Search

The article reports on the plan of alternatives firm Thesis Fund Management to hire up to six external wholesalers in 2012. The firm intends to enter a partnership with a major fund management firm. According to chief executive officer (CEO) Stephen Roseman, a number of numbers approached Thesis expressing interest in acquiring specialist alternatives managers.

The article reports on the plan of LPL Financial to add up to seven asset management firms to its Model Wealth Portfolios (MWP) platform. Executive John Moninger said these managers will act as strategists for the 8.5 billion U.S. dollars platform. MWP has already added exchange-traded funds (ETF) into some models in 2010 including BlackRock, Cougar Global Investments of Toronto and Quantitative Advisors.

The article reports on the impact of demand for enhanced customization and income guarantees on fund development initiatives at defined contribution investment-only managers (DCIO) in 2012. The entire asset management industry is said to be focusing on the DCIO market as it is projected to grow to 60% of total defined contribution assets by 2017. Companies entering the market include BlackRock, ING Investment Management, Legg Mason and Eaton Vance Investment Managers.

The article reports on the plan of First Eagle Funds to recruit investment management firms and expand its product range as it focuses on the institutional client segment. According to Bridget Macaskill, First Eagle Funds' president and chief executive officer (CEO), the fund believes that it needs to diversify its lineup of funds in order to address the needs of investors.

The article reports on the decision of American Funds to transfer an external wholesaler to the registered investment advisor (RIA) channel and another five to the 401(k) channel from the wirehouse and broker-dealer channels. The company has also decided to implement changes to its fund lineup as a result of requests from financial intermediaries. Six salesmen have been assigned to the channel as a result of the added RIA wholesaler.

The article reports on the opportunities being opened up for asset managers in the subadvisory market due to shifts in traditional portfolio construction, according to Cerulli Associates. The company estimates that assets under the subadvisory category, including those for mutual funds, variable annuities and separately managed retail accounts, will reach 3.3 trillion dollars by year-end 2014.

The article reports on the plan of OppenheimerFunds to merge three target-date funds. The funds to be included in the merger are the Oppenheimer Transition 2030 Fund, the Oppenheimer Transition 2040 Fund and the Oppenheimer Transition 2050 Fund which will be absorbed by the Oppenheimer Active Allocation Fund. According to OppenheimerFunds, the acquiring fund will have a greater edge of attracting new assets.

The article reports that Virtus Investment Partners has field paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June 2012 regarding its plan to launch five mutual funds with various strategies and subadvisors. The company's plan to acquire firms with assets of at least one billion dollars and specialist investment teams and new subadvisory relationships is mentioned. Subadvisors who have partnered with Virtus include Horizon Asset Management and Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors.

The article discusses a result of a poll conducted by the periodicals "Morningstar" and "Barron's" which reveals the 23.2 billion dollars of inflows in alternatives funds in 2011. It says that asset class interest has grew at a steady rate from 2008 to 2010 before a retreat in 2011. It adds that more than 46.2% of the investment advisors claim that fees serve as the top reason for their hesitance in investing to alternatives products.

The article reports on the three exchange-traded funds (ETFs) such as the Pring Turner Dow Jones Business Cycle ETF, the QAM Equity Hedge ETF, and the STAR Global Buy-Write ETF, which will be launched by AdvisorShares in summer 2012. Noah Hamman, the company's chief executive officer (CEO) states that financial advisors see the need for higher allocations on alternative strategies due to increase correlation in traditional asset classes. The differences in the three ETFs is cited.

The article discusses the opportunities offered by rep-as-portfolio-manager (RPM) programs for fund management firms. RPM programs involve putting asset allocation decisions and manager selection in the hands of financial advisors at broker-dealers. According to Bob Cunha, principal at Market Metrics, RPM programs deliver superior results for clients, as they prove less volatile and have lower dispersion and better risk-adjusted returns.

The article focuses on the move of Invesco into a new, product-specific phase of its financial advisor-targeted branding campaign, which uses the tagline Intentional Investing. The campaign includes print, online and television (TV) advertisements and estimated to cost 12 million dollars, according to industry consultants. David Nardecchia, head of U.S. brand marketing of Invesco, stated that the transaction included 119 billion dollars of retail assets under management.

