After a dire 2014, are small cap fundamentals strengthening?

Is now a good time for investors to reconsider small- and mid-cap stocks, following their recent underperformance? Diane Bruno, lead portfolio manager of the Mandarine Unique fund, analyses the sectors attributes

Investing in small and mid caps has rewarded investors with nearly 15 years of outperformance versus large caps for a similar volatility. Unfortunately this has not held true for 2014. Could this be the beginning of a new trend?  Historically speaking, small and mid-cap stocks tend to outperform large caps except in periods of economic uncertainty. Last year was a good illustration, as a series of macroeconomic indicators paved the way for investors' mounting concerns over the European economy. However, things do change quickly, and the latest European economic data shows the market i...