Lord, Abbett & Co. LLC is an independent, privately-held
investment management
Investment management is the professional asset management of various securities, including shareholdings, bonds, and other assets, such as real estate, to meet specified investment goals for the benefit of investors. Investors may be institut ...
company headquartered in
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.[New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...]
. The firm offers a variety of
fixed−income and
equity
Equity may refer to:
Finance, accounting and ownership
* Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them
** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business
** Home equity, the dif ...
strategies to individual and institutional investors. Lord Abbett has a global presence with offices in London, Dublin, Paris, Tokyo, and Montevideo.
History
On November 18, 1929, several weeks after the
stock market crash
A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock
In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especia ...
that ushered in the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
, Andrew James Lord, Leon Abbett, John R. Westerfield, and Julian B. Beaty created Lord, Westerfield & Co., Inc., with headquarters at 68 William Street, a few blocks from the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...
. In 1931, the Westerfields resigned from the company. Leon Abbett, a member of the founding group and the son of a former two-time
New Jersey governor and state Supreme Court justice, provided the capital contribution that enabled the firm to continue. The name of the company was changed to Lord, Abbett & Co. and its headquarters were moved to 63
Wall Street
Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
.
On September 19, 1932, Lord created the investment trust, American Business Shares, which is now known as the Lord Abbett Income Fund. Two years later, the Lord Abbett Affiliated Fund was launched. In 1937, the firm opened its first
west coast West Coast or west coast may refer to:
Geography Australia
* Western Australia
*Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia
* West Coast, Tasmania
**West Coast Range, mountain range in the region
Canada
* Britis ...
branch in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. Lord Abbett, along with other investment companies, made important contributions to the drafting of the Investment Company Act of 1940, which defines the responsibilities and limitations of investment firms.
In 1971, Lord Abbett launched the Lord Abbett Bond Debenture Fund, one of the first funds to invest in a combination of different types of fixed−income securities. In 1975, Lord Abbett moved into
pension fund
A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.
Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...
management.
The firm launched its institutional business in 1976, with the introduction of a large-cap value product for an institutional client. In 1978, American Utility Shares was merged into the Lord Abbett Income Fund.
The firm's assets under management increased from around $2 billion in 1975 to $4.5 billion in 1983. Ronald P. Lynch and John M. McCarthy became co-managing partners that year after Berndt's death.
In 1987, Lord Abbett moved its headquarters from Wall Street to the
General Motors Building
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
on Fifth Avenue in New York City.
In the early 1990s, fund performance and asset growth slowed, prompting the company to reorganize. After Managing Partner Ronald Lynch's passing in 1996, there was speculation that the firm would be sold. Lynch's successor, Robert Dow, opted to keep the company independent.
Dow (who had previously managed the Lord Abbett Bond Debenture Fund) increased the number of partners and expanded the mutual fund lineup to include international stocks and large-cap growth stocks.
He also oversaw the firm's move to Jersey City in 2000. Assets rose from $17 billion in 1996, when Dow took over, to more than $100 billion in 2007.
Daria Foster, who had been with the firm since 1990 in various roles, succeeded Dow in 2007.
Foster announced that she would retire on March 31, 2018 and that Douglas Sieg would succeed her. On April 2, 2018, Doug Sieg became Lord Abbett's tenth managing partner. He has worked at Lord Abbett since 1994 in various roles, including sales and product strategy, and was "partner, client services" before assuming his current role.
As of June 30, 2021, Lord Abbett managed around $246 billion in assets across a full range of U.S. mutual funds, UCITS Funds, institutional and separately managed accounts, including $1.2 billion for which Lord Abbett provides investment models to managed account sponsors.
Description
Lord Abbett is a privately owned,
limited liability company
A limited liability company (LLC for short) is the US-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...
with 752 employees and 155 investment professionals as of May 2021. The firm manages mutual funds that invest in global and domestic stocks along with fixed-income, tax-free income, and multi-asset securities.
The firm expanded into the equities market in 2019 with three new funds. The firm focuses solely on actively managed investment portfolios. Lord Abbett’s strategies are available within separate and sub-advised accounts, commingled and mutual funds, and managed account platforms.
Funds managed by the firm include the Lord Abbett Income Fund (investing in high-quality bonds), the Lord Abbett Affiliated Fund (investing in large-cap, high quality dividend-paying stocks), Lord Abbett Bond Debenture Fund (investing in below-investment-grade bonds), the Lord Abbett Developing Growth Fund (focusing on small-cap stock management), and the Lord Abbett Mid Cap Stock Fund (investing in high-growth, medium-sized companies), and a Climate Focused Bond Fund (investing in bonds issued by companies that are focusing on environmental, social, and governance (ESG).
International products
In May 2014, Lord Abbett launched a suite of UCITS
ndertakings for Collective Investments in Transferable Securitiesfunds to provide non-U.S. institutions and non-U.S. resident investors with access to select Lord Abbett investment strategies. The funds are listed on the Irish Stock Exchange.
References
External links
* {{official website, http://www.lordabbett.com/
Mutual Fund by Family – Lord AbbettLord Abbett Bond Debenture A: Fund Portfolio— ''MSN.money''
Lord Abbett Capital Structure R2 (LAMQX)— ''Yahoo! Finance''
Filife
Investment management companies of the United States
Companies based in Jersey City, New Jersey
Financial services companies established in 1929
Financial services companies based in New Jersey
1929 establishments in New York City
1929 establishments in the United States
Companies established in 1929