Delaware Investments Adds International Value Equity Team and Appoints New Co-Managers to Delaware Investments Global Dividend a
01 July 2005 - 3:28AM
PR Newswire (US)
Delaware Investments Adds International Value Equity Team and
Appoints New Co-Managers to Delaware Investments Global Dividend
and Income Fund, Inc. PHILADELPHIA, June 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/
-- Delaware Investments announced today that a team of seasoned
international value investment professionals has joined the firm.
The group includes Zoe Neale, Edward Gray, Todd Bassion, Margaret
MacCarthy Bacon and consultant Dr. Lawrence Franko. Formerly
together as Boston-based Arborway Capital and previously at Thomas
Weisel Asset Management (TWAM), the team, which is the
International Equity team, is led by Neale, with Gray as
co-portfolio manager, and brings its seven-year track record to
Delaware. The group, which is based in Boston, offers a variety of
international value equity mandates to the institutional market.
They report to Patrick P. Coyne, managing director and head of
equity investments. "This team brings a long-term, strategic
commitment to the international market, which is a benefit to
Delaware Investments and our clients," said Delaware Investments
President and CEO Jude Driscoll. "They are disciplined asset
managers who share our passion for performance. We believe the
addition of this team to Delaware ensures that we are solidly on
the path to providing world-class investment management across all
major asset classes." The Delaware Investments Global Dividend and
Income Fund, Inc. (NYSE:DGF) announced that Neale and Gray have
been appointed as co-managers for the international equity portion
of the Fund. They replace Delaware's Damon J. Andres in that
capacity. The Fund is a diversified, closed-end fund that trades
under the symbol "DGF" on the New York Stock Exchange. They join D.
Tysen Nutt Jr., Jordan L. Irving, Anthony A. Lombardi, Robert A.
Vogel Jr., Philip R. Perkins, Timothy L. Rabe and Andres, who
continues to co-manage a portion, in making day-to-day investment
decisions for the Fund. The Fund's primary investment objective is
to seek to provide high current income. Capital appreciation is a
secondary objective of the Fund. There is no assurance that the
Fund will achieve its investment objective. With the addition of
this Boston-based team, Delaware Investments now has a national
footprint, with headquarters in Philadelphia and offices in San
Francisco, Denver and Fort Wayne, Ind. Team members, all of who
worked together at Arborway Capital, Thomas Weisel Asset Management
and ValueQuest/TA, which was acquired by TWAM in 2002, include: --
Zoe Neale, chief investment officer, International Equity, is an
investment management veteran with extensive asset management
experience. She started her career at Anchor Capital Advisors with
portfolio management and generalist research responsibilities
before she began focusing on global research and asset management
at ValueQuest/TA, which she joined in 1996. -- Edward "Ned" Gray,
CFA, is an 18-year industry veteran whose experience at
ValueQuest/TA, TWAM and Arborway Capital includes portfolio
management, security analysis, quantitative research, performance
analysis, global research, back office/investment information
systems integration, trading, and client and consultant relations.
Prior to joining ValueQuest/TA in 1987, he served as a research
analyst at the Center for Competitive Analysis. -- Todd Bassion,
CFA, is a senior research analyst who takes a lead role in
researching new companies and validating data for ongoing portfolio
management. Bassion, who joined ValueQuest/TA in 2000, served as a
research associate there. -- Margaret MacCarthy Bacon is an
investment specialist who brings a wealth of experience including
client service, marketing, consultant relations, project management
and sales. Prior to her ValueQuest experience, she worked in
international strategies at Batterymarch Financial Management. --
Dr. Lawrence Franko is a consultant who serves as a senior research
analyst. He plays a key role in name generation, competitive
analysis and due diligence. Franko, who has an extensive background
in global corporate competition and performance, and international
finance management, has published many books and articles on these
subjects. A tenured professor of finance and strategic management
at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, he has more than 30
years of international business experience. While based in Geneva,
Switzerland for 12 years, he worked with European companies and
financial institutions. "We are thrilled to join Delaware
Investments," said Neale. "There is a cultural approach to
portfolio management, to a true team-oriented process, that's
ingrained at Delaware and it's a philosophy that very much matches
our own. We are excited to be part of an asset management company
that is as committed to and passionate about the business as we
are." In September 2004 Delaware Investments sold its London-based
international investment management unit, Delaware International
Advisers Limited, in a management buyout. The new firm changed its
name to Mondrian Investment Partners Limited. "We have a successful
relationship with Mondrian," said Coyne. "We are pleased with our
affiliation and plan to respect our mutual arrangement. Given the
importance of international investing as an asset class, we feel
strongly that we need to have internal capabilities in this area.
We look forward to rebuilding our institutional presence in the
international space, and believe that, given the ongoing capacity
constraints of many managers in this asset class, there will be
ample opportunity for us to attract institutional and retail
investors with our new team." "We're eager to pair up our new team
with our excellent domestic equity teams as we consider the
potential in global equity products," added Driscoll. "We believe
they'll be terrific complements to each other and provide us with
great capabilities in this arena." DATASOURCE: Delaware Investments
CONTACT: Marlene Petter or Christina Ward, Corporate
Communications, Delaware Investments, +1-215-255-1200, or Jim
Sjoreen, Investor Relations, Lincoln Financial Group,
+1-215-448-1420 Web site: http://www.delawareinvestments.com/
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