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San Francisco, June 23, 2008 – Forward Management, LLC (Forward) has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of the San Francisco-based retail division of Berkeley Capital Management, LLC. The agreement includes the investment portfolios and investment team responsible for managing the Global Dividend, International Dividend, U.S. Dividend and SmallMid Core Portfolios.
This agreement will allow Forward to expand its Separately Managed Accounts (SMA) and Institutional business by doubling the number of in-house investment professionals. As part of the agreement, the current San Francisco-based Berkeley team, which includes investment, marketing and client service professionals, will join Forward.
The team specializes in dividend-based investing through its global, international and U.S. dividend strategies. They also manage a sector-neutral small/mid-core strategy designed to identify profitable niche-focused companies. Berkeley Capital Management, LLC, will now focus entirely on its primary business, its institutional division, Delta Asset Management, based in Los Angeles, CA.
“Acquiring Berkeley will provide us with a talented team with a distinguished track record,” said J. Alan Reid, Jr., President of Forward Management. “We continue to see strong demand for SMAs with our clients and investors, and this acquisition serves as a cornerstone to our strategic initiative to continue to grow our internal asset management capabilities.”
Forward continues to build out the capabilities of its internal asset management division, Forward Asset Management (FAM). Jim O’Donnell was recently promoted to president of FAM, and earlier this year, Small-Cap and Mid-Cap Intrinsic Value Portfolios were added to the line-up of SMAs.
“We are excited about the opportunities that this transaction will provide our clients and team,” said David Ruff, Berkeley’s Chief Investment Officer. “Joining Forward will give us the resources and infrastructure to effectively enhance our business,” he added.
About Forward Management, LLC
Forward Management, LLC, based in San Francisco, is the investment advisor to the Forward Funds, a family of 16 mutual funds. The firm also markets a range of separately managed accounts including Small-Cap and Mid-Cap Intrinsic Value, REIT, Micro Cap and High Income Total Return.
Forward Management offers institutional money managers, financial advisors and individual investors access to industry leading investment managers, investment products and services. The firm specializes in identifying sub-advisors who have long track records of managing assets in specific investment disciplines and asset classes.
About Berkeley Capital Management LLC
Berkeley Capital Management LLC is a California-based registered investment advisor managing assets for institutional and individual clients. Berkeley’s Delta Asset Management division manages assets for institutional investors in various core large capitalization equity strategies including diversified, concentrated and 130/30 products.
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