Gartmore closes chapter on an inglorious 2010
YESTERDAY, investors likely saw Gartmore report as an independent fund manager for the last time. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Assets under management now stand at £15.8bn, a £7.7bn drop on the end-March figure.
Of course, the real loss is far greater than that. Gartmore managed to lose billions of pounds in assets while its rivals were making hay on the back of booming equity markets.
The firm has continued to lose assets since the start of the year, shedding some £790m assets in the first seven weeks of 2011, even though soon-to-be-owner Henderson had said clients would stick around.
Although the rate of outflows is starting to slow (see graph, left), we are still sceptical as to whether Henderson can make this acquisition work. St James’s Place (results below) is a better pick while Jupiter and Hargreaves are also good bets.