John Hancock on the prowl to buy a fund firm

John Hancock Funds LLC is aiming to make an acquisition in the mutual fund industry, but for now, it is continuing its strategy of adopting funds, according to Keith Hartstein, its top executive.

John Hancock Funds LLC is aiming to make an acquisition in the mutual fund industry, but for now, it is continuing its strategy of adopting funds, according to Keith Hartstein, its top executive.
The company is looking to adopt an international-equity fund and possibly a mid-cap fund down the road, said the president and CEO.
Hancock this year filed to adopt Fiduciary Management Associates LLC’s Small Company Portfolio and reorganize it into the John Hancock Small Company Fund, marking the firm’s 10th fund adoption in the last seven years.
While fund adoptions have helped Hancock to expand its product line, the firm ultimately would like to acquire one big fund group or make a series of smaller acquisitions, Mr. Hartstein noted.
“The most important thing with acquiring a fund family is getting the talent that has a good track record,” he said.
Hancock, which has $26 billion in assets, currently has the scale to run about $60 billion in total assets, Mr. Hartstein said. “So we could manage $50 to 60 billion in assets without changing the infrastructure,” he said.
“The challenge is finding a motivated seller with these prices,” Mr. Hartstein said.