Staying allocated while safeguarding gains: Three approaches

BMO Global Asset Management’s The Vault – Winter 2026, authored by Mark Webster, outlines practical ways investors can dampen portfolio volatility without abandoning equity exposure after strong market gains.

• Elevated US equity concentration and commodity-heavy benchmarks increase downside risk, reinforcing the case for ongoing rebalancing and risk control.

• Low-volatility, long/short and options-based strategies can materially reduce portfolio beta while preserving participation in rising markets.

• Empirical results show improved drawdown control and Sharpe ratios versus broad equity indices over the past two years.

Explore the full article for comparative data and portfolio applications of these volatility-aware approaches.