The Azalea Fund LP (“Azalea” or the “Fund”) is a private investment fund with ownership in a concentrated portfolio of smaller capitalization public equities in North America, primarily Canada. Azalea utilizes a disciplined, private-equity mindset and fundamental research process to identify undervalued and overlooked opportunities with value-surfacing catalysts.
Azalea targets superior after-tax absolute returns driven by company-specific fundamentals, independent from general market conditions (i.e. idiosyncratic and uncorrelated returns). Azalea is purposely structured to act different than most traditional investment funds to achieve this goal.
The iconic and vibrant azalea flowers at the Augusta National Golf Club play a central role in the aesthetic and historical identity of The Masters, golf’s most prestigious and coveted professional tournament. The thirteenth hole at Augusta National, named “Azalea” and flanked by these flowers, is a short Par 5 - sweeping dogleg left, presenting a critical risk-reward decision. Azalea celebrates the importance of prudently assessing risk and reward, the foundation for all of its investment decisions.
“Azalea” Origin
The Azalea Edge
Alignment
The Azalea principals are the largest investors in the Fund - paying the same fees as other investors.
Azalea measures success on after-tax fund performance, not asset gathering and AUM growth.
Patience
Anchored with our own principal capital, Azalea can tolerate market volatility, enabling us to take advantage of short-term price dislocations to capture long-term return opportunities.
Size
A small and nimble fund protects our edge and enables our ability to move quickly and decisively when opportunity presents itself.
Azalea can invest in the more inefficient corners of the market, creating compelling opportunities that others structurally cannot take advantage of.
Concentrated, Research-Intensive, and Contrarian
Concentrated portfolio of fewer well-researched and compelling opportunities, rather than diluting returns with over-diversification.
Proven and repeatable independent investment process, bolstered by an intensive proprietary network of likeminded investors, analysts, and business owners to help us garner and maintain edge.
An independent and contrarian mindset; great opportunities are found where others are not looking.
Our Team
Rob McLay
Lead Portfolio Manager
Rob has 13 years of experience in the investment and capital market industry across both sell-side and buy-side, with a focus on private and public equity investing. Rob is a registered Portfolio Manager (Advising Representative) & Dealing Representative with Sharno Capital Corporation. Previously, Vice President at Zola Global, a large global principal family office focused on private and public North American equity investments from 2019 to 2024. Prior to Zola, Associate Portfolio Manager at Alignvest Capital Management from 2015-2019 focused on long/short Canadian equities. Prior experience includes Investment Banking Analyst at Scotiabank Global and Investment Analyst at Birch Hill Equity Partners.
Rob holds an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration with a Minor in Finance from Wilfrid Laurier University.
Shael Soberano, CFA
Portfolio Manager & Chief Compliance Officer
Shael is the Chief Compliance Officer and a registered Dealing Representative & Advising Representative with Sharno Capital Corporation.
Shael is also the Chief Investment Officer of Sharno Group Inc., a privately owned independent principal investment group and family office focused on identifying strategic, value-add investment opportunities across a wide range of traditional and alternative asset classes and strategies.
Most recently, Shael Soberano was Vice President, Senior Analyst at Vision Capital Corporation, a leading Toronto-based Hedge Fund manager focused on publicly-traded real estate related securities. Shael first joined Vision Capital as an Analyst in 2009, shortly after its inception. He was promoted to Vice President, Senior Analyst in 2014, and was registered as an Advising Representative with the Ontario Securities Commission in 2017. With a wide range of roles spanning both business development and investment management initiatives, Shael’s contributions were integral in growing Vision Capital’s assets under management and contributed to its award-winning risk-adjusted performance over that period.
Shael is a CFA Charterholder and completed the Bachelor of Management and Organizational Studies Honours Degree with a Specialization in Finance at the University of Western Ontario. Shael completed the Partners, Directors, and Senior Officers (PDO) Course in 2019 and the Canadian Securities Course (CSC) in 2010.
Sharno Capital Corporation
The Azalea Fund LP is managed by Sharno Capital Corporation, an Investment Fund Manager (IFM), Portfolio Manager (PM), and Exempt Market Dealer (EMD) registered with the Ontario Securities Commission.
Experienced regulatory and investment supervisory value-add, responsible for the day-to-day business of the Fund including compliance, reporting, and general governance of the Fund.
Providing financial and operational support, mitigating the typical start-up risks of a new investment fund.
Azalea benefits from Sharno’s institutional approach and processes, as well as the Sharno Group of Companies’ broader eco-system, network, and operational expertise.
