Axa Framlington UK Growth fund manager Jamie Hooper is leaving the firm at the end of the year after 14 years.
Hooper (pictured) joined Axa IM in November 2006 and is the lead manager responsible for the £124.3m Axa Framlington UK Growth fund and the £1.1bn Axa Framlington Managed Balanced fund. Before joining Axa IM, he was at F&C (now BMO Gam) where he managed UK equity portfolios for institutional and investment trust clients.
A press release said he is leaving on 31 December to “pursue interests outside financial services”.
Hooper will be replaced on the UK Growth fund fund by Nigel Yates who joins Axa Investment Managers Framlington UK equities team on 11 January, based in London. He will report to Axa IM Framlington co-head of global equities Linden Thomson.
The Managed Balanced strategy will be taken on by existing Axa IM managers Jamie Forbes-Wilson and David Shaw as co-managers after a handover process from Hooper between now and the year end. Existing deputy managers Mark Hargraves and Nick Hayes will move off the fund.
Under Hooper’s stewardship, the UK Growth fund has outperformed its IA peer group and the FTSE All Share over one, three and five years and is top quartile over three and five years.
| 1m | 3m | 6m | 1yr | 3yr | 5yr | 10yr | |
| Axa Framlington UK Growth Z Acc | 0.83 | 3.78 | 8.64 | -4.32 | 14.66 | 38.35 | 92.11 |
| FTSE All Share TR | 3.32 | 8.36 | 10.83 | -7.63 | -0.10 | 32.86 | 72.64 |
| IA UK All Companies TR | 3.37 | 9.56 | 13.94 | -6.10 | 2.49 | 31.04 | 82.11 |
Source: FE Fundinfo
Yates previously worked at NFU Mutual, the UK registered mutual insurance firm, where he began his career in 2001. Most recently he was managing three UK client portfolios totalling £2bn in assets: UK Growth, UK Stakeholder Pension and UK Flexibond.
In addition to managing the UK Growth fund, Yates will support Chris St John on the Axa Framlington UK Select Opportunities fund and the offshore Axa WF Framlington UK fund.
He will also help develop the asset manager’s range of sustainable funds, which will expand in 2021, the firm said in the press release.
Thomson said: “We believe there is a significant opportunity in the UK given current valuations, paired with increasing economic optimism. Nigel’s appointment bolsters our team, and given his prior experience is well positioned to hit the ground running next year.
“We are also excited about expanding our sustainable range of funds in the UK, and Nigel will be a key figure in this development.”
Yates said: “I am excited to join the UK equity team at Axa IM. They have an illustrious track record, and have an exciting platform to explore new themes and investment ideas. I can’t wait to get started.”
