First Metro reports good returns on mutual funds in ’11
MANILA, Philippines—First Metro Investment Corp., a unit of George Ty-led Metrobank group, reported on Wednesday favorable returns on its managed mutual funds despite a volatile global financial backdrop in 2011.
Return on bond funds trumped those of equity-laced funds last year, reflective of the outperformance of fixed income as an asset class given an uncertain global economic environment.
The First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund led all bond funds, generating a net return of 12.34 percent for the year 2011, FMIC said, citing figures from the Philippine Investment Funds Association as of end-December last year.
The First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund ended 2011 with a net return of 8.18 percent among stock funds, while the First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund finished with a net yield of 6.62 percent. Both outperformed and posted the highest returns in their respective categories, FMIC said.
“While the Philippine economy remains to be generally healthy, local markets were not spared from the roller coaster rides in Europe and the US. The Philippine stock market index barely budged from the 2010 level, closing the year at 4,371.96, up by only 4.07 percent for the whole year,” said Augusto Cosio, president of First Metro Asset Management Inc., which manages these mutual funds.
“Nevertheless, FAMI’s equity-laced funds delivered substantial gains for their respective shareholders despite turbulence in the Philippine stock market. FAMI’s ability to manage the risk for investors during turbulent market conditions is a testament to the value of investing in mutual funds,” he added.
FAMI achieved a major milestone in 2011 by building up its assets under management to P5.13 billion.
“The milestone makes FAMI one of the fastest-growing asset management companies in the industry as it exceeded the P5-billion level in just its sixth year of operations,” said Hector de Leon, FAMI executive vice president and chief operating officer.
FMIC director Ismael Cruz, who is also president of IGC Securities, said in a recent press briefing that both fixed income and equities would be compelling this year.
FAMI is a joint venture among three major institutions. First Metro Investment Corp., which is part of the Metrobank group, owns 70 percent of FAMI, while the remaining 30 percent is divided evenly between the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) and the Marist Brothers. The two minority owners are both Catholic school operators, which partnered with First Metro to provide educational institutions and their teachers (and other employees) with sound investment vehicles in the form of the Save and Learn mutual funds.
