IGM Financial Inc.

Welcome to the IGM Financial Fourth Quarter 2023 Analyst Call and Webcast. As a reminder, all participants are in a listen-only mode, and the conference is being recorded. After the presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To join the question queue, you may press star then 1 on your telephone keypad. Should you need assistance during the conference call, you may signal an operator by pressing star then 0. I would now like to turn the conference over to Kyle Martin, Treasurer and Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Thank you, Betsy. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to IGM Financial's 2023 Fourth Quarter Earnings Call. Joining me on the call today, we have James O'Sullivan, President and CEO of IGM Financial, Damon Murchison, President and CEO of of Vice President and CFO, IGM Financial. Before we get started, I would like to draw your attention to our cautions concerning forward-looking statements on slide three of the presentation. Slides four and five summarize non-IFRS financial measures and other financial measures used in this material. And on slide six, we provide a list of documents that are incorporated by reference and available on our website related to IGM Financial's fourth quarter results. I'll now turn it over to James.

Thank you, Kyle, and good morning, everyone. Turning to slide eight. 2023 was an important year for IGM Financial. We made significant progress positioning IGM for meaningful growth, including efforts during the year to streamline our organization and two important pairs of transactions. The first, of course, was the closing of an increased investment in China AMC and a partial sale of our Great West Life Co. equity stake. And the second was the equity investment in Rockefeller Capital Management in April and the sale of IPC to Canada Life, which closed during the fourth quarter. To capture the cumulative efforts to reposition IGM, we've introduced a new brand image, and realigned our segments to represent our focus on wealth and asset management with a combined total of $389 billion in assets under management and advisement. Turning to slide nine, looking ahead to 2024, we will be focused on leaning into our businesses, supporting them, and leveraging their competitive advantages to win in their respective market segments. Across our segments, we will continue to drive operational excellence, executing consistently, and seeking to continuously elevate our products and capabilities. In terms of capital allocation, as we articulated at our Investor Day in early December, our top priority is to invest in the long-term success of our core businesses, IG Wealth Management and McKenzie Investments. This will include investing in IG Wealth's segmented advice model and the leading middle office solution being implemented at McKenzie. We have an attractive dividend that we are committed to and we know is valued by our shareholders. And with the renewal of our normal course issuer bid during December, we will look to offset stock option dilution and potentially take advantage of opportunities to repurchase shares at attractive levels during 2024. Turning to the results for the fourth quarter on slide 10, adjusted EPS of 84 cents excludes the gain recognized on the sale of IPC to Canada Life, but it includes the impact of a negative fair value adjustment within IG wealth mortgage banking operations. Keith will speak to this later in the call. Our AUM&A, including strategic investments, grew by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, driven by strong financial market returns and significant net inflows across most of our wealth and asset management businesses. IG Wealth and McKenzie's net flows results continue to be influenced by the current operating environment. and partially offset the growth from strong client returns. IGM Financial was once again recognized by corporate nights as one of the 100 most sustainable companies in the world. We were also recognized as a top 100 employer in Canada. Part of this recognition relates to how we engage with our local communities and our talent. Our talent is comprised of great people and leadership teams working across our businesses. They drove our businesses to new heights during 2023. We are grateful for all of their hard work, dedication, and continued commitment. Turning to slide 11, we remind everyone how strong the markets finished in 2023, with significant increases across most equity markets and the Canadian fixed income market. Slide 12 speaks to the Canadian operating environment from the perspective of mutual fund flows. Canadians continue to redeem from mutual funds on a net basis during the fourth quarter as the high interest rates and inflationary environment continue to weigh on households. Looking forward to 2024, the strong equity and fixed income market performance in 2023 will serve to improve investor sentiment and supports a more constructive net flows view for 2024. However, we anticipate the current economic environment to continue to weigh on Canadian households' ability to save for their long-term financial objectives over the near term. This is temporary. As the economic picture evolves and the interest rates find a normalized level, Canadians will turn their attention back to their long-term financial health and adjust as required to achieve their goals. Our focus on financial planning and advice is relevant throughout market cycles. As we move through this phase of the current cycle, financial advisors are there to help clients navigate this period of change. Slide 13 presents IGM's Consolidated Average Results, both of which I spoke to in my opening comments. Slide 14 now presents an adjusted net earnings view based on our realigned segments. As our core businesses benefit from focused investments and our other companies execute against their growth-driven strategies, we look forward to presenting the strength of each segment as we work towards the medium-term earnings growth objective of 9% or better, which we outlined at our investor day. Slide 15 shows the Q4 ending AUM&A across our companies, including the investments that we have made over 2023 and excluding IPC. Our ending AUM&A was up by 35% versus Q4 2022. I'll now invite Damon to speak to the results of our wealth management segment. Thank you, James, and good morning, everyone.