Morningstar OBSR analysts have just recently given their highly-prized Gold rating to two M&G bond funds that are run by Richard Woolnough. The M&G Corporate Bond Fund and the M&G Strategic Corporate Bond Fund now both have Gold ratings after previously holding Silver ratings.
"We have observed the fund[s] under manager Richard Woolnough's stewardship since he joined M&G and we have increasingly high regard for his thoughtful approach and his use of M&G's wider resources," said Morningstar OBSR analyst Marianne in her research reports. "He is one of the more experienced fixed-income managers in the industry."
Both funds are mammoth in size: as of December 2012, the M&G Corporate Bond Fund had nearly £6.5 billion in assets under management, while the M&G Strategic Corporate Bond Fund had nearly £6 billion.
"Woolnough is adept at combining the team's credit analysis with his broader top-down views and has established a proven track record in successfully assessing the macroeconomic cycle and positioning the fund accordingly. We also believe that a key benefit is the expertise of the other fund managers and the large team of credit analysts that support a very robust credit analysis input to the process," said Weller.
In reaction to the Gold rating boost, an M&G representative stated: "We are delighted that Richard and the team's depth of resource and robust approach has been recognised and endorsed with these upgrades."
Woolnough also runs the massive Silver-rated M&G Optimal Income Fund, which has more than £10 billion in assets under management as of December 2012.
Understanding Morningstar's Analyst Ratings
Morningstar’s analyst fund ratings range from Gold to Negative. The ratings indicate whether Morningstar analysts are optimistic about a fund’s future performance. A Gold rating indicates Morningstar analysts think highly of a fund and expect it to outperform its peers and relevant index over a full market cycle of at least five years.
To learn more about the qualitative Morningstar analyst rating system, watch this video.
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