
Disclaimer Robeco Switzerland Ltd.
The information contained on these pages is solely for marketing purposes.
Access to the funds is restricted to (i) Qualified Investors within the meaning of art. 10 para. 3 et sequ. of the Swiss Federal Act on Collective Investment Schemes (“CISA”), (ii) Institutional Investors within the meaning of art. 4 para. 3 and 4 of the Financial Services Act (“FinSA”) domiciled Switzerland and (iii) Professional Clients in accordance with Annex II of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (“MiFID II”) domiciled in the European Union und European Economic Area with a license to distribute / promote financial instruments in such capacity or herewith requesting respective information on products and services in their capacity as Professional Clients.
The Funds are domiciled in Luxembourg and The Netherlands. ACOLIN Fund Services AG, postal address: Leutschenbachstrasse 50, CH-8050 Zürich, acts as the Swiss representative of the Fund(s). UBS Switzerland AG, Bahnhofstrasse 45, 8001 Zurich, postal address: Europastrasse 2, P.O. Box, CH-8152 Opfikon, acts as the Swiss paying agent.
The prospectus, the Key Investor Information Documents (KIIDs), the articles of association, the annual and semi-annual reports of the Fund(s) may be obtained, on simple request and free of charge, at the office of the Swiss representative ACOLIN Fund Services AG. The prospectuses are also available via the website https://www.robeco.com/ch.
Some funds about which information is shown on these pages may fall outside the scope of CISA and therefore do not (need to) have a license from or registration with the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA).
Some funds about which information is shown on this website may not be available in your domicile country. Please check the registration status in your respective domicile country. To view the Robeco Switzerland Ltd. products that are registered/available in your country, please go to the respective Fund Selector, which can be found on this website and select your country of domicile.
Neither information nor any opinion expressed on this website constitutes a solicitation, an offer or a recommendation to buy, sell or dispose of any investment, to engage in any other transaction or to provide any investment advice or service. An investment in a Robeco Switzerland Ltd. product should only be made after reading the related legal documents such as prospectuses, annual and semi-annual reports.
By clicking “I agree” you confirm that you/the company you represent falls under one of the above-mentioned categories of addressees and that you have read, understood and accept the terms of use for this website.
Quantitative investing
Low volatility factor
Low volatility stocks realize comparatively high risk-adjusted returns. The same is true for corporate bonds.
The notion that greater risk pays off in the long run by generating higher returns has been proven incorrect by academic research*. Further studies show that the performance of low-risk stocks does not lag that of the market as a whole. The chart below demonstrates this on the basis of data from a study.
Figure: Risk-return ratio 1931 - 2009

Source: Pim van Vliet: 'Low-volatility investing - a long-term perspective', January 2012.
Robeco's approach to investing in low-volatility equities is reflected in its 'Conservative Strategy'. Compared to an ordinary low-volatility strategy, this approach strives to achieve lower transaction costs, reduced risk and extra returns in a market upturn.
Robeco not only selects stocks on the basis of low volatility, but also looks at insolvency risk and Value- and Momentum-driven factors. For example, by taking the Value factor into account in the selection of low-volatility stocks, investors are prevented from paying too high a price.
This is how this strategy differs from that used by low-vol investors who select stocks exclusively on the basis of historically low volatility.
Invisible layers surface to deliver attractive returns
Figure: Improved risk-return ratio in Robeco's Low Volatility factor approach - Robeco Conservative Equities

Source: Pim van Vliet: 'Low-volatility investing - a long-term perspective', January 2012.
Robeco uses the low-volatility anomaly not only for stocks, but also for bonds, and calls this approach 'Robeco Conservative Credits'. According to this methodology, investments are made consistently in the bonds of companies with a low level of expected risk.
These bonds are characterized by a shorter time to maturity and a higher level of 'seniority' (the order of repayments in the event of default). The bonds are issued by companies with relatively low debt-to-equity ratios.