This week in new portfolio products, Russell Investments veterans launched a new boutique firm, while MassMutual changed names on funds and enhancing their options. Also, Chris Barris was named sole primary portfolio manager for the Dreyfus High Yield Strategies Fund, and Advisors Asset Management’s High 50 Dividend Strategy Portfolio topped $700 million in AUM.
Here are the four of the latest fund developments affecting advisors:
1) Russell Investments Veterans Launch Acuitas Investments
Russell Investments veterans Chris Tessin and Dennis Jensen on July 25 announced the launch of Acuitas Investments, a boutique investment firm offering multi-manager solutions in inefficient, capacity-constrained asset classes.
The Seattle-based firm’s initial focus will be on offering a multimanager microcap product to institutions and high-net-worth investors. The first offering from Acuitas, launched in the second quarter, focuses on the micro-cap space.
Tessin and Jensen, who bring more than 35 years of investment experience to Acuitas, managed more than $16 billion in assets between the two of them during their time with Russell. Tessin served as lead portfolio manager for the micro-, small- and mid-cap products at Russell. Jensen was lead portfolio manager for Russell’s U.S. quantitative and style equity products, as well as a senior research analyst with responsibility for both U.S. equity and alternative strategies.
2) MassMutual Enhances Target Date and Lifestyle Investment Options for Retirement Plan Services Clients
MassMutual announced July 27 that its retirement services division has enhanced investment offerings in the target date (lifecycle) and lifestyle (risk aware) categories. The new investment offerings were implemented in June.
Portfolios within both the target date and lifestyle series utilize a fund-of-funds approach that combines mutual funds offered by MassMutual into professionally managed strategies that consider an investor’s expected retirement date (RetireSMART target date) or an investor’s risk tolerance (RetireSMART lifestyle).