AllianceBernstein Launches Multimanager Target-Date Solution Combining Four World-Class Asset Managers

NEW YORK, June 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AllianceBernstein today announced the launch of its Multimanager Retirement Strategies (MRS) target-date solution, which combines the strength of four world-class, institutional investment managers in one target-date fund. Institutionally-priced, MRS is a cost-effective and diversified alternative to single manager target-date funds, with the distinct flexibility of providing the glide path that best meets the needs of the plan and its participants.

"More and more defined contribution plan sponsors are recognizing that the single-manager target-date funds they originally chose — perhaps retail mutual funds offered by their recordkeepers — might not be keeping up with the best thinking on target-date design available in the marketplace today," said Thomas J. Fontaine, Global Head of Defined Contribution at AllianceBernstein Defined Contribution Investments ("ABDC").  "Yet they are not quite ready to take a fully customized approach, perhaps due to the perceived effort to create and monitor these portfolios on an ongoing basis.  For these plans, we designed Multimanager Retirement Strategies, which diversifies manager risk while maintaining the simplicity and convenience of a prepackaged solution."

Benefitting from the strength of four highly-respected institutional money managers with a combined $4 trillion in assets under management, MRS delivers a compelling multimanager service with a blend of active and passive investment strategies.  The managers include PIMCO, State Street Global Advisors, Wellington Trust Company, NA, an affiliate of Wellington Management Company, LLP, and AllianceBernstein.

By leveraging the operations and technology platform AllianceBernstein has developed to deliver custom target-date portfolios, MRS gives the plan sponsor the option for future flexibility to change managers that is absent in a mutual fund structure.  

"Through our experience in designing customized target-date solutions over the past four years for some of the country's largest plans, we've gained valuable insight into what plan sponsors want and need in their target-date portfolios.  Many sponsors realize the dominant role these funds will play in their plans and are seeking better solutions," said Mark Fortier, Head of ABDC Product and Partner Strategy.  "MRS is a simple solution that grows with a plan and can adapt to its needs over time."

MRS is available to defined contribution plans with a minimum of $50 million in target-date assets.  To learn more about MRS, please go to www.abdc.com/multimanager-retirement-strategies.

ABDC is a business unit of AllianceBernstein that offers a full range of solutions to meet the needs of defined contribution plan sponsors and participants. For more information on ABDC, please go to www.abdc.com.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein is a leading global investment-management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional clients, individuals and private clients in major markets around the world. AllianceBernstein employs more than 500 investment professionals with expertise in growth equities, value equities, fixed-income securities, blend strategies and alternative investments and, through its subsidiaries and joint ventures, operates in more than 20 countries. AllianceBernstein's research disciplines include fundamental research, quantitative research, economic research and currency forecasting capabilities. Through its integrated global platform, AllianceBernstein is well-positioned to tailor investment solutions for its clients. AllianceBernstein also offers high-quality, in-depth research, portfolio strategy and brokerage-related services to institutional investors, and equity capital markets services to issuers of publicly-traded securities.

As of March 31, 2010, AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE: AB) owned approximately 36.6% of the issued and outstanding AllianceBernstein Units and AXA, one of the largest global financial services organizations, owned an approximate 62.3% economic interest in AllianceBernstein.  

SOURCE AllianceBernstein