Manulife's Asset Management Division To Expand To Europe

Manulife Financial Corporation’s (NYSE:MFC) investment division, Manulife Asset Management, recently announced its plan to expand its operations in Europe. The investment wing already boasts a compelling presence in North America and in Asia.

Manulife Asset Management has identified Europe (and the wider EMEA market) as a significant growth area. This has prompted the life insurer to make long-term investments in this particular region.

The asset management firm has added twice the number of its original employees in London in the past 18 months. This included important appointments in both distribution and investment teams. The investment division’s U.K. office currently has a workforce of 40, but the firm expects to grow its employee base substantially in the near term.

Expansion of European investment teams and client base over the last couple of years is a perfect complement of the firms continued efforts to strengthen its already robust investment management capabilities in North America and Asia. This, in turn, is expected to help the asset manager focus more on this important market and its clients’ needs. Moreover, the asset management firm has brought in exceptional skills to the institutional and wholesale clients, which in turn will allow the firm to serve the global investor community.

Manulife Asset Management has set up an investment and distribution center to support to its expansion efforts in Europe. The center is an Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) fund platform, based in Dublin. Currently, the platform consists of 11 funds registered for sale in the U.K. and Ireland. Strategic Fixed Income, Global Equities and Emerging Market Equities are few of the strategies represented by the platform. The asset management firm has initiated the transfer of such funds into other European countries.

The asset manager intends to market its investment capabilities to both institutional and wholesale clients of this region. The firm has boosted its research competencies in London by adding analysts to its Emerging Market Debt, Global Fixed Income, and Emerging Market Equity teams.

Manulife has expanded its operations to different continents in the past and is now considered as the leader in asset management in the Asian market. It represents around 17% of the firm’s global assets under management (AUM).

Manulife Asset Management offers complete and all-inclusive asset management solutions to investors. The firm is known for its depth of investment expertise across a wide range of public and private asset classes as well as asset allocation solutions. The asset management firm has more than 425 investment professionals with offices in 16 countries and territories.

Manulife’s backing and support enable the asset management division to provide resources and infrastructure to its investment management teams, which are essential to build new and existing investment solutions for its clients. As of Mar 31, 2016, the company’s global AUM was $325 billion (€285 billion/£226 billion).

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Currently, Manulife sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).Other favorably placed stocks from the same space that warrant a look include GWG Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWGH) , China Life Insurance Co. Ltd. (NYSE:LFC) and Universal American Corp. (NYSE:UAM) . Each of these stocks holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

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