseball season.
David quickly moved into the Fixed Income Group and now conducts extensive scenario analysis through the use of computer-driven modeling including Monte Carlo simulations and correlation studies. He has been managing portfolios since the late 1990s.
While David specializes in computer modeling and analysis of interest rate curves and sector spreads, Troy’s specialty is corporate and municipal credit analysis and security selection related to the bond markets. Originally an operations engineer working in the Gulf Coast region after graduating from Rose Hulman with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Troy soon found himself doing analysis related to the financing of oil and gas projects. His interest in finance prompted him to return to school and earn an M.B.A. in Finance from Indiana University, which led to a position as an energy sector credit analyst at a major investment research firm in Chicago. "I was a big Reds and Bengals fan because I grew up in this area and when Bartlett was beefing up its credit research area in the early 1990s, I decided to come back here," says Troy, who joined Bartlett in 1991.
Actively Managing for Maximum Returns
David and Troy report that there are several misconceptions about the bond markets, beginning with the view that bonds aren’t actively traded. "A novice investor wouldn’t typically think you can trade bonds; most people think you buy bonds and simply mature them," says Troy. "So, we spend a lot of time educating our clients about how there is more than one way to get value out of bonds. We look for the price and the income; the total return on bonds is what we’re all about."
"Another misconception is that a lot of bond investors feel they can buy a bond based simply on its credit rating and people are finding out that’s not always the most reliable measure of risk involved," says David. "The market changes, credit ratings change and they can change very quickly especially in an environment like this current downturn where all the credit ratings are being tested and revisited. This is where our access to the depth of research we have at our disposal becomes critically important."
"We are active bond managers, but we’re not the kind of active bond managers that flip a portfolio upside down every three months," says Troy, dispelling another common misconception that bond management primarily is a passive function." We look for strategic opportunities to make tweaks and adjustments. We certainly monitor credit and sell bonds when they look like they might get into trouble or buy when we have high hopes the price will go up because the credit is getting better. There is an opportunity to add value that way, but just to put bonds into a portfolio as an index strategy, that’s not what we’re about."
"A passive strategy wants to replicate a benchmark as opposed to actively striving to outperform the benchmark which is what we do," says David. "The experience that we have allows us to know when we’re getting a good deal and when we’re not, and we’re happy to pass on days when there are no good deals to be had."
"We may look at something for six weeks before we act, knowing all along that anytime could be the right time to buy," adds Troy. "We’re constantly looking at different parameters to decide when the right time is going to be. It’s timing and patience."
David and Troy emphasize that they enjoy meeting the challenge of exceeding benchmarks, and they thrive in the ever-changing nature of the bond markets." It changes every day and you get a real education in world politics and business," says David. "There is always something different that is impacting the market on a given day so you need to stay up to date. It keeps you on your toes."
David P. Francis: At a glance
Title:
Senior Fixed Income Strategist
Education:
B.S., Finance, Ball State University;
M.B.A., International Business, Xavier University
Professional Involvement:
Contributor, Ohio State Treasurer’s Center for Public Investment Management
Personal:
Married to wife Kathy; two children: Zachary and Anna
Troy R. Snider, CFA: At a glance
Title:
Senior Portfolio Manager
Education:
B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Rose Hulman;
M.B.A., Finance, Indiana University
Certifications:
Chartered Financial Analyst