The article reports that three closed-end funds are being targeted by dissident shareholder proposals to terminate investment advisor Morgan Stanley Investment Management. These funds are the 76 million-dollar Malaysia Fund, the 233 million-dollar Thai Fund and the 66 million-dollar Morgan Stanley Eastern Europe Fund. Shareholders will vote on the proposals during the funds' annual meeting in June 2012.

The article reports that independent, publicly listed U.S. asset managers were able to outperform asset management subsidiaries of listed U.S. financial conglomerates in 2011. Publicly traded asset managers reported a median profitability of 35 percent in 2011, compared to 25 percent for subsidiaries. Jeb Doggett, a partner at Casey, Quirk & Associated, cited retaining top talent and having lower turnover as the key factors that influenced such success.

The article reports on the reluctance of advisors to accept the Enhanced Short Maturity Strategy ETF (MINT) of Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO). The total return exchange traded fund (ETF) was launched in November 2009 and has attracted just 3.7 billion U.S. dollars of assets across 33 funds. According to Wiser Wealth Management president Casey Smith, he is interested in gaining exposure to the ETF.

The article focuses on a plan by Exchange Traded Concepts (ETC) to launch a hedge fund replication exchange-traded fund (ETF). It intends to track the actual holdings of specific hedge fund managers as disclosed via U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) 13F filings. ETC targets for the new fund are registered investment advisors, small U.S. asset managers, overseas fund firms and hedge fund managers.

The article focuses on a plan by Invesco PowerShares to launch two high-beta exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on February 24, 2012. The total number of factor-based funds in the PowerShares Global Factor-Driven ETFs suite is six. According to Taylor Ames of PowerShares, the plan is the firm's response to demand from financial advisors investing in existing factor-based ETFs. He also explains the success of high-beta and low-volatility funds.

The article announces the appointment of Western Asset Management by WisdomTree Investments as a subadvisor on future actively managed exchange-traded funds with global fixed-income and credit strategies.

The article announces the launching of followPioneer.com, the investment blog by Pioneer Investments featuring commentary from senior portfolio managers and executives. Joseph Kringdon of Pioneer Funds Distributor reveals that the blog will highlight the company's perspectives in a format that can be easily accessed by financial intermediaries and shared with their peers. Meanwhile, the company has also given iPads to its wholesalers.

The article reports on the 10% growth of 60 managers of stock or bond mutual funds in the first 11 months of 2011, despite market volatility, according to Strategic Insight. It also reveals that a variety of specialist/boutique firms and industry innovators were the fastest-growing managers of 2011. According to senior analyst Loren Fox, the leading contributor to strong growth by smaller, more specialized firms is the industry's transformation to fee-based distribution.

The article reports on the plans of Columbia Management to expand its advertising budget in 2012 and will recruit up to ten retail marketers to its 45-person team. The plans were disclosed by Chris Thompson, head of product and marketing. Following its acquisition by Ameriprise Financial in December 2010, Columbia introduced its first major advertising campaign. It states that Columbia's advertisements will target both advisors and end users.

The article reports that boutique companies such as Altegris Investments, Hussman Funds and Virtus Investment Partners have been tapped by financial advisors to manage their alternatives investment options, according to the findings of an analysis by Cogent Research in 2011. Advisors strongly prefer multi-strategy and managed futures strategies, says Tony Ferreira, managing director of Cogent. The specialties of each boutique companies are highlighted.

The article reports on the decision of Charles Schwab Investment Management to focus on education, both in-house and in the financial advisory community, to make itself a provider of indexed mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and money market funds that make up the core of a portfolio. The company is reportedly focusing on the registered investment advisor market, where it views the most potential for growth in assets under management

The article focuses on the effort of SteelPath Advisors to prepare a mutual fund that will invest in the debt of midstream energy infrastructure master limited partnerships (MLP) and their affiliates. The company hired first wholesalers in anticipation of continued growth in the sector. Scott Blankenship, vice president of sales and marketing at SteelPath Advisors, cited the move of financial advisors to diversify their allocations to alternatives by including investments in MLPs.

