Schroders Adds Index-Unconstrained Institutional Fund to US Fund Family

NEW YORK, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Schroders, the $286.1 billion(1) global asset manager, announced today the launch of a new institutional fund as part of the firm's continuing strategic effort to introduce its global equity capabilities to North America:

• Schroder QEP Global Quality Fund (ticker: SQQIX) is managed by members of the QEP Global Equities team, comprising 19 professionals based in London and Sydney and led by Justin Abercrombie.  The QEP team has a 10 year track record managing global equity portfolios and currently manages over $17 billion in assets(1). The team's investment philosophy combines traditional fund management with quantitative analysis in a 'best of both worlds' approach to index-unconstrained investing in global equities. The process starts with company fundamentals and then uses quantitative portfolio construction maximising the opportunity across a global universe of over 15,000 stocks. Finally, fund managers make the investment decisions based upon readily interpretable analysis.
• The QEP Global Quality Fund utilizes a more systematic form of growth investing that seeks to identify quality companies that are profitable, offer stable growth and are financially strong. The strategy creates significant diversification from long-term value portfolios and enables investors to construct a balanced equity portfolio.
• "The addition of this fund provides an important asset class for our institutional clients and reflects our commitment to providing them with a powerful array of high quality investment products and services," said Jamie Dorrien-Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Schroders Americas. "We are confident the strategy will attract strong interest from our clients as they become familiar with the team's investment philosophy, portfolio construction and management, and overall stock selection capabilities.

In addition, the firm has renamed the Schroder International Diversified Value Fund, which was launched in August 2006 and is managed by the QEP Global Equities team, to Schroder International Multi-Cap Value Fund, (investor shares ticker: SIDNX; advisor shares ticker: SIDVX). The name better reflects the strategy's index-unconstrained approach to international stock investing. The fund achieved top decile (8th percentile) performance in its investment category for the past three years in Lipper rankings(2). Recently the fund has earned a four star rating (out of 287 funds) from Morningstar(3).

In related news, Schroders has appointed Mark Brandreth as Co-Head of Research of QEP Global Equities team.  Mark joined at the beginning of August and will be based in London.  Mark has extensive experience in investment management having spent eleven years at Barclays Global Investors and more recently at BlackRock as a Managing Director in Scientific Active Equities. Mark will work closely with David Philpotts, Co-Head of Research based in the Sydney office, in ensuring effective communication and coordination of research functions within the team.  He will also be responsible for researching new investment ideas and implementing these into the investment process.  

Justin Abercrombie, Head of QEP Global Equities, commented: "We are extremely pleased that Mark is joining us at such an exciting stage for Schroder's QEP Global Equity team.  He brings considerable investment experience with him and I have no doubt that David and Mark will be a very effective research partnership as investors continue to show considerable interest in our distinctive approach to managing global equities."

Notes to Editors

Schroder Investment Management North America Inc.

Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. is a unit of Schroders plc (SDR.L), a global asset management company with approximately $286.1 billion under management as of September 30, 2010. Our clients include major financial institutions such as banks and insurance companies, as well as local and public authorities, public and private pension funds, endowments and foundations, intermediaries and advisors, and high net worth individuals and retail investors.

Our aim is to apply our dedicated asset management skills in serving the needs of our clients worldwide and in delivering value to our shareholders. With one of the largest networks of offices of any dedicated asset management company and over 330 portfolio managers and analysts covering the world's investment markets, we offer our clients a comprehensive range of products and services.

Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. ("SIMNA Inc.") is an investment advisor registered with the U.S. SEC. It provides asset management products and services to clients in the U.S. and Canada including Schroder Capital Funds (Delaware), Schroder Series Trust and Schroder Global Series Trust, investment companies registered with the SEC (the "Schroder Funds"). Shares of the Schroder Funds are distributed by Schroder Fund Advisors LLC, a member FINRA. SIMNA Inc. and Schroder Fund Advisors LLC. are indirect, wholly-owned subsidiaries of Schroders plc, a UK public company with shares listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Further information about Schroders can be found at www.schroders.com/us

Issued by Schroder Investment Management North America Inc.

Disclaimer

Schroders has expressed its own views and opinions in this document and these may change.

Performance shown represents past performance. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than the performance shown. Principal value and investment returns will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost can go down as well as up and is not guaranteed.

The views and forecasts contained herein are those of Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. and are subject to change. The information and opinions contained in this document have been obtained from sources we consider to be reliable. No responsibility can be accepted for errors of facts obtained from third parties. Reliance should not be placed on the views and information in the document when taking individual investment and/or strategic decisions.

Risk

All investments, domestic and foreign, involve risks including the risk of possible loss of principal. The market value of a fund's portfolio may decline as a result of a number of factors, including adverse economic and market conditions, prospects of stocks in the portfolio, changing interest rates, and real or perceived adverse competitive industry conditions. Investing overseas involves special risks including among others, risks related to political or economic instability, foreign currency (such as exchange, valuation, and fluctuation) risk, market entry or exit restrictions, illiquidity and taxation. Emerging markets pose greater risks than investments in developed markets. Please see the prospectus for a full description of the risks associated with the fund.

Please consider a fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. For a free prospectus, which contains this and other information on any Schroders fund, visit www.schroderfunds.com, call your financial advisor or call (800) 730-2932. Read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Lipper Disclosure:

Source: Lipper Inc.  Past performance is no guarantee of future results.  Rankings in the International Multi-Cap Value category are based upon average annual total returns assuming the reinvestment of all distributions at net asset value and the deduction of all fund expenses.  Each fund is ranked within a universe of funds similar in portfolio characteristics and capitalizations, as defined by Lipper Inc. The Schroder International Multi-Cap Value Fund (Investor Shares) was ranked 7/91 funds in the category or the 9th percentile of the category as of September 30, 2010 for the three-year period.  

Morningstar Rating: For each fund with at least a 3-year history, Morningstar calculates a Morningstar RatingTM based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted return measure that accounts for variation in a fund's monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of funds in each category receive five stars, the next 22.5% receive four stars, the next 35% receive three stars, the next 22.5% receive two stars and the bottom 10% receive one star. (Each share class is counted as a fraction of one fund within this scale and rated separately, which may cause slight variations in the distribution percentages.) The Overall Morningstar Rating for a fund is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five- and ten-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. Morningstar RatingTM is for individual share classes only. Other classes may have different performance characteristics. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.   The International Multi-Cap Value Fund Investor & Advisor Shares received a 4-Star rating for the three-year period ending September 30, 2010 and were compared against 287 funds in the Foreign Large Value Category.  

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Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Morningstar, Inc. has not granted consent for it to be considered or deemed an "expert" under the Securities Act of 1933.

(1) Schroders as of September 30, 2010

(2) Source: Lipper, As of September 30, 2010.

(3) Source: Morningstar, As of September 30, 2010.

SOURCE Schroder Investment Management North America Inc.