Bermuda-based W.P. Stewart & Co. Ltd., an asset management company, yesterday hosted their annual investment seminar at Avery Fisher Hall in New York City with more than 700 clients assembled from around the world.

Chairman and CEO of the company William Stewart said: "The total earnings power behind client portfolios has continued to increase while corporate America has seen the largest year-over-year profit decline in decades. In this two-year bear market, the firm's composite has outperformed the S&P 500 by more than 1,00 basis points."

Mr. Stewart was pleased to say that preliminary data indicated that performance in the W.P. Stewart & Co. Ltd. US equity composite for the year-to-date through December 7 was approximately 5.6 percent pre-fee and -6.7 percent post-fee while the performance of the S&P 500 during the same period was -11.2 percent.

W.P. Stewart & Co. is an asset management company providing research-intensive equity management services. It is headquartered in Bermuda, and with additional operations or affiliates in the US Europe and Asia, managing in excess of $9.2 billion in assets as of December 7.