The article reports on the effort by investment management firms, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Asset Management, and William Blair & Co., to launch long/short mutual funds in the third quarter of 2011. It states that the financial crisis in 2008 resulted to a series of fund closures and outflows from the sector. According to Mike Mayhew of Aston Asset Management, the company launched its first long/short fund, the Aston/River Road Long-Short Fund in May 2011 in response to demand.

The article reports on a statement by portfolio managers at the CEFNetwork conference at the Grand Hyatt in New York on November 9, 2011 that investors can access diverse, illiquid markets using the closed-end funds structure. Jeff Margolin of First Trust Advisors cited low loan valuations and declining default rates, along with the low interest rate environment and demographic shifts as factors for senior floating-rate loans.

The article reports on the preparation of James Advantage Funds for a global flex mutual fund which it hopes to launch in mid-2012. The fund follows the launch of the James Long-Short Fund and underscores the desire of the firm to capture registered investment advisor money by offering a diverse range of products. The global flex fund will include a long/short strategy and will invest in country-specific exchange-traded equity funds and will charge an expense ratio of 150 basis points.

The article reports on a statement by participants in a panel discussion at Schwab IMPACT Conference in San Francisco, California on the competitive advantage of registered investment advisors over wirehouses and independent broker-dealers when it comes to leveraging social media. According to Mike Byrnes, president of Byrnes Consulting, social media offers a positive return on investment. Bill Winterberg, a columnist, recommended advisors to consider social media archiving services.

The article reports that Eaton Vance Investment Managers launched the Monthly Market Monitor, a monthly market guide and a series of conference calls aimed at stepping up advisor education. Christopher Remington of Eaton Vance confirms that the initiative aims to position the company as a thought leader across asset classes. It cites the five major sections of the guide which includes economic review, inflation watch and income markets.

This article reports on the move of asset management firms that offer real estate investment trusts (REITs) to recommend investments in the real estate sector in the U.S. in 2011.

The article reports on a new financial advisor Web site being planned by Morningstar that will include extensive information on alternative investment strategies. Nadia Papagiannis, analyst at Morningstar, claims that asset management companies that offer more details regarding portfolio holdings and risk exposure will be better positioned to win accolades. She also cited the lack of standardization for reporting risk exposure in alternatives funds.

The article reports that Saturna Capital is seeking to acquire mid-sized mutual fund advisory businesses in the U.S. and Asia-Pacific and is targeting subadvisory mandates. The Bellingham, Washington-based company is seeking to buy mutual fund companies with assets under management less than its current 3.6 billion U.S. dollars. The company advises Amana Funds and Sextant Funds.

This article reports on the selection of Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) as the top advisor-sold mutual fund brand in the U.S. in 2011. DFA has been chosen as the top brand for the second year in a row. Meanwhile, the position of American Funds in the rank dropped. The firm distributes its mutual funds through advisors, wirehouses and broker-dealers.

This article reports on the plan of Cambria Investment Management to launch several exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Cambria hired a dozen senior analysts and portfolio managers for the ETFs. According to the firm, the first ETF will be an equity fund. The funds will apply quantitative investment strategies in the equity and commodity sectors.

This article reports on the plan of several investment firms to conduct a road show in the U.S. to educate financial advisors on the use of tactical allocation strategies via alternatives mutual funds. The firms include Eaton Vance, Nuveen Investments, J.P. Morgan Asset Management. Forward Management will organize the road show.

The article focuses on the views of financial advisors, consultants and analysts on the increasing shift to alternatives funds. It is noted that while the number of mutual fund increased by 51 percent for 12 months ended June 30, 2011, percentage of products within alternative asset classes increased by 23 percent. A report from Cogent Research found that while 78 percent of all retail advisors have some allocation to alternatives, they have invested only one to four percent of their assets.

The article reports on the plan of Arrow Funds to hire a senior-level wholesaler to build a distribution channel that focuses on registered investment advisors in 2011. The firm prefers a wholesaler with alternatives market experience. One of the funds to be handled by the wholesalers is the Arrow DWA Balanced Fund. The amount of assets under Arrow management reached 773 million dollars.