Salient Partners is set to acquire Forward Management, an independent, privately-held asset management firm based in San Francisco, California, and investment advisor to the Forward Funds.
Upon completion of the transaction, the combined firm will manage and advise over $27bn in assets.
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Salient and Forward expect the proposed transaction to close in the second quarter of 2015, pending approval by Forward Funds’ shareholders and fulfillment of customary closing conditions.
Once completed, the transaction will accelerate Salient’s growth as an industry leader in innovative liquid alternatives strategies, with funds in a variety of nontraditional markets and asset classes, including master limited partnerships (MLPs"), real estate investment trust (REIT") securities, trend following, risk parity and hard-to-access equity and credit markets.
The investment strategies will be managed and supported by the combined firm’s more than 250 employees from offices in Houston, San Francisco and New York.
Salient chairman and CEO John Blaisdell said, "We are thrilled to unite with Forward in this transformational partnership. Our goal is to help investors focus on what truly matters — cost-effective investment strategies that seek to provide diversification in uncertain times. The combined platform will add scale, reach and depth to all areas of our business, helping us support institutional investors and financial advisors nationwide."
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By GlobalDataForward CEO Alan Reid said, "Salient and Forward have a lot in common — we’re both independently-owned businesses with a focus on innovation in asset management that offer risk-conscious investment tools to address challenges of modern-day markets. We have a mutual respect for the businesses we have built from the ground up, and together we will move to a new stage of development, while preserving the central tenets of what Forward has become."
Salient’s senior management team will lead the combined company, with John Blaisdell as chairman and chief executive officer and Lee Partridge as chief investment officer.
Rob Naka, Forward’s chief operating officer, will hold the same role at the newly combined company.
Both Forward and Salient’s portfolio management teams will report to Lee Partridge. Forward’s investment approach and processes are anticipated to remain unchanged.
Forward’s team will continue to operate from its existing San Francisco office.
Salient chief investment officer Lee Partridge commented, "At Salient, we believe that focusing on what matters in investing means finding better answers than the conventional wisdom of Wall Street. This focus is even more important in a world of historically low interest rates and flagging global growth. Finding outstanding portfolio management teams, like those at Forward, who share our values and these beliefs, is a rare opportunity."
Salient and Forward will combine their complementary mutual fund offerings to provide a diverse suite of innovative asset allocation and alternative strategies designed to allow investors the opportunity to create diversified portfolios or enhance their existing portfolios.
Salient plans to add to its institutional product offerings with new private funds and separately managed accounts based on Forward’s investment strategies.
The combined suite of funds will include:
– Global asset allocation, including Salient’s risk parity strategy;
– Real asset investments, including MLPs, REITs and global infrastructure strategies;
– Diversifying alternative investments, including tactical, long/short equity and trend-following strategies;
– Focused equity investments, including international, emerging market and dividend growth strategies; and
– Fixed income and credit investments, including emerging market corporate debt.
