Magellan’s FUM falls again

Magellan Financial Group has announced its funds under management (FUM) continued to decline in July, ending the month down $1.1 billion to $60.2 billion.

In an update released to the ASX on Thursday, Magellan said that it had experienced net outflows of $2.5 billion during the month, including net institutional outflows of $2.1 billion and net retail outflows of $400 million.

As of 29 July, the firm’s institutional FUM sat at $37.6 billion, down from $39.1 billion as of 30 June, while its retail FUM lifted from $22.2 billion to $22.6 billion over the same period.

The biggest decline was seen in infrastructure equities, which fell from $20.1 billion in June to $18.9 billion July. Institutional equities dipped from $33.3 billion to $33.0 billion, while Australian equities edged up from $7.9 billion to $8.3 billion.

Magellan’s FUM was just over $113.3 billion at the end of September last year, before falling to $95.5 billion in December, $70.0 billion in March and $61.3 billion in June.

The firm will announce its full-year financial results on 17 August. Last month, new CEO and MD David George expressed his excitement at joining the embattled fund manager.

“This is an important period for Magellan to demonstrate value to clients and shareholders, and I am confident we will deliver the strategy and strong investment performance to support this,” he said.

“I look forward to working with the Magellan board as we restore growth to the business.”

Also last month, Magellan revealed that its head of sales and distribution, Frank Casarotti, is set to depart next year after originally joining the firm in 2007.

Other major developments during the past year have included the resignation of CEO Brett Cairns, the loss of its largest institutional mandate and the exit of chairman and chief investment officer, Hamish Douglass.

Jon Bragg

Jon Bragg is a journalist for Momentum Media's Investor Daily, nestegg and ifa. He enjoys writing about a wide variety of financial topics and issues and exploring the many implications they have on all aspects of life.