OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ivy Investment Management Company, a subsidiary of Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. (NYSE: WDR) has entered into a preliminary agreement with Navigate Fund Solutions LLC (Navigate), a subsidiary of Eaton Vance Corp. (NYSE: EV), to support the launch by Ivy Funds of a family of NextShares™ exchange-traded managed funds.
“Adapting to evolutions in the product landscape has always been one of Ivy’s priorities, as we seek to deliver our investment products in structures that the marketplace may desire,” said Thomas W. Butch, president and CEO of Ivy Funds Distributor, Inc., and executive vice president of Ivy’s parent firm Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. “NextShares can be a progressive way to offer Ivy’s actively managed products.” Butch indicated that NextShares also may be considered for Waddell & Reed Advisors Funds, Waddell & Reed’s other retail fund family.
NextShares are a new type of actively managed fund designed to have built-in cost and tax efficiencies. Like actively managed mutual funds, they are managed by an investment team that seeks to outperform a benchmark index. However, unlike conventional exchange-traded funds (ETFs), NextShares are designed to protect the confidentiality of fund trading information and provide buyers and sellers of shares with transparency and control of their trading costs. As a result, NextShares potentially offer attractive features unavailable in other investment products. Learn more by visiting www.nextshares.com.
"Ivy Funds is an innovative and respected investment manager that we’re pleased to add as a NextShares partner," said Stephen W. Clarke, president of Navigate. "Together with broker-dealers, we seek to evolve the delivery of active management to a higher-performing and more efficient fund structure."
Among other things, the Ivy Funds launch of NextShares is subject to securing exemptive order relief from the Securities and Exchange Commission to allow it to manage exchange-traded managed funds, as well as the development of implementation technology by broker/dealers and other market participants.
About Ivy Funds
Ivy Funds offers a broad fund lineup covering all major asset categories, including international and domestic equity funds, specialty funds, fixed-income funds and money market funds.
Ivy Investment Management Company (IICO) is an affiliate of Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. (Waddell & Reed). Through its subsidiaries, Waddell & Reed provides investment management and financial planning services to clients throughout the U.S. and internationally. Waddell & Reed had approximately $123 billion in total assets under management at March 31, 2015. IICO serves as investment advisor to the Ivy Funds. Ivy Funds Distributor, Inc. is principal underwriter and distributor to the Ivy Funds. For more information, visit www.ivyfunds.com.
About Navigate and Eaton Vance
Navigate is a wholly owned subsidiary of Eaton Vance Corp. formed to develop and commercialize NextShares. Aspects of the operation of NextShares are protected intellectual property owned by Navigate.
Eaton Vance Corp. is one of the oldest investment management firms in the United States, with a history dating to 1924. Eaton Vance and its affiliates managed $307.3 billion in assets as of June 30, 2015, offering individuals and institutions a broad array of investment strategies and wealth management solutions. For more information, see eatonvance.com.
This press release is for information purposes only and is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, an offer to sell securities. The agreement described herein is preliminary in nature and non-binding, so therefore may not be executed. The launch of Ivy NextShares funds by Ivy Funds is conditional upon regulatory approval, the likelihood and timing of which cannot be predicted. Commercial success also requires completion of enabling implementation technology and acceptance by market participants, which cannot be assured. Like mutual funds, Ivy NextShares will not offer investors the opportunity to buy and sell intraday based on current (versus end-of-day) determinations of fund value. Ivy NextShares trade execution prices will fluctuate based on changes in NAV and may vary significantly from anticipated levels during periods of market volatility. Although limit orders may be used to control trading costs, they cannot be used to control or limit trade execution prices. There can be no guarantee that an active trading market for Ivy NextShares will develop or be maintained, or that their listing will continue unchanged. Buying and selling Ivy NextShares may require payment of brokerage commissions and expose transacting shareholders to other trading costs. Market trading prices of Ivy NextShares may be above, at or below NAV, will fluctuate in relation to NAV based on supply and demand in the market for shares and other factors, and may vary significantly from NAV. The return on a shareholder’s Ivy NextShares investment will be reduced if the shareholder sells shares at a greater discount or narrower premium to NAV than he or she acquired the shares. The performance of actively managed Ivy NextShares will depend in part on the portfolio managers’ successful application of analytical skill and investment judgment. An Ivy NextShares fund is not a complete investment program, and there is no guarantee that it will achieve its investment objective. It is possible to lose money on an investment in Ivy NextShares. Investors in Ivy NextShares should have a long-term investment perspective and be able to tolerate potentially sharp declines in value. An investment in Ivy NextShares is not a deposit in a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency, entity or person.
All investments are subject to risks, including possible loss of principal.
