REUTERS/Jim Young
Bill Gross
Bill Gross was the founder and Chief Investment Officer of the trillion dollar bond fund. He's such a legend on Wall Street that he is known simply as "The Bond King." At PIMCO he made a $200 million salary.
"Bill Gross has an exemplary track record with decades of success and he will offer an exceptional approach to navigating today's increasingly risky markets with a focus on macro, unconstrained strategies. His involvement provides Janus a unique opportunity to offer strategies and products that are highly complementary to those already managed by our credit-based fixed income team," said Richard M. Weil, Chief Executive Officer of Janus Capital Group.
The problem is that things have changed in recent years.
Gross has had what MarketWatch called his "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year." Plagued by massive outflows for years - especially in the flagship fund he personally managed. As of August, his PIMCO Total return fund, had seen 15 straight months of outflows totaling $830 million in July alone.
Matters were made worse when his respected co-CIO Mohamed El-Erian left the firm in January.
A public spiral followed shortly thereafter. Stories started flowing out of the power-house bond firm about Gross' management style. Employees described him as a showboat, and an aggressive one. His behavior became erratic at public conferences.
When he appeared on stage at the Morningstar annual investor conference to "Smooth" by Carlos Santana and Rob Thomas while wearing a pair of shades, people started to wonder is - something weird going on with Bill Gross ? Watch the video below.
And then this week, the news broke that regulators are investigating Gross' flagship Total Return ETF. They are trying to decide whether or not PIMCO undervalued assets within the security to make returns appear larger.
For it's part, though, Janus is happy to welcome a man with such a storied record to the fold.
Check out the press below:
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Janus Capital Group Inc. (NYSE: JNS) today announced that William H. Gross, world-renowned fixed income investor, will be joining Janus Capital Group. He will manage a recently launched Janus Global Unconstrained Bond Fund and related strategies, and will join Myron Scholes, Ph.D., and other members of the Janus team focused on global asset allocation. Mr. Gross' employment will be effective September 29, 2014 and he will begin managing the Janus Global Unconstrained Bond Fund and related strategies effective October 6, 2014.
Mr. Gross will be based in a new Janus office to be established in Newport Beach, California and will be responsible for building-out the firm's efforts in global macro fixed income strategies. His concentration on such strategies will be separate and complementary to Janus' existing and highly successful credit-based fixed income platform, built under the leadership of Janus' Fixed Income Chief Investment Officer, Gibson Smith.
"Bill Gross has an exemplary track record with decades of success and he will offer an exceptional approach to navigating today's increasingly risky markets with a focus on macro, unconstrained strategies. His involvement provides Janus a unique opportunity to offer strategies and products that are highly complementary to those already managed by our credit-based fixed income team," said Richard M. Weil, Chief Executive Officer of Janus Capital Group. "With Bill leading our global macro efforts and Gibson our credit-based fixed income team, I am confident Janus will be able to meet the needs of virtually any client."
"I look forward to returning my full focus to the fixed income markets and investing, giving up many of the complexities that go with managing a large, complicated organization," said Mr. Gross. "I chose Janus as my next home because of my long standing relationship with and respect for CEO Dick Weil and my desire to get back to spending the bulk of my day managing client assets. I look forward to a mutually supportive partnership with Fixed Income CIO Gibson Smith and his team; they have delivered excellent results across their strategies, which deserve more attention."
About Janus Capital Group Inc.
Janus Capital Group Inc. (JCG) is a global investment firm dedicated to delivering better outcomes for clients through differentiated investment solutions. It currently has a number of distinct investment groups, including equity and fixed income teams within Janus Capital Management LLC (Janus), as well as subsidiaries INTECH Investment Management LLC (INTECH) and Perkins Investment Management LLC (Perkins). Each brings a distinct perspective, style-specific expertise and a disciplined approach to risk. The firm's strategy for growth and development is based on continuing to expand a range of distinctive solutions across multiple asset classes and styles including equities, fixed & other income, alternatives, asset allocation and managed volatility.
At the end of June 2014, JCG managed approximately $177.7 billion in assets for shareholders, clients and institutions around the globe. Based in Denver, JCG also has offices in London, Milan, Munich, Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Melbourne, Paris, The Hague, Zurich, Frankfurt, Dubai and Taipei.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Call 877.33JANUS (52687) or visit janus.com/advisor/mutual-funds for current month-end performance.
There is no assurance the stated objectives will be met or that the investment process will consistently lead to successful investing. Diversification neither assures a profit nor eliminates the risk of experiencing investment losses. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal and fluctuation of value.
Any portfolio risk management process discussed includes an effort to monitor and manage risk which should not be confused with and does not imply low risk or the ability to control certain risk factors. Alpha compares the risk-adjusted performance of a portfolio to a benchmark index. A positive alpha means the portfolio has outperformed the index on a risk-adjusted basis.
Please consider the charges, risks, expenses and investment objectives carefully before investing. For a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this and other information, please call Janus at 877.33JANUS (52687) or download the file from janus.com/info. Read it carefully before you invest or send money.