Fund Evaluator:
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A (ORIGX)
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Best Performing in Small Blend Over the Last Year
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Fund Details
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A Overview
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A (ORIGX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Blend fund. North Square launched the fund in 1994.
The investment seeks to provide capital appreciation. The fund is considered a “fund of funds” that invests primarily in affiliated mutual funds managed by the Adviser and its affiliates. Under normal conditions, through the underlying funds, the fund is expected to indirectly invest in the equity securities of U.S. and foreign micro-cap, small, and mid-sized companies among others. The fund uses a “blend” strategy to gain investment exposure to both growth and value stocks, or to stocks with characteristics of both.
About North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A (ORIGX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 4.46 years: Brad Thompson (2022), Clayton Wilkin (2022), David Appleby (2022). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Russell 2000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has 5 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 100.0% 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.
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has 2.6% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 95.9%. There is 2.6% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% 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 0.0% convertible bond). North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has 1.5% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $49 million in total assets, which is below the $685 million average for the Small Blend 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.
ORIGX 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 North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Small Blend category. North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has an expense ratio of 2.31%, which is 121% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. 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. North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has a portfolio turnover rate of 19%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 66% for the Small Blend category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A returned -2.6%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Small Blend category had an average return of -2.8%. 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.
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A has a trailing yield of 0.48%, which is above the 0.42% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually 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.
North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 21.1%, 2.9 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of B. The fund has returned 33.3% over the past year (grade of B), 17.7% over the past three years (grade of A) and 7.1% per year over the past five years (grade of C) and 10.1% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
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ORIGX 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 |
|
| ORIGX Return (NAV) | -2.6% | 8.7% | 33.3% | 17.7% | 7.1% | 10.1% |
| ORIGX Grade | C | A | B | A | C | C |
| +/- Category | 0.2% | 3.5% | 5.1% | 4.2% | -0.5% | -0.2% |
| Small Blend Avg | -2.8% | 5.2% | 28.3% | 13.5% | 7.6% | 10.3% |
| ORIGX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 0.2% | 0.1% | 2.9% | 4.1% |
ORIGX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| ORIGX Return (NAV) | 21.1% | 9.5% | 15.1% | 24.7% | -27.0% | 10.1% | 29.9% | 22.4% | -6.6% | 19.0% | 2.1% |
| ORIGX Grade | B | B | A | A | F | F | A | D | A | A | F |
| +/- Category | 2.9% | 1.5% | 3.5% | 8.2% | -10.5% | -13.1% | 15.6% | -3.1% | 5.2% | 4.9% | -18.1% |
| Small Blend Avg | 18.2% | 7.9% | 11.6% | 16.5% | -16.5% | 23.2% | 14.4% | 25.5% | -11.8% | 14.1% | 20.2% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 19.8% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.61 - High |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.07 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | F (84% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.18 |
| R-Squared: | 61% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.5% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $74 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 49 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | A |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 19% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 4.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 4.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Thompson Brad (2022), Wilkin Clayton (2022), Appleby David (2022) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 4/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 5 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 100.0% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 2.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 95.9% |
| Foreign Stock: | 2.6% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.5% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | North Square |
| Phone Number: | 855-551-5521 |
| Website: |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | January 3, 1994 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $1,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $1,000 |
| True No-Load: | No |
| Front Load Maximum: | 5.75% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 2.31% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.05% |
| Share Class: | North Square Spectrum Alpha Fund A |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 100 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 100 |
