Virtus Investment Partners To Acquire Multi-Boutique Asset Manager

Josh O'Neill

19 December 2016

Virtus Investment Partners has agreed to acquire RidgeWorth Investments, a multi-boutique asset manager with $40.2 billion of assets under management, for an undisclosed sum.

The deal will provide strategic and financial benefits, Virtus Investment Partners said in a statement, while increasing its AuM to $86.8 billion on a pro forma basis. Additionally, the acquisition will add complementary equity and fixed-income strategies from RidgeWorth Investments' boutique managers, who will continue to operate independently.

The transaction will also diversify and expand Virtus Investment Partners' client base, particularly among institutional investors, as well as enhancing distribution resources in the private banking and investment advisor channels, the firm said.

According to Virtus Investment Partners, the deal is expected to be accretive to earnings per share, as adjusted, based on the combined profitability of the companies and anticipated synergies from the consolidation of duplicative functions.

"The acquisition of RidgeWorth will give us increased scale, a wider range of strategies for institutional and individual investors, and broader distribution and client service resources, particularly for institutional clients," said George Aylward, president and chief executive officer of Virtus Investment Partners, adding: "The combined company will have a stronger and more diversified business with the scale to better serve clients in a highly competitive industry."