Equity manager of the year - Morgan Stanley Investment Management
Morgan Stanley Investment Management (IM) wins Insurance Asset Risk Equity Manager of the year award for a third year in a row.
Judges have once again been impressed by the firm's track record and describe Morgan Stanley IM as a "star performer".
Morgan Stanley IM scored high across the whole metric of value drivers: investment strategy and track record, team strength and stability, insurance presence and resources, product suitability including environmental, social and governance factors and the firm's footprint.
Morgan Stanley Investment Funds (MS INVF) Global Opportunity Fund as an example has had a strong, demonstrable track record since inception, and consistent outperformance over sub-periods. For the three-year period ending 30 September 2019, MS INVF Global Opportunity Fund class Z share outperformed the benchmark at 8.26%, net of fees . As of 30 September 2019, the team managed £16.9bn ($22bn) in global opportunity strategy, of which approximately £1.2bn was for its global insurance clients.
Richard Sarsfield, European head of insurance solutions for Morgan Stanley IM, said: "The global opportunity team looks for high quality companies with diverse business drivers not tied to any particular market environment that we believe are undervalued whilst integrating ESG into its selection process. It creates concentrated portfolios of 30-45 positions of its highest conviction and focusses on long term capital growth potential [...] The team considers sustainability with respect to disruptive change, financial strength, ESG factors, and competitive advantages that can be monetised through growth."
Judges commended Morgan Stanley IM's conviction in its analysis and decisions. "MSIM seeks out disruptive factors that will become the leading and successful companies of the future," a judge said. "ESG being fully integrated is critical in finding those disruptive companies that will ensure sustainability for the future."