Fund Evaluator:
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional (CONIX)
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Best Performing in Convertibles Over the Last Year
| 24.2% | Harbor Ares Systematic Cnvrt Scs Ins (HACSX) |
| 24.1% | Fidelity Advisor Convertible Secs Z (FIQVX) |
| 24.0% | Fidelity Convertible Securities (FCVSX) |
| 23.8% | Harbor Ares Systematic Cnvrt Scs Inv (HICSX) |
| 21.1% | Invesco Convertible Securities Y (CNSDX) |
Fund Details
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional Overview
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional (CONIX) is an actively managed Allocation Convertibles fund. Lazard launched the fund in 2022.
The investment seeks long-term capital appreciation. Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its assets (including borrowing for investment purposes) in convertible securities that are economically tied to the U.S. “Convertible securities” are fixed-income and preferred equity securities that pay a fixed or floating rate of interest or dividends.
About Lazard US Convertibles Institutional (CONIX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 3.59 years: Andrew Raab (2022), Emmanuel Naar (2022), Arnaud Brillois (2022). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg US Universal TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and ICE BofA US Convt Bonds TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has 101 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 27.5% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional is part of the Hybrid Securities global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.5%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 17.4% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 77.4% convertible bond). Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has 4.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $17 million in total assets, which is below the $212 million average for the Convertibles category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
CONIX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Lazard US Convertibles Institutional expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Convertibles category. Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has an expense ratio of 0.75%, which is 32% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has a portfolio turnover rate of 51%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 109% for the Convertibles category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Lazard US Convertibles Institutional returned -5.3%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Convertibles category had an average return of -4.5%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional has a trailing yield of 4.02%, which is above the 1.71% category average. The fund normally distributes its income quarterly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Lazard US Convertibles Institutional Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 13.3%, 0.3 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 21.2% over the past year (grade of C) and 11.4% over the past three years (grade of F).
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CONIX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| CONIX Return (NAV) | -5.3% | -0.6% | 21.2% | 11.4% | na | na |
| CONIX Grade | B | D | C | F | na | na |
| +/- Category | -0.8% | -1.7% | 0.3% | -2.4% | na | na |
| Convertibles Avg | -4.5% | 1.1% | 20.9% | 13.8% | 5.6% | 10.7% |
| CONIX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.8% | 1.8% | na | na |
CONIX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| CONIX Return (NAV) | 13.3% | 16.9% | 5.3% | 10.6% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| CONIX Grade | C | C | F | B | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | 0.3% | 0.8% | -5.9% | 1.9% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Convertibles Avg | 13.0% | 16.1% | 11.2% | 8.7% | -17.8% | 4.9% | 42.4% | 22.9% | -1.6% | 13.8% | 8.1% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 12.3% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.00 - Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.05 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | B (32% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.10 |
| R-Squared: | 70% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 4.0% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Quarterly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $17 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 18 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 51% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 3.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Raab Andrew (2022), Naar Emmanuel (2022), Brillois Arnaud (2022) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 101 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 27.5% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.5% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 17.4% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 77.4% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 4.7% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Lazard |
| Phone Number: | 800-986-3455 |
| Website: | www.lazardnet.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | December 30, 2022 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $10,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.75% ( Rating : Above Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.11% |
| Share Class: | Lazard US Convertibles Institutional |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 50 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
