Louvre Gestion has been selecting experts in the management of American equities for more than 15 years. Thanks to this selective approach, the last 10 years has seen the creation of a limited number of funds promoted by the HSBC Private Bank France whose management has been put in the hands of specialists.

In this connection we have approached four management companies which have been, or are likely to be, selected.

Legg Mason Capital Management
Headed by Bill Miller, one of the best-known US equity managers, the Legg Mason CM management team follows a single management philosophy, its “relative value contrarian” philosophy. The company is located in Baltimore and manages assets of USD 67.9 billion (31.12.06).

ICAP (Institutional Capital)
Established in Chicago in 1970, ICAP managed USD 18 billion at the end of 2006, mainly for institutional clients. The 12-man management team has a unique approach to management: seeking out undervalued big caps with a clearly defined catalyst against which they can estimate the performance of the security over a 12-18 month horizon.

Edgewood Management Llc
A New York Management company which is 100% owned by its employees, Edgewood Management specialises in the management of US large cap growth. Management of the 2.6 billion assets (30.09.06) is in the hands of six analyst-managers all with over 20 years asset management experience.

Perritt Capital Management
Based in Chicago, Perritt Capital Management specialises in investment in US micro-caps (companies with a capitalisation of less than USD 500 million). With assets of USD 675 million under management (31.12.06), Perritt CM is regularly cited among the best US equities management companies.