Saturna Capital remains a solid steward of investor capital, earning the Amana funds an Above Average Parent rating.
The Amana funds are managed in accordance with Islamic principles, which include treating everyone equally and avoiding excessive risks. Those principles have served investors here well: Long-term performance has been especially strong for the firm's flagship growth strategy. Although aimed at Muslim investors, the funds have attracted plenty of non-Muslims as well. Saturna is based in Bellingham, Washington, but its office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, gives it access to a center of Islamic finance, and it has launched both additional Islamic-oriented strategies and newer sustainability-focused strategies over the past decade as it has grown.
Founder Nick Kaiser stepped down from portfolio management duties in May 2020, the culmination of a well-considered succession plan dating back more than a decade. This included the appointment of Scott Klimo as chief investment officer in 2016 and a transfer of firm control in 2018 to Kaiser's daughter Jane Carten. The firm has also added steadily to the investment team over time, but it still has the feel of an investment boutique, with USD 8.8 billion in assets under management and a dozen portfolio managers and analysts at the end of 2024. Higher-than-average expenses have been a weakness, but those expenses have come down in recent years.
Note: This share class' Parent Pillar rating is analyst-driven, as its Branding Name, Amana (Branding Name ID: BN000007WZ), is covered by Morningstar Manager Research.
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