U.S. Trust Merges 5 Theme Funds Into a Diversified Equity Portfolio

U.S. Trust has eliminated five proprietary "theme funds," rolling their assets into a portfolio it renamed the Excelsior Blended Equity Fund.

The five are: Excelsior Aging of America, Communication and Entertainment, Environmentally Related Products and Services, Global Competitors, and Productivity Enhancers Excelsior Equity Fund.

The addition of these theme funds to what used to be called the Excelsior Equity Fund will let investors track funds that invest in companies that are related in some way, said David Thillson, U.S. Trust managing director and manager of the new fund.

"You can think of themes the same way some people would use industries," said Mr. Thillson. However, industries would be a narrower definition, he noted.

The equity fund previously invested in a number of diversified companies and followed U.S. Trust's three-pronged strategic approach, which focuses on growth, value, and small-cap stocks, Mr. Thillson said.

"What you find managing money is that strategies go in favor and out of favor. ... We want to make sure we're diversified in all three strategies," he explained.

New York-based U.S. Trust's Excelsior Blended Equity Fund has $580 million of assets under management, Mr. Thillson said. The Excelsior fund family consists of 35 domestic and international equity, fixed-income, and money market funds with $5.5 billion under management.

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