Raymond James eyes alternative and floating-rate funds
Over the past few months, the broker-dealer has received increased interest in mutual funds that aren't correlated to the equity markets,
Raymond James Financial Services Inc. is discussing adding alternative mutual funds to its platform.
Over the past few months, the broker-dealer has received increased interest in mutual funds that aren’t correlated to the equity markets, said Peter Greenberger, manager of mutual fund research at Raymond James & Associates Inc. “We understand the trauma that advisers and their clients went through in 2008, 2009,” Mr. Greenberger said at Raymond James Financial Services’ annual conference in Nashville, Tenn., this week. The reason the firm hasn’t added alternative funds to the 7,000 funds on its platform, he said, is because there aren’t that many with a three-year track record.
Funds that adopt alternative strategies is essential for advisers who want to be prepared when a market correction occurs, said Melissa W. Joy, a certified fund specialist and investment research manager at the Center for Financial Planning, Inc., a financial adviser affiliated with Raymond James that has $650 million in assets under management. “Getting more alternative options is one of my agenda items with Raymond James,” she said.
Raymond James also is hearing increased demand from advisers for floating-rate funds, Mr. Greenberger said. “With interest rates as low as they are, advisers are looking for options outside of bond funds,” he said. The challenge with floating-rate funds is that there are eight that offer daily liquidity. “And when you have a peer group of eight it’s hard to evaluate performance,” he said. The firm doesn’t have a timetable for when it would add floating rate funds to its platform.
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